Every scene or action or speech has a so therefore. It is the goal, the ultimate statement of the character. You should know the so therefore as you begin your scene ... The climax and the payoff is the so therefore. from Al Ruscio s Preface

When working through a scene with a student, renowned actor and acting teacher Al Ruscio will ask, so therefore, what to urge them to capture the specific actions and desires that define their character at that moment. So Therefore interweaves tried-and-tested practical exercises with sound advice, and illustrative tales from Ruscio s remarkable career, to form a training handbook as uniquely pragmatic as his favourite phrase. Breaking down his method into three broad focuses, Ruscio considers:

• Warming Up including relaxation, going beneath the words and emotional recall;
• Scene Work ranging from character analysis to an exploration of action;
• The Play discovering its spine, progressing through rehearsals and sustaining a performance.

But So Therefore also reflects wisely on such diverse subjects as Stage versus Film, and Stamina, Luck and Chutzpah. Enriching and generous, it is the culmination of a career that has taken in dozens of major motion pictures, and spans the entire history of television as well as half a century spent training actors.

Al Ruscio graduated from the famed Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre and has been teaching acting for five decades. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Screen Actors Guild and is a current voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

Every scene or action or speech has a so therefore. It is the goal, the ultimate statement of the character. You should know the so therefore as you begin your scene ... The climax and the payoff is the so therefore. from Al Ruscio s Preface

When working through a scene with a student, renowned actor and acting teacher Al Ruscio will ask, so therefore, what? to urge them to capture the specific actions and desires that define their character at that moment. So Therefore interweaves tried-and-tested practical exercises with sound advice, and illustrative tales from Ruscio s remarkable career, to form a training handbook as uniquely pragmatic as his favourite phrase. Breaking down his method into three broad focuses, Ruscio considers:

• Warming Up including relaxation, going beneath the words and emotional recall;
• Scene Work ranging from character analysis to an exploration of action;
• The Play discovering its spine, progressing through rehearsals and sustaining a performance.

But So Therefore also reflects wisely on such diverse subjects as Stage versus Film, and Stamina, Luck and Chutzpah. Enriching and generous, it is the culmination of a career that has taken in dozens of major motion pictures, and spans the entire history of television as well as half a century spent training actors.

Al Ruscio graduated from the famed Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre and has been teaching acting for five decades. He has served on the Board of Directors of the Screen Actors Guild and is a current voting member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences."

Paul Verhoeven's attempt to couple the softcore sex film with the Hollywood musical stars Elizabeth Berkley as a Las Vegas stripper who lap-dances her way to the city's most prestigious chorus line. Vying with the show's established star for the leading role in a new erotic spectacular, Berkley gives the director (Kyle MacLachlan) a close-up demonstration of what she can do. Dave Stewart of Eurythmics provides the music for the steamy dance routines.