Substitute real life for the scene. When playing a scene with other actors, or in doing monologues, if your character is grieving, sad or upset about something or someone, substitute someone who means a lot to you in real life for the fictional character. When speaking of the death of your character's mother, think of you own mother and the emotion from that thought can come through in your words.
Create the right mindset of the character. To portray a dramatic character you will need to portray feelings or sensations that you have never experienced before. One way of dealing with this problem is by talking to others who have. Interview someone in detail about their feelings and emotions when going through their trying times. This can help you connect with the feelings through someone else.
Concentrate on your emotions. Emotions are a tricky part of acting. They cannot always be relied upon to come to the surface every time. When your emotions are truly effected by the scene, remember the feelings and concentrate on what they make your body do. By concentrating on how your body looks and reacts to certain things when the emotion is there, it can help you remember and re-create the aesthetics of emotion when they are not.
Bring energy to every performance. In order to portray a dramatic character you have to bring them to life realistically, and with energy. Energy is important in any role because it helps your body make use of the adrenaline and the endorphins coursing through it.
Use your past. When learning how to portray a dramatic character, the pain of your own past might help you connect with the text and the character you are playing. Remembering the death or traumatic event from your past that still haunts you can allow you to realistically portray those emotions for the audience.