An Actor Prepares

I read this book a few years ago, in good part out of morbid curiosity because Gary reads it to prepare for the grand showdown in that movie Team America: World Police.

Quite frankly, I don't have an acting background. I did do theater for 1 year as a forced elective in my first year of highschool because it was a class with an easy workload, but it focused more on the innards of how stages are organized and art theory over learning how to act. Worse, I was granted assisting tasks backstage during the annual play and never did any acting roles.

Therefore, I don't have the target background for the book and really didn't have any idea what I was going to read. This is not a fluff Cosmo piece about "my fulfilled dream in acting in the show more village Easter play" sort of deal. It's a highly technical book directed at aspiring actors to perform complex mind exercises to get into the jists of a role.

The book could very well be useful for spies (which is a huge part behind the plot in choosing Gary over a military recruit for Team America), acting as such, politicians, and the book can also span beyond that. You could be a businessman looking for ways to charm potential clients, but in the real world, you have the charisma of a scuttlefish. This book might be useful for many scenarios.

Is it a fun read? Not at all. The writing is very arid and delves even into philosophy and poetry at times. You could find yourself feeling nauseous simply reading it. I think it conveys its purpose well, but the writing is so tedious that I did struggle a lot reading it, which is the main reason why I gave it 3 stars.

However, you lose nothing by at least looking into the book. show less

I read this book a few years ago, in good part out of morbid curiosity because Gary reads it to prepare for the grand showdown in that movie Team America: World Police.

Quite frankly, I don't have an acting background. I did do theater for 1 year as a forced elective in my first year of highschool because it was a class with an easy workload, but it focused more on the innards of how stages are organized and art theory over learning how to act. Worse, I was granted assisting tasks backstage during the annual play and never did any acting roles.

Therefore, I don't have the target background for the book and really didn't have any idea what I was going to read. This is not a fluff Cosmo piece about "my fulfilled dream in acting in the show more village Easter play" sort of deal. It's a highly technical book directed at aspiring actors to perform complex mind exercises to get into the jists of a role.

The book could very well be useful for spies (which is a huge part behind the plot in choosing Gary over a military recruit for Team America), acting as such, politicians, and the book can also span beyond that. You could be a businessman looking for ways to charm potential clients, but in the real world, you have the charisma of a scuttlefish. This book might be useful for many scenarios.

Is it a fun read? Not at all. The writing is very arid and delves even into philosophy and poetry at times. You could find yourself feeling nauseous simply reading it. I think it conveys its purpose well, but the writing is so tedious that I did struggle a lot reading it, which is the main reason why I gave it 3 stars.

However, you lose nothing by at least looking into the book. show less

2022 Facsimile of the 1936 Edition. This work is the first volume of Stanislavski's trilogy on the art of acting; it explains the art of acting in semi-fiction form. Fusing psychological realism and expressionism, his exploratory exercises teach actors to evoke past emotions that draw out their vulnerability. Stanislavski here introduces such concepts as the "magic if," "emotion memory," the "unbroken line" and many more now famous rehearsal aids. This classic manual is written from the viewpoint of fictional actors taking lessons from a director (based on Stanislavski). Through the student's mistakes, questions, revelations, and struggles, Stanislavski teaches the actor about the stage, truth, and life itself. The first test -- When show more acting is an art -- Action -- Imagination -- Concentration of attention -- Relaxation of muscles -- Units and objectives -- Faith and a sense of truth -- Emotion memory -- Communion -- Adaptation -- Inner motive forces -- The unbroken line -- The inner creative state -- The super-objective -- On the threshold of the subconscious. show less

This is a must-read for any actor or director. Not only will the information within give you valuable insight, but it's referenced too often to not read. The narrative format serves not only to make it more interesting than a typical acting text, but also to illustrate the practical application of the ideas within.

An Actor Prepares is the most famous acting training book ever to have been written and the work of Stanislavski has inspired generations of actors and trainers. This edition, now reprinted with a new cover and more accessible price has stood the test of time in acting classes all over the world and was the original English language translation. A classic text for every actors library. Stanislavski deals with the inward preparation an actor must undergo in order to explore a role to the full. He introduces the concepts of the 'magic of' units and objectives, of emotion memory, of the super-objective and many more now famous rehearsal aids. An inspirational book presented in a drama class structure to ignite powerful performances. "An show more Actor must work all his life, cultivate his mind, train his talents systematically, develop his character; he may never despair and never relinquish this main pupose - to love his art with all his strength and love it unselfishly." Constantin Stanislavski show less

In "An Actor Prepares", Stanislavski deals with the inward preparation an actor must undergo in order to explore a role to the its full. He introduces the concepts of the 'magic of' units and objectives, of emotion memory, of the super-objective and many more now famous rehearsal aids. "An Actor must work all his life, cultivate his mind, train his talents systematically, develop his character; he may never despair and never relinquish this main pupose - to love his art with all his strength and love it unselfishly." - (Constantin Stanislavski).

Rated: B
I want to read about Stanislavski's method of acting to understand better the challenges our son, Jake, encounters in preparing for a role. He is an accomplished actor. My respect for his craftsmanship has gone way up. So proud of him.