09/12/2012
Below are some of the acting and directing books I highly recommend. It is my belief artists should draw from an assortment of tools to solve particular creative problems they encounter. These books offer a wide spectrum of useful techniques.
Constantine Stanislavski
Our godfather of acting and modern theater. All teachers, directors and actors owe him a great debt for his contribution in formulating techniques helping actors the world over in creating roles that are believable.
1. Creating A Role.
2. An Actor Prepares
3. Building A Character
4. My Life In Art
Stella Adler,
The Art Of Acting
Stella Adler focus is on playing actions to gain objectives and where the scene takes place. She stresses being large on stage and aware of history and how it affects the character. She studied with Stanislavski in Paris and was a member of The Group Theater, a Broadway and movie actress and legendary teacher whose students included, Marlon Brando.
Lee Strasberg
A Dream Of Passion - The Development of The Method
Provides insights about the creative process Strasberg made while a student of Richard Boleslavsky and as a founding member of the Group Theater and later as head of the Actor’s Studio.
Uta Hagen
Respect For Acting
A Challenge For The Actor
Uta Hagen provides a thoughtful step-by-step method of working on a part and provides a number of excellent acting exercises and keen insights on the art of acting.
Sonia Moore
The Stanislavski System.
This book is a little gem. I first read it as a young actor. Her stress on The Magic If helps actors believe in situations their character find themselves in, by using The Magic If. Sonia Moore studied with Stanislavski and his brilliant disciple Vakhtangov at the Moscow Art Theater. She was born in Russia thus had the advantage of speaking and studying with Stanislavski on his home turf in his native tongue. She had her own studio of acting where she taught acting for decades in New York City.
Harold Clurman
The Fervent Years
A great read! Wise words from a man whom many consider the greatest theater mind of the 20th Century. Harold Clurman co- founded The Group Theater. He was also a leading director and producer on Broadway for decades. He was married to Stella Adler. Imagine the table conversations they had! It chronicles the struggles and successes of The Group Theater and the inside scoop on his tumultuous relationships with Lee Strasberg, Clifford Odets and other leading lights of that era.
Robert Lewis
Advice To The Players
Method Or Madness
Robert Lewis, founding member of The Group Theater both as an actor and director. He had a long career as an acting teacher. Both books offer sound advice to the actor and unique exercises for developing one’s craft.
Sanford Meisner
Sanford Meisner was original member of The Group Theater. He was long time teacher at The Neighborhood Playhouse. Students include Robert Duvall, Steve McQueen, Jon Voight and Sandra Bullock to name but a few who had had major careers in films and on the Broadway stage.
Larry Silverberg
The Sanford Meisner Approach
William Esper and Damon Dimarco
The Actor’s Art And Craft
Both books offer techniques and insights into Sanford Meisner method. They teach actors how to listen and play off or use what their fellow actor is giving them and other techniques designed to help students live fully in the moment.
William Esper worked closely with Sanford Meisner for 17 years at The Neighborhood Playhouse and runs his own acting studio in New York City.
Eric Morris & Joan Hotchkis
No Acting Please
Irreverent Acting
No Acting Please focuses on sensory exercises, relating to people, places and objects. The goal of these exercises is to put the actor in the state of Being, thus avoiding artificial or imposed emotions.
Irreverent Acting focus is more on the craft of acting.
Terry Schreiber
Acting - Advanced Techniques For The Actor, Director & Teacher.
Terry Schreiber has laid out a number of exercises for the advanced actor on Relaxation, Concentration, Imagination, Preparations as well as a number of sensory exercises.
Ivana Chubbuck
The Power Of The Actor
Ms. Chubbuck encourages actors to make substitutions for Place as well as for other characters in the film or play. Using people and places the actor already has strong associations with, provides a ready point of reference and helps make the acting personal.
Judith Weston
Directing Actors
Ms. Weston, whom I was a fellow acting student with, at Jean Shelton’s Performance Workshop in the Bay Area has written a first rate book, based on her experience in workshops with directors and actors. Her mission- To teach directors how actors think and how to extract better performances by insuring everyone is creatively on the same page.
William Ball
A Sense Of Direction
William Ball founded San Francisco’s American Conservatory Theater. He offers keen insights on challenges directors encounter in casting and rehearsal techniques that go into building the world of the play in order to bring it to life.
Jon Jory
Ideas For Actors
Ideas For Directors
Longtime Producing Director of The Actors Theaters of Louisville has directed over 140 plays. Both reference books are designed to aid actors or directors in solving specific theatrical problems. One page essays offer hundreds of useful tips from an experienced hand.
Marina Caldarone & Maggie Lloyd- Williams
The Actor’s Thesaurus- Actions
This book offers a huge list of playable actions for Actors!
Mick Napier
Improvise
Mr. Napier background includes being a performer and Resident Director of The Second City. He challenges conventional wisdom on the rules of improvisation. He advocates true commitment on what the character is doing and building on the character’s point of view.
Steven Book
Improvisation Technique
I am in the process of reading this book. It's 600 pages long! Steven Book has a fine reputation and decades of experience as a teacher. He is a former student of Viola Spolin and was her teaching assistant in partner in Spolin Theater Game Center where he served as executive director and principal teacher.
Lajos Egri
The Art Of Dramatic Writing
Simply the best book I’ve read on writing plays. Ever! It was first published in 1942 under the title, How To Write A Play.
Focuses on play construction; premise, character and how to develop dramatic conflict. He helps the playwright see why a once promising play went off the tracks and offers methods and ideas on how to correct it.
