From A Midsummer Night's Dream's Puck to Othello's Desdemona, this new edition of Speaking Shakespeare gives you all the necessary tools to bring any of Shakespeare's eclectic characters to life. Patsy Rodenburg uses practical exercises and textual analysis to hone in on your dramatic resonance, breathing and placement in order to unlock your potential for playing these iconic characters. Speeches and scenes such as Mark Antony's 'O, pardon me, thou bleeding piece of earth' and the bloody scene in which Macbeth admits to Lady Macbeth that he has 'done the deed' are placed in context and discussed in depth. Combining clear practical, textual and imaginative work with a brilliant analysis of scenes and speeches from the whole range of Shakespeare’s plays, this is an essential and inspiring guide for anyone working on his plays today. It brings a renewed focus on the language of power, so frequently spoken in the worlds of politicians and company directors, which will give readers insight into the potency of clear, direct communication, specifically in the context of Shakespeare. Each chapter has been revised following the author's 20 additional years of experience as a voice coach and includes techniques necessary for a clear and convincing performance.

In the third volume of his "Mask: A Release of Acting Resources" David Griffiths concentrates his attention on Commedia dell'arte. Acknowledging the amount of information already available in this area, the author provides a brief but extremely lively historical/critical commentary. Despite existing on what seem to be "diametrically opposite sides of the theatrical spectrum," Griffiths points to the fascinating common factors between the genres of the Japanese Noh theatre and Commedia dell'arte. He proposes six similarities: characters familiar to their audience who appear masked, minimal properties and scenery with the focus on the actor; the "families" of performers, a sharp mind as well as an agile body, a professional living on his skills and patronage; and a knowledgeable audience. "Please Be Gentle," the witty and rumbustious play that completes this book, explores the various tricks and devices of Commedia dell'arte acting within a form and a fram

Of all the arts, drama -- with its exploration of human characters and relationships -- is closest to everyday life. This textbook emphasises this connection presenting the fundamentals of drama and acting techniques in the context of ordinary experiences and interactions. The material is arranged sequentially especially with the drama teacher in mind. Subjects progress from basic stage and acting terminology, to more advanced lessons on acting theories. Each chapter includes exercises, activities and discussion questions carefully selected to reinforce the text. Excellent for use with both advanced as well as beginning acting students.

In The Reason to Sing, renowned composer-lyricist and teacher Craig Carnelia provides musical actors with a step-by-step guide to making their singing performances more truthful, vivid, and full of life. Using a technique developed over decades of teaching the professional community of Broadway actors and students alike, The Reason to Sing utilizes detailed descriptions of sessions the author has had with his notable students and lays out a new and proven approach to help you build your skills, your confidence, and your career. This book is intended for musical theater acting students as well as working professionals and teachers of the craft.

'A book that will stand the test of time' - Pierce Brosnan An essential guide to the Stanislavski technique, filtering out the complexities of the system and offering a dynamic, hands-on approach. Provides a comprehensive understanding of character, preparation, text, subtext and objectives. How to prepare for drama school and professional auditions How to develop a 3-dimensional, truthful character Preparation exercises to help you get in character Rehearsal guidelines An appendix of Transitive/Active Verbs and more

Art Into Theatre investigates the processes of hybrid forms of performance developed between 1952 and 1994 through a series of interviews with key practitioners and over 80 pieces of documentation, many previously unpublished, of the works under discussion.
Ranging from the austerity of Cage's 4'33" through the inter-species communication of Schneeman's Cat Scanand the experimental theatre work of Schechner, Foreman, and Kirby, to the recent performances of Abramovic, Forced Entertainment and the Wooster Group, Art Into Theatre offers a fascinating collection of perspectives on the destabilizing of conventional ideas of the art "object" and the theatrical "text."
Nick Kaye's introductory essay to the volume offers a useful context for the reader and each interview is preceded by an informative biographical sketch.

The Alexander Technique has revolutionised the physicality, presence and professional lives of generations of actors. By first asking you to identify your own acquired habits, the technique enables you to find new and beneficial ways of moving, thinking, breathing and performing, freely and without unnecessary tension. Written by an experienced teacher of the Alexander Technique, this clear, supportive and highly practical book takes you step by step through a series of eleven guided lessons. Each explores different elements and principles of the technique, including: Training yourself to stay present, and mindful of your environment Thinking (but not overthinking!) in new ways Observing and developing your natural poise Sitting, standing and walking easily and effortlessly Breathing and speaking with release and power Applying all of this work to characterisation and performance With dozens of exercises and assignments to help you immediately put what you've learned into practice, and featuring illustrations throughout, this is the ideal introduction to everything the Alexander Technique has to offer - and its potential to benefit not just your work and career, but your entire life. 'Penny O'Connor's approach to the Alexander Technique is mindful and meaningful. She brings great skill, experience, wit and humanity to her work. I have learnt a great deal from her.' Jeannette Nelson, Head of Voice, National Theatre 'This comprehensive and absorbing book is essential reading for actors - and all other performers too. It moves seamlessly between explanation and experiential learning, and takes the reader on a cumulative and developmental journey of self-awareness and change, whether working alone or in a group. A joy to experience!' Niamh Dowling, Head of School of Performance, Rose Bruford College

At the time of his death, Stanislavsky considered Nikolai Demidov to be 'his only student, who understands the System'. Demidov's incredibly forward-thinking processes not only continued his teacher's pioneering work, but also solved the problems of an actor's creativity that Stanislavsky never conquered. Despite being one of the original teachers of the Stanislavski system, Demidov's name was little known either in his native Russia or the wider world until the turn of the 21st Century. Since then, his extensive works have been published in Russian but are yet to find their way to the English-speaking world. His sophisticated psychological techniques, stimulation of creativity, and methods of developing the actors themselves are now gaining increasing recognition.This book brings together Demidov's five volumes on actor training. Supplementary materials, including transcriptions of Demidov's classes, and notes and correspondence from the author make this the definitive collection on one of Russian theatre's most important figures.

This fascinating text offers the first in-depth exploration of acting processes in British television. Focused around 16 new interviews with celebrated British actors, including Rebecca Front, Julie Hesmondhalgh, Ken Stott, Penelope Wilton and John Hannah, this rich resource delves behind the scenes of a range of British television programmes in order to find out how actors build their characters for television, how they work on set and location, and how they create their critically acclaimed portrayals. The book looks at actors' work across four diverse but popular genres: soap opera; police and medical drama; comedy; and period drama. Its insightful discussion of hit programmes and its critical and contextual post-interview analysis, makes the text an essential read for students across television and film studies, theatre, performance and acting, and cultural and media studies, as well as academics and anyone interested in acting and British television.

This empowering, informative guide explains everything actors need to know about agents - how to find one, what they do, and how to work with them effectively to help you succeed in your career. If you're currently seeking an agent, discover how to research and contact them, and what they're looking for in their clients. And if you already have one, learn how to manage and get the most out of this crucial relationship. Also included are invaluable tips on how to write a great CV; obtain attention-grabbing headshots, showreels and voicereels; prepare for and excel at auditions; embrace social media; protect your mental health; and much more. The Compact Guides are pocket-sized introductions for actors and theatremakers, each tackling a key topic in a clear and comprehensive way. Written by industry professionals with extensive hands-on experience of their subject, they provide you with maximum information in minimum time.

By popular demand, we offer a follow-up book of theatre games specifically for young acting students. Written especially for those who coach adolescent actors, this delightfully fresh updated workbook tells you how, when, what and why of theatre games for young performers. Starter scenes allow first-time performers to ease onto the stage in baby steps. Spontaneity is encouraged along with etiquette and basic acting principles. The concept of pantomime, improvisation, character development, voice and body control are all presented in game format with exercises. Anyone working with young actors in schools or recreational centres will find the book exceptionally helpful.

Provides a clear and structured guide to how psychology affects circus performance and how it can be managed effectively. Written for professional circus performers and their trainers, either in professional settings or circus schools. No other book on this topic exists, with Circus Psychology being the first and only to cover the subject comprehensively.

Real life teen dilemmas written as comedy. These thirty short plays give teenage performers a chance to portray the drama of their everyday lives. They may act crazy, push boundaries and discover themselves as the plays permit them to show off their talents. The actors can create outrageous characters in the context of situations they know so well. Sample titles include: "The Kissing Booth", "Four Boyfriends", "Last Free Summer" and "The Babysitter". Inexperienced actors will come alive as performers because they playlets offer natural dialog and believable situations. The plays are for two to six actors. It is excellent for contest use.

Far more than simply an overview of improv comedy, this book helps actors, writers and comedians learn the basics as taught in all the major comedy schools. First, the do'sand don'ts of the Comedy Improv Commandments. The concepts that, when understood, hit the student like falling anvils: Anvil 1: Collaboration -- Working with the 'Group Mind', Anvil 2: Agreement -- 'Just say Yes', Anvil 3: Foundation -- 'Who, What and Where", Anvil 4: Exploring -- 'Finding the Game'. Successful improv requires the skill of the actor, the talent of the comedian and the ideas of the writer rolled into one. This book tells how it can all be done for performers or teachers.

Drama, History, Great Britain, Tudor Era, Elizabethan Era, Stuart Era, acting & auditioning

Somatic Voices in Performance Research and Beyond brings together a community of international practitioner-researchers who explore voice through soma or soma through voice. Somatic methodologies offer research processes within a new area of vocal, somatic and performance praxis. Voice work and theoretical ideas emerge from dance, acting and performance training while they also move beyond commonly recognized somatics and performance processes. From philosophies and pedagogies to ethnic-racial and queer studies, this collection advances embodied aspects of voices, the multidisciplinary potentialities of somatic studies, vocal diversity and inclusion, somatic modes of sounding, listening and writing voice. Methodologies that can be found in this collection draw on: eastern traditions body psychotherapy-somatic psychology Alexander Technique, Feldenkrais Method Authentic Movement, Body-Mind Centering, Continuum Movement, Integrative Bodywork and Movement Therapy Fitzmaurice Voicework, Linklater Technique, Roy Hart Method post-Stanislavski and post-Grotowski actor-training traditions somaesthetics The volume also includes contributions by the founders of: Shin Somatics, Body and Earth, Voice Movement Integration SOMart, Somatic Acting Process This book is a polyphonic and multimodal compilation of experiential invitations to each reader's own somatic voice. It culminates with the "voices" of contributing participants to a praxical symposium at East 15 Acting School in London (July 19-20, 2019). It fills a significant gap for scholars in the fields of voice studies, theatre studies, somatic studies, artistic research and pedagogy. It is also a vital read for graduate students, doctoral and postdoctoral researchers.

Secrets of Screen Acting Fourth Edition is a step-by-step guide to the elements of successful screen acting. When it was first published in 1993, Secrets of Screen Acting broke new ground in explaining how acting for the camera is different from acting on stage. Reaction time is altered, physical timing and placement are reconceived, and the proportions of the digital frame itself become the measure of all things, so the director must conceptualize each image in terms of this new rectangle and actors must 'fit' into the frame. Based on a revolutionary non-Method approach to acting, this book shows what actually works: how an actor, an announcer, or anyone working in front of the cameras can maximise the effectiveness of their performances on screen. This fourth edition is completely updated to cover new techniques, film references, and insights, including: Updated information on vocal work outside acting, such as audio books and voice overs; Guidance on the technique of "whisper acting"; New information about working with video games, Facebook, TikTok, Twitter, and other non-traditional forms of screen work; Updated guidance on self-taping auditions; Coverage of working with CGI and invisible acting partners in green screen; Information on typecasting and stereotyping; A quick History of Theatre and Film in 10 pictures; A new emphasis on illustrations depicting acting techniques; Information on and best practices for presenting oneself to the industry; Many new illustrations, all specifically drawn for this edition. This book is perfectly suited for Acting for the Screen university courses, actors training on their own, and actors involved in all forms of screen work, including Zoom, Skype, Vox Pops, and more.

The classic voice-training book for actors, teachers of voice and speech and anyone interested in vocal expression - by a pre-eminent voice teacher, actor and director. Fully revised and expanded edition. Linklater's approach is to liberate the voice you have rather than apply vocal techniques from the outside. Her basic assumption is that everyone possesses a voice capable of expressing whatever emotion, mood or thought he/she experiences. This edition incorporates vocal exercises developed over three decades to help the voice connect viscerally with language - a key element in the actors' craft. 'a radical breakaway from the old formal methods... an invaluable new resource... essential' Educational Theatre Journal 'the best and only work of its kind for vocal training' Educational Theatre News

This book presents truthful human behaviour on stage and screen. It is definitely not a 'how-to' book! This book articulates the intangible - how to capture lightning in a jar. It works to develop awareness in order to help the aspiring actor evolve, grow and mature as a performer. Acting is an art that comes from oneself - no tricks, no special techniques. Every great artist begins as a craftsman then develops into an artist. Each of the 100 plain-speaking lessons in this book is brief and deals with an essential truth. The book is divided into 5 sections: Approach, Fundamentals, Classes and Rehearsals, Performance, and Final Lessons. This is a supplemental work for students and professionals.

The Art of Knife Fighting for Stage and Screen: An Actor's and Director's Guide to Staged Violence provides detailed information for the safe use of knives and daggers in a theatrical setting and an in-depth understanding of safe theatrical weapons. The book starts with an extensive safety review, then moves on to the basic techniques of dagger fighting, starting with grip and body postures. Readers will then learn about the basic actions of cuts, parries, blocks, and disarms. During this process, they will explore the connection between body and weapon and start learning the elements of storytelling through choreography. Special attention is given to suicides, threats, and murder and how directors, choreographers, performers, teachers, and students can approach these techniques in a way that is physically and mentally safe. The book also covers the use of throwing knives, knife flips, and other tricks to help add a little flair to your fight. The Art of Knife Fighting for Stage and Screen teaches the safe theatrical use of the knife for directors, performers, educators, and students of stage combat.

Understand the business side of your showbiz career We all know acting can be a glittering whirl of glamour--plush red carpets, simply divine outfits, huge sums of money, and oh, the parties! But what a lot of wannabe actors forget is that it takes a lot of practical work to get to the flashbulbs of your first premiere, and that the savviest actors put as much stress on the business side of the profession as they do on the show. Breaking Into Acting For Dummies demystifies the behind-the-curtain side of showbiz to help you understand how it really works, who the decision-makers are, what they're looking for when they're picking talent, and how to get them on your side. If you truly want to be the next Emma Stone or Leonardo DiCaprio, you'll want to have a well-thumbed copy of this book alongside your pile of scripts. Written by two friendly insiders, this guide takes you behind the scenes to help you map out your plan of attack, showing you how to open doors--and keep them open--and use your time wisely, so you're not breaking a leg rushing from one random audition to another. You'll understand how to flesh out your professional persona as thoroughly as a movie part, craft your resume as minutely as a script, and judge the angle of your headshots and webcam appearances as intimately as any director. Once you've mastered these skills, it's time to go to market as your own publicity department, building your media and online presence until everyone who's anyone knows exactly who you are. Understand different acting markets--from theater to commercials Network in-person and online Build your image via resumes, head shots, and webcam Keep a firm grip on the financial side Whether you're studying, a hopeful amateur, or have been treading the boards for a while, this is your breakthrough script for succeeding in the business of acting, and for learning how to play your ultimate role: yourself.