The Art of Acting

Stella Adler, as proven in her book, is the queen of acting. Her book not only explores her opinions and ideas about modern acting, traditional acting, and various techniques but actual exercises to use and expand your imagination. From the garden exercise to the Kahlil Gibran essay she recommends, everything in there really is helpful. I had no idea what it had to do with acting but it really does make a world of difference to your acting.

Of course, you cannot possibly expect to like this book if you are a devout "Method" fan. She really does appear to be not only what people say about her (harsh, scary) but also a genuinely interesting, smart lady. I only wish she was alive so I could study with her, personally.

Stella Adler is arguably the most important teacher of acting in American history. Over her long career, both in New York and Hollywood, she offered her vast acting knowledge to generations of actors, including Marlon Brando, Warren Beatty, and Robert De Niro. The great voice finally ended in the early Nineties, but her decades of experience and teaching have been brilliantly encapsulated by Howard Kissel in the lessons in this book. The groundbreaking theories of the great acting teacher who influenced such outstanding actors as Marlon Brando, Robert DeNiro & Warren Beatty are now made available for a wide audience. This book is compiled from her voluminous class notes as well as audio & videotape of her teaching & is destined to show more become a classic in the fields of acting & theatre. Drawing on an archive of notebooks, transcriptions, and audiotapes of Adler's work, Kissel (cultural critic with the New York Daily News) presents the lessons and insights she brought to the craft of acting. Adler's classroom lectures are presented, and their significance is discussed. She addresses the discipline of the actor's body, mind, and imagination. She looks at the techniques for creating believable characters and bringing authenticity to the performance, and the importance of understanding time, setting and style. show less