Combining life-coaching and screen-acting tools and techniques in one accessible handbook, this guide empowers actors to overcome personal inhibitions and approach their work, characters and careers with the assuredness to produce powerful, real and believable acting on screen. Structured to build confidence and understanding of yourself before you take on the role of someone else, this book offers the tools and techniques to give you the necessary conviction and self-assurance to perform uninhibited. Dresner then examines essential elements of a screen actor's craft, such as emotions, imagination, nerves, focus, listening, improvisation and line-learning. Published in partnership with The Actor's Centre, the book includes online videos of coaching sessions with professional actors and is ideal for readers and teachers looking to replicate the method in their own training.

Babies have no problem in vocalising - they cry, loud and long. But as we learn how to speak language, a highly intellectual activity, we increasingly depend on speech and body language to express what we wish to communicate. This is fine for ordinary conversation but there are times for most of us when we need to be able to use our voices to present ourselves in a wider context. Most people are vocally better equipped than they know. Usually some unconscious habit gets in the way. The Voice Book shows you simply and practically what is going wrong - and how to put it right. Whether you are a professional or amateur actor, classical or popular singer, politician, public speaker, or need to present for business, church or college, The Voice Book will help you to discover how to use your voice freely, powerfully and with pleasure.

This work has inspired the work of countless actors, directors, and writers in theatre, television and film. Spolin's improvisational techniques have changed the very nature and practice of modern theatre. This third edition updates the more than 200 now-classic exercises and adds 30 new ones. It adds 30 traditional theatre games that are frequently used as warm-ups. It includes Spolin's explanations of key concepts crucial to her programme, and collects "The Sayings of Viola Spolin" and adds a glossary of phrases for teachers and directors, with Spolin's definitions of their meaning and value. Most significantly, though, this edition makes available "The Lone Actor". In this section, Spolin offers games for individuals to play when they are alone. It is an important piece that should expand Spolin's teachings and influence to an entirely new audience.

In this richly detailed study, James Naremore focuses on the work of film acting, showing what players contribute to movies. Ranging from the earliest short subjects of Charles Chaplin to the contemporary features of Robert DeNiro, he develops a useful means of analyzing performance in the age of mechanical reproduction; at the same time, he reveals the ideological implications behind various approaches to acting, and suggests ways that behavior on the screen can be linked to the presentation of self in society. Naremore's discussion of such figures as Lillian Gish, Marlene Dietrich, James Cagney, and Cary Grant will interest the specialist and the general reader alike, helping to establish standards and methods for future writing about performers and their craft.

Hamlet is a characteristic intellectual more inclined to lecture actors about their craft than listen to them, and is a precursor of Enlightenment figures like Diderot and Lessing. This book is a quest for the voice of early professional actors, drawing on English, French and other European sources to distinguish the methods of professionals from the theories of intellectual amateurs. David Wiles challenges the orthodoxy that all serious discussion of acting began with Stanislavski, and outlines the comprehensive but fluid classical system of acting which was for some three hundred years its predecessor. He reveals premodern acting as a branch of rhetoric, which took from antiquity a vocabulary for conversations about the relationship of mind and body, inside and outside, voice and movement. Wiles demonstrates that Roman rhetoric provided the bones of both a resilient theatrical system and a physical art that retains its relevance for the post-Stanislavskian performer.

The Singer Acts, The Actor Sings is a practical workbook for singers and actors of all disciplines, from musical theater through classical repertory to popular performance styles. This book addresses the needs of both students and professionals, helping them to face the challenges of musical performance undaunted and to achieve the exhilarating feeling of living through song. Paired with online video exercises and demonstrations, The Singer Acts, The Actor Sings is an essential resource for actors and singers alike, helping them master both art forms and gain deeper insight into their own strengths. Whether you're a singer seeking a straightforward approach to acting, an actor who wants to sing, or a singing actor desiring to take your performances to the next level, this book will prove invaluable in achieving your goal.

"Brecht on Performance: Messingkauf and Modelbooks" presents a selection of Brecht's principal writings for directors and theatre practitioners, and is suitable for acting schools, directors, actors, students and teachers of Theatre Studies. Through these texts Brecht provides a general practical approach to acting and to realising texts for the stage that crystallises and makes concrete many of the more theoretical aspects of his other writing.The volume is in two parts. The first features an entirely new commentated edition of Brecht's dialogues and essays about the practice of theatre, known as the "Messingkauf," or "Buying Brass," including the 'Practice Pieces' for actors (rehearsal scenes for classics by Shakespeare and Schiller). The second contains rehearsal and production records from Brecht's work on productions of" Life of Galileo," "Antigone," "Mother Courage" and others.Edited by an international team of Brecht scholars and including an essay by director and teacher Di Trevis examining the practical application of these texts for theatres and actors today, "Brecht on Performance" is a wonderfully rich resource. The text is illustrated with over 30 photographs from the "Modelbooks."

From the authors of the successful Grand-Guignol and London's Grand Guignol - also published by UEP - this book includes translations of a further eleven plays, adding significantly to the repertoire of Grand-Guignol plays available in the English language. The emphasis in the translation and adaptation of these plays is once again to foreground the performability of the scripts within a modern context - making Performing Grand-Guignol an ideal acting guide. Hand and Wilson have acquired extremely rare acting copies of plays which have never been published and scripts that were published in the early years of the twentieth century but have not been published since - even in French. Includes plays written by, or adapted from, such notable writers as Octave Mirbeau, Gaston Leroux and St John Ervine as well as examples by Grand-Guignol stalwarts Rene Berton and Andre de Lorde. Also included is the 1920s London translation of Blind Man's Buff written by Charles Hellem and Pol d'Estoc and banned by the Lord Chamberlain. A brief history of the Parisian theatre is also included, for the benefit of readers who have not read the previous books.

An intensely practical handbook for actors on how to cope with text, subtext, character and situation. With a preface by Kenneth Branagh. Having helped the actor with basic vocal technique in her enormously successful book, Finding Your Voice, Barbara Houseman here shows the actor how to cope with the demands posed by the text [and the subtext] of the play itself. Full of practical exercises developed over many years of working with actors of all ages and experiences, Tackling Text [and subtext] is an indispensable handbook for any actor working with text - from acting students and young professionals, to experienced actors wanting to tackle specific problems and acting coaches wanting to discover new ways of enabling their students. 'If you want to improve as an actor, read this book... it helps restore the hard work of the actor as fresh, playful and fun' Kenneth Branagh, from his Preface 'An inspiring teacher... a hugely motivating force in my work' Daniel Radcliffe 'Barbara's work starts with the voice, passes through the physical - and results in a character. Her teaching helps total performance' Jude Law

An inspiring and interactive workbook to help you develop skills for longform improvisation, by one of the UK's top improv performers and teachers. Structured as a twelve-week course, this book provides techniques, advice and exercises that can be done on your own or in groups - with activities to complete as you go - for learning faster and becoming (more) amazing at improvisation. It draws on the author's own experience of performing and teaching improv around the world, with added gems of wisdom from key experts. Starting with the basics of improvisation, it moves on to explore areas of the craft such as rehearsals, character, editing, form and style; plus career advice including how to cope with bad gigs, jealousy, fear of missing out and your Inner Critic. The Improviser's Way is ideal for improvisers at any level - from those new to improv entirely, through those familiar with shortform who are looking to extend their reach, to experienced longform performers and teachers looking to refresh their approach and embrace new ideas. It is also invaluable to anyone looking to discover more about this popular, thrillingly creative and empowering form of performance. By the end, you won't just be a better improviser - you'll be a better person!

In this landmark work Keith Johnstone provides a revelatory guide to rediscovering and unlocking the imagination. Admired for its clarity and zest, Impro lays bare the techniques and exercises used to foster spontaneity and narrative skill for actors. These techniques and exercises were evolved in the actors' studio, when he was Associate Director of the Royal Court and then in demonstrations to schools and colleges and ultimately in the founding of a company of performers called The Theatre Machine. Divided into four sections, 'Status', 'Spontaneity', 'Narrative Skills' and 'Masks and Trance', arranged more or less in the order a group might approach them, the book sets out the specific approaches which Johnstone has himself found most useful and most stimulating. The result is a fascinating exploration of the nature of spontaneous creativity. 'If teachers were honoured in the British theatre along-side directors, designers and playwrights, Keith Johnstone would be as familiar a name as are those of . . . Jocelyn Herbert, Edward Bond and other young talents who were drawn to the great lodestone of the Royal Court Theatre in the late 1950s. As head of the script department, Johnstone played a crucial part in the development of the 'writers' theatre.' Irving Wardle

This book highlights the contributions and careers of Native Americans who have carved impressive careers in Hollywood, from the silent film era of the early 1900s to the present, becoming advocates for their heritage. This book explores how the heritage and behind-the-scenes activities of Native American actors and filmmakers helped shape their own movie images. Native artists have impacted movies for more than a century, but until recently their presence had passed largely unrecognized. From the silent era to contemporary movies, this book features leading Native American actors whose voices have reached a broad audience and are part of the larger conversation about the exploitation of underrepresented people in Hollywood. Each chapter highlights Native actors in lead or supporting roles as well as filmmakers whose movies were financed and distributed by Hollywood studios. The text further explores how a "pan-Indian heritage" that applies to all tribes in terms of spirituality, historical trauma, and a version of ceremony and storytelling have shaped these performers' movie identities. It will appeal to a wide range of readers, including fans of Westerns, history buffs of American popular cinema, and students and scholars of Native American studies. Interviews with today's Native American actors and filmmakers Rare photos of Native artists in film and behind the scenes Foreword by noted film historian and archivist Jan-Christopher Horak Stories of the emergence of Native women in Hollywood Contributions of Native American "consultants" in the movie industry Script revisions of early films highlighting the heritage of Native actors

An actor's deepest desire is to be understood. But when asked to pronounce such words as "chanson," "phantasime," or "quaestor," many otherwise unflappable actors can be rendered speechless. The "Eloquent Shakespeare" aims to untie those tongues and help anyone speak Shakespeare's language with ease. More than 17,500 entries make it the most comprehensive pronunciation guide to Shakespeare's words, from the common to the arcane. Each entry is written in the International Phonetic Alphabet and represents standard American pronunciations, making this dictionary perfect for teachers, actors, and directors all over North America. Renowned Shakespearean voice and text coach Gary Logan has spent years teaching Shakespeare's works to some of the best actors in the world. His book includes proper names and foreign words and phrases, as well as an extensive introduction that covers everything from how to interpret the entries to scansion dynamics. Designed especially for actors, directors, stage managers, and teachers, "The Eloquent Shakespeare" is a one-of-a-kind resource for performing Shakespeare's dramatic works.

A must-have resource for aspiring actors: both monologues to audition with and a step-by-step guide on the best monologue audition preparation! Great Monologues: And How to Give Winning Auditions is primarily for actors looking for excellent acting monologues for their monologue auditions. There are original monologues written specifically for auditions, as well as monologues from award-winning playwright Glenn Alterman's plays. There are comedic, dramatic, and serio-comedic monologues for all audition calls. Great Monologues also offers a step-by-step process to prepare for all monologue auditions. The monologues offered run from one minute to five minutes, thus covering all audition times. There are also a number of in-depth interviews with major casting directors, directors, and theatre company artistic directors. If you are an aspiring actor in need of an audition monologue, or want the best advice on how to properly audition with a monologue, Great Monologues: And How to Give Winning Auditions is a must-have in your collection!

Intended for actors, directors, teachers and researchers, this book offers an exceptionally clear and thorough introduction to the renowned acting technique developed by Michael Chekhov. Sinead Rushe's book provides a complete overview of the whole method, and includes illuminating explanations of its principles, as well as a wide range of practical exercises that illustrate, step by step, how they can be applied to dramatic texts. Part One provides an outline of the ideas that underpin the work, which help to prepare practitioners to become responsive and receptive, and to awaken their imagination. Part Two charts a journey through the foundational psychophysical exercises that can both orient an actor's training routine and be applied directly to the development of a role. Part Three focuses on more specific and elaborate methods of scene work, characterisation and the art of transformation. Drawing on the full range of Chekhov's writing in English and French, this book also examines unpublished material from the Dartington Hall archives and features interviews with actors who have worked with the technique, including Simon Callow and Joanna Merlin. It illustrates Chekhov's approach by referring to Rushe's own productions of Nikolai Gogol's short story Diary of a Madman and Shakespeare's Othello, as well as characters and scenes in Sarah Kane's Blasted and the contemporary American television series Breaking Bad. Michael Chekhov's Acting Technique is an accessible, comprehensive and contemporary point of reference for those already trained in the method, as well as an initiation and toolkit for practitioners who are just beginning to discover it.

What actors do on-screen is a fascination for audiences all over the world. Indeed, the cultural visibility of movie stars is so pronounced that stardom has often been regarded as intrinsic to the medium's specificity. Yet not all great cinematic performances are star turns, and so, what really makes a cinematic performance good, interesting, or important has been a neglected topic in film criticism. This two-volume set presents detailed interpretations of singular performances by several of the most compelling actors in cinema history, asking in many different and complementary ways what makes performance meaningful, how it reflects a director's style, as well as how it contributes to the development of national cinemas and cultures. Whether noting the precise ways actors shape film narrative, achieve emotional effect, or move toward political subversion, the essays in these books innovate new approaches to studying screen performance as an art form and cultural force. This volume focuses on American cinema, including case studies of key performances from actors like Bette Davis, Irene Dunne, Whoopi Goldberg, Cary Grant, Oscar Isaac, Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, Sidney Poitier, Gena Rowlands, Peter Sellers, Kristen Stewart, and Ethel Waters, amongst many others.

What actors do on-screen is a fascination for audiences all over the world. Indeed, the cultural visibility of movie stars is so pronounced that stardom has often been regarded as intrinsic to the medium's specificity. Yet not all great cinematic performances are star turns, and so, what really makes a cinematic performance good, interesting, or important has been a neglected topic in film criticism. This two-volume set presents detailed interpretations of singular performances by several of the most compelling actors in cinema history, asking in many different and complementary ways what makes performance meaningful, how it reflects a director's style, as well as how it contributes to the development of national cinemas and cultures. Whether noting the precise ways actors shape film narrative, achieve emotional effect, or move toward political subversion, the essays in these books innovate new approaches to studying screen performance as an art form and cultural force. This second volume focuses on international cinema, and includes case studies of key performances from actors like Ingrid Bergman, Gael Garcia Bernal, Nikolai Cherkassov, Alec Guinness, Setsuko Hara, Isabelle Huppert, Peter Lorre, Madhubala, Anna Magnani, Toshiro Mifune, and Choi Min Sik, amongst many others.

The Process of Drama provides an original and invaluable model of the elements of drama in context, and defines how these are negotiated to produce dramatic art.
John O'Toole takes the reader through a lively, fascinating account of the relationships between the playwright, the elements of dramatic art, and the other artists involved in this most interactive of creative processes. In doing so he demonstrates - with clarity and wit - how dramatic meaning emerges; how the dramatic event is constructed. Areas covered include:
roles and relationships
the drama space
language and movement
tension and the audience
gesture and movement
This is an essential book for every student of drama who wants to understand how the theatrical art form operates

eBook available with sample pages: 0203359615

The Laban Workbook is a compendium of unique exercises inspired by the concepts and principles of movement theorist and artist, Rudolf Laban. Written by five internationally recognized movement experts, this textbook is divided into single-authored chapters, each of which includes a short contextual essay followed by a series of insight-bearing exercises. These expert views, honed in the creation of individual approaches to training and coaching actors, provide a versatile range of theory and practice in the creative process of crafting theatre. Readers will learn: Enhanced expressivity of body and voice; Clearer storytelling, both physical and vocal, facilitating the embodiment of playwrights' intentions; Imaginative possibilities for exploring an existing play or for creating devised theatre. Featuring many exercises exploring the application of Laban Movement Studies to text, character, scene work, and devised performances - as well as revealing the creative potential of the body itself - The Laban Workbook is ideal for actors, teachers, directors and choreographers.

'The Feldenkrais Method is unique... I haven't found any other movement study that opens up such a rich and continuing area of enquiry' John Wright, from his Foreword Spontaneity, sensitivity, simplicity and flexibility in any situation are just some of the qualities that the Feldenkrais Method has inspired in performers around the world. It uses movement to enable you to feel, adapt and respond in new ways - not just in limited, habitual patterns - thereby increasing your physical, emotional and mental potential. Written by an experienced actor, theatre-maker and Feldenkrais practitioner, Feldenkrais for Actors leads you through a range of topics where using the Method can help, such as: Presence and Posture The Role of Tension Emotion, Character and Creativity Voice and Breath Injury and Anxiety Also included are dozens of exercises and lessons so that you can experience how the Method will help you in practice. Feldenkrais for Actors is the result of thirty years of study and experience of the Method, and the benefits it can bring. It is invaluable for actors at any stage of their career, as well as for singers, dancers, musicians, martial artists, athletes and more.

To support a new generation of actors/acting teachers by coupling fresh ideas and new approaches with the best proven methods and practices. "On Acting" is written primarily for the contemporary American actor. It strives to address the acting process with an eye toward the performance culture and requirements that exist today. It is a book for the new twenty-first century artist--the serious practical artist who seeks to pursue a career that is both fulfilling and viable.

The text features a balance of philosophy, practical advice, anecdotal evidence/experiences and a wide variety of acting exercises/activities. Also included is the short Steven Breese play "Run. Run. Run Away" and an example of a scene score from that play.