- Table View
- List View
Actors on Guard: A Practical Guide for the Use of the Rapier and Dagger for Stage and Screen
by Dale Anthony GirardActors on Guard is the most comprehensive and detailed book on the art of theatrical swordplay available today. It provides the reader with the historical, theoretical and practical basis for learning, practicing and presenting theatrical sword fights. Focusing specifically on the Elizabethan rapier and dagger (the most popular weapons used in stage fights), Actors on Guard provides actors, directors, teachers, stage managers and technicians the skills and knowledge essential to presenting safe and effective fights, both for stage and screen.
Actors on Guard: Training, Rehearsal and Performance Techniques with the Rapier and Dagger for the Stage and Screen
by Dale Anthony GirardActors on Guard, Second Edition is the most comprehensive book covering the current practices in learning, rehearsing and performing safe and dynamic swordfights with the single rapier and the rapier and dagger for both stage and screen. Focusing specifically on the Elizabethan rapier and dagger – the most popular weapons used in stage fights – Actors on Guard provides actors, directors, teachers, stage managers and technicians the skills and knowledge essential to presenting safe and effective swordfights. The book takes the reader through the complex process of selecting safe stage weapons, learning the basic handling and management of the rapier and dagger, as well as how to safely move and interact in the potentially dangerous process of learning, rehearsing and performing choreographed swordplay. This new edition has been revised with current industry practices, featuring hundreds of step-by-step practical exercises in the care and handling of prop swords, footwork, guards, parries, cutting and thrusting techniques, blade taking actions, disarms, wounds and kills using the rapier and dagger, with revised diagrams and photographs. An excellent sourcebook for university stage combat classes as well as self-learners, Actors on Guard provides the reader with the historical, theoretical and practical basis for mastering the art of sword fighting for the stage and screen. The book includes access to a wealth of online resources, with additional information that expands upon specific mechanics, techniques and concepts covered in the text as well as some video demonstrations of solo and partnered techniques and exercises.
Actors on Guard: Training, Rehearsal and Performance Techniques with the Rapier and Dagger for the Stage and Screen
by Dale Anthony GirardActors on Guard, Second Edition is the most comprehensive book covering the current practices in learning, rehearsing and performing safe and dynamic swordfights with the single rapier and the rapier and dagger for both stage and screen.Focusing specifically on the Elizabethan rapier and dagger – the most popular weapons used in stage fights – Actors on Guard provides actors, directors, teachers, stage managers and technicians the skills and knowledge essential to presenting safe and effective swordfights. The book takes the reader through the complex process of selecting safe stage weapons, learning the basic handling and management of the rapier and dagger, as well as how to safely move and interact in the potentially dangerous process of learning, rehearsing and performing choreographed swordplay. This new edition has been revised with current industry practices, featuring hundreds of step-by-step practical exercises in the care and handling of prop swords, footwork, guards, parries, cutting and thrusting techniques, blade taking actions, disarms, wounds and kills using the rapier and dagger, with revised diagrams and photographs.An excellent sourcebook for university stage combat classes as well as self-learners, Actors on Guard provides the reader with the historical, theoretical and practical basis for mastering the art of sword fighting for the stage and screen.The book includes access to a wealth of online resources, with additional information that expands upon specific mechanics, techniques and concepts covered in the text as well as some video demonstrations of solo and partnered techniques and exercises.
The Actor's Other Career Book: Using Your Chops to Survive and Thrive
by Lisa MulcahyActors don't have to become Broadway stars to make a living with their acting talents. The Actor's Other Career Book pulls back the curtain to reveal more than 50 permanent and temporary positions available in cruise ships, trade shows, retail stores, advertising agencies, corporate settings, education, social outreach, tourist attractions, physical fitness, and much more. Whether actors are looking to continue performing in new venues or apply their skills to a new field, this is the resource to help make the transition. Interviews with successful actors reveal how others looked beyond the stage for lucrative and satisfying work, how they applied their training and background to their current positions, and how they achieved success on their own terms. A comprehensive listing of organizations, Web sites, companies, and publications provide a wealth of tools. All actors looking to take control of their futures will need this book.
An Actor’s Research: Investigating Choices for Practice and Performance
by Tamsin Stanley Philippa Strandberg-LongAn Actor’s Research: Investigating Choices for Practice and Performance presents an accessible and highly practical guide to the research approaches required of the actor. It aims to establish the precision and rigour of the actor’s craft that is intrinsic to a compelling acting performance, explore a range of research activities surrounding and emerging from practical work in the studio, and enable the actor to evolve a multifaceted skillset in researching for performance. The chapters focus on different research areas such as the self, character, relationships, circumstance, and context, providing accessible and practical guidance to developing a personal research practice. Each aspect is explained and engaged with as practice, rather than study – offering helpful hints and advising against common pitfalls – ultimately enabling the actor to locate the necessary knowledge to shape and inform their performance in both text-based and devised scenarios. Additionally, as the actor’s self is a personal instrument that is drawn on in terms of expression, impulses, and imagination; the self also becomes a source for creative appraisal and research. This book therefore offers comprehensive advice and strategies for self-evaluation and reflection, connecting research investigation with self-exploration in making expressive performance choices, making it a practice highly applicable to the actor’s needs. An Actor’s Research closely follows the training actor’s needs in terms of performance-based research; however, its practical research activities for text and character creation and strategies for the development of critical thinking and self-reflective skills support the ongoing development of the actor and their craft in both training and professional circumstances.
The Actor's Scenebook
by Michael Schulman Eva MeklerHere is wonderful, up-to-date material for scene study, selected from the best plays from recent theater seasons. More than 20 monologues for both men and women, carefully chosen to display the widest range of dramatic ability, are essential for auditioning actors. A large selection of parts for woman provide exciting opportunities to sharpen acting skills in roles that brought accolades from New York's toughest critics. More than 80 scenes in all, many previously unpublished, allow every actor, professional, amateur or student, to choose from either smart, sassy, often outrageous comedy or deeply moving drama--a unique, balanced collection of the most successful contemporary plays. 84 fully playable scenes with story notes. Monologues from the best new plays--including Agnes of God, Sly Fox, Key Exchange and Nuts. The best contemporary selection of scenes for women--more than 50 in all.
The Actor's Secret: Techniques for Transforming Habitual Patterns and Improving Performance
by Betsy PolatinOffering revolutionary new training for the actor, The Actor's Secret teaches actors and performers how to incorporate the fundamentals of the Alexander Technique, Somatic Experiencing®, and Breathing Coordination in order to reduce performance anxiety and stress; improve stage presence, breathing, and vocal production; and restore well-being and healthy functioning. These three kinesthetic disciplines are designed to lead to profound change and healing through body-mind reeducation. Part I explains in detail the principles of the three techniques. A practical method for self-improvement and neuromuscular reeducation, the Alexander Technique focuses on changing inefficient habits of movement and patterns of tension that inhibit the ability to move easily. Breathing Coordination helps increase breathing capacity and awareness. A method for resolving emotional trauma, Somatic Experiencing® follows a process of tracking bodily sensations to restore vitality and health. Enhanced with over 100 instructive photos, Parts II and III present explorations and exercises that draw on elements of the three methods. Topics covered include the importance of presence and non-doing; the proper mechanics of vocalization and singing; the understanding of character and role; and the actor's journey from auditions to performance, including initial script preparation, rehearsal, monologue, and scene work. Developed by Betsy Polatin, a movement specialist and master lecturer at Boston University's College of Fine Arts, the book's exercises provide the actor with simple tools for exploring his or her acting work. Most techniques and self-help books teach a new way of "doing." The secret of this book lies in "non-doing." When the actor learns to first recognize and then suspend habitual patterns, he or she opens the door to deeper artistic choices. "I have worked with many fine Alexander Technique teachers over the years and Betsy Polatin is far and away one of the finest. Her touch, her instincts, and her knowledge are miraculous."--Andre Gregory, actor and director, My Dinner with Andre
The Actor's Survival Handbook
by Patrick Tucker Christine OzanneWorried about short rehearsal time? Think that fluffing your lines will be the end of your career? Are you afraid you'll be typecast? Is there such a thing as acting too much? How should a stage actor adjust performance for a camera? And how should an actor behave backstage?The Actor's Survival Handbook gives you answers to all these questions and many more. Written with verve and humor, this utterly essential tool speaks to every actor's deepest concerns. Drawing upon their years of experience on stage, backstage, and with the camera, Patrick Tucker and Christine Ozanne offer forthright advice on topics from breathing to props, commitment to learning lines, audience response to simply landing the job in the first place. The book is rich with examples - both technical and inspirational. And because a director and an actor won't always agree, the two writers sometimes even offer alternative responses to a dilemma, giving the reader both an actor's take and a director's take on a particular point.Like Patrick Tucker's Secrets of Screen Acting, this new book is written with wit and passion, conveying the authors' powerful conviction that success is within every actor's grasp.
The Actor's Survival Kit: Fifth Edition
by Miriam Newhouse Peter MessalineThe Actor’s Survival Kit is required reading in Canadian theatre schools and is a constant resource for its many readers across the country. This fifth edition gives actors fresh research from today’s experience, new lists of Canada-wide contacts, and input from success stories. It speaks to a new generation of artists, giving them an up-to-date guide to the business of acting. The book addresses a range of new issues: performer websites, video self-production, and sending rmand networking on the Internet. It also takes a fresh look at old ones: agents, self-promotion, and work opportunities for women and minorities. The authors learn by constantly talking to emerging artists about the problems they face in the business in Canada. Often those conversations begin with, "You wrote the book!" The authors are still receiving thanks from grateful artists who have been guided by this irreplaceable book over the years.
An Actor's Task: Engaging the Senses
by Baron KellyAn Actor's Task provides a framework for studying the dual arts of acting: inhabiting a character both physically and psychologically. Actors at all levels can use this book to explore, develop, and review the sensory tools and training that enable them to be the best versions of themselves and, ultimately, to bring that understanding of "self" to their art. Innovative new exercises and selected classics--updated for today's students--comprise more than 100 exercises. Introductions to each exercise explain its aims and benefits. Clear step-by-step prompts provide guidance. Debriefing sections engage actors in reflection on what they have experienced and learned. This inspired text is equally suited to classroom use and individual study.
The Actor's Way
by Erik Exe ChristoffersenCan 'stage presence' be acquired? Why do some actors appear more dynamic in performance than others? In The Actors Way four experienced actors talk about the secrets and the practical realities of over twenty-five years of theatre training with Odin Teatret. Under the unique direction of Eugenio Barba, director of Odin Teatret, they have explored issues such as the connections between physical and mental work on stage, how to gain and control the spectator's attention, and intercultural performance techniques. The Actor's Way is a fascinating account of personal and professional development in the theatre. It will be vital reading for drama students and actors, but enjoyable and illuminating for anyone interested in the craft of acting.
The Actor's Way: A Journey of Self-Discovery in Letters
by Benjamin LloydThis is required reading for anyone passionate about the theater, acting, and the teaching of it. The struggles of a young actor, the actor/director relationship, the challenges of teaching art in universities, ageism, and techniques for teaching realistic acting are all communicated through a fictional series of letters between Andy, an anguished young New York City actor and Alice, his Quaker grade-school acting teacher.
An Actor's Work: A Student's Diary
by Konstantin StanislavskiStanislavski’s ‘system’ has dominated actor-training in the West since his writings were first translated into English in the 1920s and 30s. His systematic attempt to outline a psycho-physical technique for acting single-handedly revolutionized standards of acting in the theatre. Until now, readers and students have had to contend with inaccurate, misleading and difficult-to-read English-language versions. Some of the mistranslations have resulted in profound distortions in the way his system has been interpreted and taught. At last, Jean Benedetti has succeeded in translating Stanislavski’s huge manual into a lively, fascinating and accurate text in English. He has remained faithful to the author's original intentions, putting the two books previously known as An Actor Prepares and Building A Character back together into one volume, and in a colloquial and readable style for today's actors. The result is a major contribution to the theatre, and a service to one of the great innovators of the twentieth century.
An Actor's Work: A Student's Diary (Routledge Classics)
by Konstantin StanislavskiStanislavski’s ‘system’ has dominated actor-training in the West since his writings were first translated into English in the 1920s and 30s. His systematic attempt to outline a psycho-physical technique for acting single-handedly revolutionized standards of acting in the theatre. Until now, readers and students have had to contend with inaccurate, misleading and difficult-to-read English-language versions. Some of the mistranslations have resulted in profound distortions in the way his system has been interpreted and taught. At last, Jean Benedetti has succeeded in translating Stanislavski’s huge manual into a lively, fascinating and accurate text in English. He has remained faithful to the author's original intentions, putting the two books previously known as An Actor Prepares and Building A Character back together into one volume, and in a colloquial and readable style for today's actors. The result is a major contribution to the theatre, and a service to one of the great innovators of the twentieth century. This Routledge Classics edition includes a new Foreword by the director Richard Eyre.
An Actor's Work on a Role
by Konstantin StanislavskiAn Actor’s Work on a Role is Konstantin Stanislavski’s exploration of the rehearsal process, applying the techniques of his seminal actor training system to the task of bringing truth to one’s chosen role. Originally published over half a century ago as Creating a Role, this book was the third in a planned trilogy – after An Actor Prepares and Building a Character, now combined in An Actor’s Work – in which Stanislavski sets out his psychological, physical and practical vision of actor training. This new translation from renowned scholar Jean Benedetti not only includes Stanislavski’s original teachings, but is also furnished with invaluable supplementary material in the shape of transcripts and notes from the rehearsals themselves, reconfirming 'The System' as the cornerstone of actor training.
Actors Write for Actors
by Deborah Cowles ScottDramatic and Comedic Monologues \ M and F \ Bare Stage \ The author's of this new monologue collection have all worked as actors - and, more importantly, have spent years auditioning for roles. Actors Write for Actors was written on the premise that the selection of monologues available from published plays is limited and the best pieces are more often than not overdone. Deborah Cowles Scott, Jason Milligan and Robert Spera have created fresh material to add to the existing body of audition pieces available to the actor. Most of these audition monologues were written for the Actors Theatre of Louisville's Apprentice Company and have been used by some of the country's top actors. This book is a must for every actor's library.
The Actress (The Martha Beale Mysteries #4)
by Cordelia Frances BiddleA nineteenth-century Philadelphia heiress must rescue a friend from a criminal underworld in a series that &“wonderfully evokes the color and culture of the time&” (Publishers Weekly). Becky Grey Taitt is not the sort of woman who would typically infiltrate a gang of counterfeiters, but she is desperate for a powerful judge&’s help in preventing her abusive husband from taking custody of her child—and that&’ss the price the judge set in exchange for his aid. But the plan goes awry, and now Becky is trapped among criminals and killers. Her only hope is her friend Martha Beale, who, along with her beau, Thomas Kelman, will do everything possible to rescue Becky, in this tale of political machinations, revenge, and murder. &“Fresh and believable. Biddle knows her manner and her city, and shows both to great advantage.&” —The Plain Dealer &“An intricately orchestrated narrative that implicates the Brahmin class and the corruption that comes with their absolute power.&” —Publishers Weekly Praise for the Martha Beale Mysteries &“The setting is unfolded as vividly as the characters, from the &‘commoners&’ working the textile mills to the unseemly criminal types of the upper-crust elite. . . . A fine mix of history and mystery.&” —Booklist &“A first-rate mystery.&” —Julia Spencer-Fleming, New York Times–bestselling author of Hid from Our Eyes &“A good read . . . skillfully evokes the elegant society salons and grubby streets of 1842 Philadelphia.&” —Philadelphia Magazine
The Actress
by Agatha ChristiePreviously published in the print anthology The Harlequin Tea Set and Other Stories. Jake Levitt can't believe his luck when, one evening at the theatre, he recognizes the lead actress as Nancy Taylor, a girl he knows a lot about. A story of blackmail and murder ensues
Actress: A Novel
by Anne EnrightMan Booker Prize-winner and bestselling author Anne Enright's latest--a brilliant and moving novel about fame, sexual power, and a daughter's search to understand her mother's hidden truths.This is the story of Irish theatre legend, Katherine O'Dell, as written by her daughter Norah. It tells of early stardom in Hollywood, of highs and lows on the stages of Dublin and London's West End. Katherine's life is a grand performance, with young Norah watching from the wings. But this romance between mother and daughter cannot survive Katherine's past, or the world's damage. As Norah uncovers her mother's secrets, she acquires a few of her own. Then, fame turns to infamy when Katherine decides to commit a bizarre crime. Actress is about a daughter's search for the truth: the dark secret in the bright star, and what drove Katherine finally mad. Brilliantly capturing the glamour of post-war America and the shabbiness of 1970s Dublin, Actress is an intensely moving, disturbing novel about mothers and daughters and the men in their lives. A scintillating examination of the corrosive nature of celebrity, it is also a sad and triumphant tale of freedom from bad love, and from the avid gaze of the crowd.
Actress: A Novel
by Anne EnrightLonglisted for the 2020 Women's Prize for Fiction One of Time's 100 Must-Read Books of 2020 “A critique, a confession, a love letter—and another brilliant novel from Anne Enright.” —Ron Charles, Washington PostKatherine O’Dell is an Irish theater legend. Every moment of her life is a performance, with her daughter, Norah, standing in the wings. With age, alcohol, and dimming stardom, however, Katherine’s grip on reality grows fitful. Fueled by a proud and long-simmering rage, she commits a bizarre crime.As Norah’s role gradually changes to Katherine’s protector, caregiver, and finally legacy-keeper, she revisits her mother’s life of fiercely kept secrets; and Norah confronts in turn the secrets of her own sexual and emotional coming-of-age. With virtuosic storytelling, Actress weaves together two generations of women with difficult sexual histories, touching a raw and timely nerve.
The Actress: Hollywood Acting and the Female Star
by Karen HollingerThe Actress: Hollywood Acting and the Female Star investigates the contemporary film actress both as an artist and as an ideological construct. Divided into two sections, The Actress first examines the major issues in studying film acting, stardom, and the Hollywood actress. Combining theories of screen acting and of film stardom, The Actress presents a synthesis of methodologies and offers the student and scholar a new approach to these two subjects of study.
The Actress: A Novel
by Amy SohnA talented young actress. A leading man. A sexy secret. The role of a lifetime. In this big, juicy literary novel from bestselling author Amy Sohn, an ambitious young actress discovers that every marriage is a mystery, and that sometimes the greatest performances don't take place on screen.When Hollywood heartthrob Steven Weller pulls Maddy Freed out of obscurity for a starring part in his newest, Oscar-worthy film, she feels her career roaring onto the express track. Steven's professional attention soon turns personal as they are thrown together amid Europe's Old World charm, and Maddy allows herself to tumble headlong into a fairytale romance with the world's most eligible bachelor. She knows there's no truth to the gay rumors that have followed him for years. Yet what is it that Steven sees in Maddy that he has not seen in his string of past girlfriends? Steven tells her he is drawn to her stunning gift as an actress--her ability to inhabit a character so seamlessly, so convincingly, that it is nearly impossible to tell she is playing a role--a compliment that becomes more ominous as their marriage progresses. Ultimately, as Maddy's own happiness and success grow intertwined with her new husband's, she cannot afford to ask too many questions about Steven's complicated past. But can she ignore her inner voice, and her instincts about her own worth? Set in a tantalizing world of glamour and scandal, of red carpets and ruthless competition, of scheming agents and the prying eye of the press, The Actress is a romantic, sophisticated page-turner about the price of ambition, the treachery of love, and the roles we all play.
Actress Becomes Brothel Master: Volume 1 (Volume 1 #1)
by Li YouAs a formidable figure in the 21st century, she had actually transmigrated into the body of such a good-for-nothing? Aiyo, aiyo, this was truly taking her life. With her character, how could she possibly endure this humiliation?If anyone dared to bully her, they would definitely slap them in the face one by one! In addition to her cool acting, who would believe that she was merciless?She was secretly laughing in her heart, but was bewitched by this handsome prince.So there was actually such a good-looking person in ancient times!
Actress Becomes Brothel Master: Volume 2 (Volume 2 #2)
by Li YouAs a formidable figure in the 21st century, she had actually transmigrated into the body of such a good-for-nothing? Aiyo, aiyo, this was truly taking her life. With her character, how could she possibly endure this humiliation?If anyone dared to bully her, they would definitely slap them in the face one by one! In addition to her cool acting, who would believe that she was merciless?She was secretly laughing in her heart, but was bewitched by this handsome prince.So there was actually such a good-looking person in ancient times!
Actress Becomes Brothel Master: Volume 3 (Volume 3 #3)
by Li YouAs a formidable figure in the 21st century, she had actually transmigrated into the body of such a good-for-nothing? Aiyo, aiyo, this was truly taking her life. With her character, how could she possibly endure this humiliation?If anyone dared to bully her, they would definitely slap them in the face one by one! In addition to her cool acting, who would believe that she was merciless?She was secretly laughing in her heart, but was bewitched by this handsome prince.So there was actually such a good-looking person in ancient times!