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Actor at Work, The, 8/E
Robert Benedetti, California Institute of the Arts

ISBN-10: 0205318886
ISBN-13: 9780205318889

Publisher: Pearson
Copyright: 2001
Format: Cloth; 256 pp
Published: 06/01/2000

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Description

The Actor at Work presents experiential exercises designed to help students develop a complete understanding of the physical, vocal, analytical, and ethical aspects of acting.

For more than thirty years, Robert Benedetti's highly acclaimed The Actor at Work has offered students a thorough focus on the underlying principles of the acting process.

Features

Combines Stanislavski's “Method” with techniques drawn from contemporary psychology to teach students a broad range of approaches to the acting process.

Stresses the sense of purpose, personal discipline, and the ethics of acting.

Provides numerous lessons and experiential exercises that prepare students for self-discovery and personal growth.

Introduces the basics of acting for the camera, an area of growing interest to students today.

Contains an appendix of sample scenes that can be used as exercise material for students.

New To This Edition

Divides speech and voice material into two distinct chapters to focus more on each important topic.

Contains an appendix of useful plays for students' further reading and practice.

Includes a sample scene from “Cheers,” which is the kind of material more familiar to today's students.

Provides greater clarity of examples and writing in an effort to be even more accessible to students.

Table of Contents

All chapters conclude with “Summary.”

List of Exercises.

Foreword by Ted Danson.

Preface.

Acknowledgments.

I.PREPARING YOURSELF.

1.The Actor in You.

The Skills of the Actor.

Acting and Your Personal Growth.

Discipline.

2.The Creative State.

Tension and Excessive Effort.

Restful Alertness.

Being Whole.

Relaxation.

The Here and Now.

3.Centering and Moving.

Your Relationship to Gravity.

The Pure Center and the Voice.

The Actor's Use of Center.

The Cycle of Energy.

Grounding.

Phrasing Movement.

4.Gesture.

Communication through Gesture.

The Genesis of Gesture.

Implied Gestures in the Text.

5.Voice.

The Voice and Emotion.

The Source of the Voice.

Tone Production.

The Voice and Inner Dynamic.

The Voice and Attitude.

Using Your Own Voice.

6.Speech.

The Process of Speech.

Nasal Sounds.

Oral Sounds: Vowels and Diphthongs.

Oral Sounds: Consonants.

Speech and Character.

Further Training of Body and Voice.

7.The Performance Space.

The Stage.

Directions on Stage.

The Scale of Performance.

8.Working with Others.

The Bodily Center and Relationship.

Commitment, Support, and Communication.

Transaction and Teamwork.

II.ACTION.

9.Action.

Action According to Stanislavski.

Action in Life.

Internal and External Action.

Believability.

Indicating.

10.Action and the Acting Process.

Public Solitude.

Dual Consciousness.

Action and Emotion.

Action and Character.

Personalization and the Magic If.

The Acting Process.

11.Needs, Actions and Objectives.

Wants and Needs.

Actions and Objectives.

Defining Productive Objectives.

Connecting Action with Others.

Spontaneity.

12.Playable Actions.

Defining Playable Actions.

Units of Action.

The Given Circumstances.

13.The Flow and Shape of Drama.

Action and Reaction: The Life of the Scene.

The Shape of Drama.

Drama and Conflict.

14.Beats and Scenes.

Analyzing Beats: The Score.

Scene Structure.

15.Through-Line and Superobjective.

The Superobjective.

III.CHARACTER.

16.The Function and Elements of Character.

Dramatic Function.

Functional and Likeness Traits.

Categories of Character Traits.

Physical Traits.

Social Traits.

Psychological Traits.

Moral Traits.

Economy of Characterization.

A Character Checklist.

17.The Character's Mind.

The Instroke of Reaction.

Choice.

Automatic Actions.

Direct and Indirect Action.

Not Doing: Suppression.

18.The Character's Language.

Word Choice: Text and Subtext.

Rhythm.

Melody.

Imagery.

19.The Character's Body.

Personality in the Body.

The Character's Center.

The Flow of Bodily Energy.

Physique and Personality.

Body Alignment and Character.

20.The Character's Emotion.

From Action to Emotion: Working from the Outside In.

From Thought to Emotion: Working from the Inside Out.

Emotional Recall and Substitution.

The Role of Emotion in Performance.

IV.THE WORKING PROCESS.

21.The Rehearsal Process I: Finding the Content.

Auditions.

Preparation and Homework.

Early Read-Throughs.

Getting Up and Off Book.

Exploring the Action.

22.The Rehearsal Process II: Developing the Form.

Establishing the Score.

Blocking.

Justifying the Blocking.

The Groundplan and Setting.

23.The Rehearsal Process III: Preparing to Open.

Shaping and Pacing the Performance.

Making Final Adjustments.

Technical and Dress Rehearsals.

Growth after Opening.

24.The Actor at Work.

Supporting Each Other.

Free and Open Communication.

You and Your Director.

The Fear of Failure.

The Desire for Success.

Your Sense of Purpose.

Afterword: Transformation.

Appendix A: Sample Scenes.

Death of a Salesman.

The Glass Menagerie.

Cheers.

Appendix B: Useful Plays.

Appendix C: An Action Checklist.

Bibliography.

Notes.

Index.

Courses

Introduction to Acting (Theatre)

Next Edition(s)

Actor at Work, The, 10/E
Benedetti
©2009 | Pearson | Cloth; 224 pp | Out of Stock
ISBN-10: 0205542077 | ISBN-13: 9780205542079
Suggested retail price: $125.40 Net price: $94.05 (What's this?)Brief Description |
This edition marks the 40^th Anniversary of this classic and comprehensive introduction to acting. With this new edition, Benedetti continues to provide students with wide-ranging insight into the techniques and demands of acting today. Centered on the concept of action, The Actor at Work covers all the major skills of the actor, including voice, speech, movement, analysis and role-playing. Using many ideas from contemporary psychology and various physical and spiritual disciplines, this text helps students uncover and develop the actors within themselves, as it encourages self-discovery through participatory activities and exercises.
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Actor at Work, The, 8/E