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In this follow up to his most famous book, An Actor Prepares, Stanislavski develop his influential 'system' of acting by exploring the imaginative processes at the heart of the actor's craft. Building a Character deals with the physical realisation of character on the stage through such tools as expressions, movement and speech. It is a book in which every theory is inextricably bound up with practice - a perfect handbook to the physical art of acting. The work of Stanislavski has inspired generations of actors and trainers and - available now in the Bloomsbury Revelations series to mark the 150th anniversary of Stanislavski's birth - it remains an essential read for actors and directors at all stages of their careers.

The Invisible Actor presents the captivating and unique methods of the distinguished Japanese actor and director, Yoshi Oida. While a member of Peter Brook's theatre company in Paris, Yoshi Oida developed a masterful approach to acting that combined the oriental tradition of supreme and studied control with the Western performer's need to characterise and expose depths of emotion. Written with Lorna Marshall, Yoshi Oida explains that once the audience becomes openly aware of the actor's method and becomes too conscious of the actor's artistry, the wonder of performance dies. The audience must never see the actor but only his or her performance. Throughout Lorna Marshall provides contextual commentary on Yoshi Oida's work and methods. In a new foreword to accompany the Bloomsbury Revelations edition, Yoshi Oida revisits the questions that have informed his career as an actor and explores how his skilful approach to acting has shaped the wider contours of his life.

Stanislavski in Practice is an unparalleled step-by-step guide to Stanislavski’s System. Author Nick O’Brien makes this cornerstone of acting accessible to teachers and students alike. This is an exercise book for students and a lesson planner for teachers on syllabi from Edexcel, WJEC and AQA to the practice-based requirements of BTEC. Each element of the System is covered practically through studio exercises and jargon-free discussion. Over a decade’s experience of acting and teaching makes O’Brien perfectly placed to advise anyone wanting to understand or apply Stanislavski’s system. Features include: Practical extension work for students to take away from the lesson Notes for teachers on how to use material with different age groups Exam tips for students based on specific syllabi requirements A chapter dedicated to using Stanislavski when rehearsing a text A glossary of terms that students of the System will encounter

Packed full of drama games, ideas and suggestions, Drama Menu is a unique new resource for drama teachers.

The art of armed and unarmed stage combat thrills actors and audiences alike the world over. This book details many of the foundational techniques used by actors studying stage combat and actor-movement disciplines. A variety of specific training exercises are described that connect the actor's imagination to a cohesive and meaningful actor-training curriculum – integrating stage combat with the actor's process of developing a fully embodied awareness of the physical life of the character. Developing physical awareness and dexterity is an essential component of an actor's training and rehearsal processes. Engagement, connection, the ability to listen and respond with authenticity, clarity, flexibility, intentionality, tactical response, variety are all helpful aspects for the actor studying combat movement. With practical exercises and expert advice, Stage Combat Arts allows the actor to further hone their emotional connection and extension, breath and voice, intention and focus, movement and freedom, and their ability to connect physically to imagery and text – disciplines that are at the foundation of actor-training – all through the art of combat movement.

"... a remarkable collection of observations and reflections on past experiences by many excellent artists and teachers that will doubtless help... those interested in creating 'opera magic.'" -- Tito Capobianco Singing, Acting, and Movement in Opera is designed for use in opera and musical theater workshops and by beginning professional singers. Drawing on years of research, teaching, and performing, Mark Ross Clark provides an overview of dramatic methodology for the singing actor, encouraging the student's active participation through practical exercises and application to well-known works. The Singer-getics method emphasizes integration of the various dimensions of opera performance, creating synergies among vocal performance, character development, facial expression, and movement on the stage. The book presents important information about stagecraft, characterization, posture, historical styles, performance anxiety, aria, and scene analysis. Excerpts from interviews with performers, directors, conductors, coaches, composers, and teachers offer insights and advice, allowing the reader to "meet the artists." An appendix by postural alignment specialist Emily Bogard describes techniques of relaxation and self-awareness for the performer. This lively book will appeal to students, teachers, professionals, and general readers alike.

Michael Lugering's The Expressive Actor presents a foundational, preparatory training method, using movement to unlock the entire acting process. Its action-based perspective integrates voice, movement and basic acting training into a unified approach.

Published in France in 1987, this is the book in which Lecoq first set out his philosophy of human movement, and the way it takes expressive form in a wide range of different performance traditions. He traces the history of pantomime, sets out his definition of the components of the art of mime, and discusses the explosion of physical theatre in the second half of the twentieth century. Interviews with major theatre practitioners Ariane Mnouchkine and Jean-Louis Barrault by Jean Perret, together with chapters by Perret on Étienne Decroux and Marcel Marceau, fill out the historical material written by Lecoq, and a final section by Alain Gautré celebrates the many physical theatre practitioners working in the 1980s.

The Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the postmodern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with—space and time—into six categories. Since that time, directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors to function together spontaneously and intuitively and to generate bold, theatrical work. The Viewpoints are a set of names given to certain principles of movement through time and space—they constitute a language for talking about what happens on stage. Coupling this with Composition, which is the practice of selecting and arranging the separate components of theatrical language into a cohesive work of art, provides theatre artists with an important new tool for creating and understanding their art form. Primarily intended for the many theatre artists who, in the last several years, have become intrigued with Viewpoints yet have had no single source to refer to in their investigations. It can also be used by anyone with a general interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life. Anne Bogart is Artistic Director of the SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is the recipient of two OBIE Awards and a Bessie Award, and is an associate professor at Columbia University. Her recent works include Alice’s Adventures; Bobrauschenbergamerica; Small Lives, Big Dreams; Marathon Dancing; and The Baltimore Waltz. Tina Landau, noted director and playwright, whose original work includes Space (Time magazine 10 Best), Dream True (with composer Ricky Ian Gordon) and Floyd Collins (with composer Adam Guettel), which received the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical, an OBIE Award and seven Drama Desk nominations. She has been an ensemble member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company since 1997.