Acting books

Hi everyone,

First of all I hope you're all coping well or as best as you can through this terrible time. We find ourselves at the moment bombarded with online seminars, workshops, self tapes, zoom calls etc. as helpful as some of it is, part of me is so overwhelmed with tech I want to go back to basics & learn with a nice book I can relax with, does anyone recommend a good book about acting?

or at least ones you enjoyed & got the most from?

Thanks for reading.


  • 3 years ago
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Nicole Marci
Actor

Stanislavski.


  • 3 years ago
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An Actor Prepares, by Constantin Stanislavski
To the Actor , by Michael Chekhov
Strasberg’s Method , by S. Loraine Hull
The Art of Acting, by Stella Adler
Sanford Meisner on Acting By Sanford Meisner


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Lucie Browne
Actor

Improv by Keith Johnstone I thought was a good 'un. Felt useful, and practical not too theoretical/academic. X


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Michael Good
Actor

I don't like sport, I can't sit and watch a football match to save my life, I quite like watching Snooker but only because its so restful. My eldest brother is the opposite, been into a lot of sports over the years, and plays a lot of golf these days. 

A couple of years ago I bought him a book for Xmas, a Sports Psychology book called 'With Winning in Mind' by Lanny Basham, before I wrapped it, I gave it the once over and became quite engrossed. It seems to me that the pressure a golfer or snooker player is under when taking an all important deciding shot especially at a televised event is very similar to the pressure and Actor is under as they audition for an important job. I've since looked at a few Sports Psychology books and they seem to have a lot to say about performance pressure and the 'inner game' and developing the correct mindset. To my mind these helpful hints and tips seem immediately transferable to the lot of an Actor, and they seem to get to the point a lot quicker than any book I've found in the Drama section.

Books on Acting, understandably enough, all seem to be written by older Theatre Directors and Drama Teachers, they want their particular methods and approach to be recorded for posterity, so they cram it all into one long-winded tome, their pensions are then supplemented by healthy sales as the book is bought by the many out of work Actors who feel the need to do something pro-active about their struggling careers, but as soon as the Actor gets an acting job to concentrate on, the book is thrown into the corner to gather dust, never to be retrieved.

Needless to say my brother never got the book, its staying on my shelf, and if I need further help - I'll be in the Sports section of Foyles/Waterstones etc, those books have a lot more to teach Actors than you'd think.


  • 3 years ago
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Hi Tony, here are a few books I enjoyed reading in the past and will revisit now you’ve prompted me to think anout them again -

Respect For Acting - Uta Hogen with Haskel Frankel

The Invisible Actor - Yoshi Oida and Lorna Marshall

And for a bit of a giggle -

The Art of Course Acting - Michael Green


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This is all great stuff everyone thanks, I've ordered a few I just think tech is taking over maybe too much & going back to basics & enjoying a noise free learning & information based medium seems quite nice at the moment.


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The Art of Film Acting : A Guide For Actors and Directors by Jeremiah Comey


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Victoria Simmonds
Actor, Singer

In the Company of Actors - Carole Zucker
Stagecraft - Trevor Griffiths


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Toni Brooks
Actor

A Life-coaching Approach to Screen Acting by Daniel Dresner.


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Different every night - Mike Alfred


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Hello Tony, 'The Handbook of Acting Techniques' is interesting - no right or wrong - just different approaches. As a fiction book, 'The Understudy' is quite fun!


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Hey Tony...

Depending on what you are after...

What's My Motivation/ The Rules of Acing by Michael Simkins (for something light hearted).

The Actor's Art & Craft/The Actor's Guide to Creating A Character by William Esper ( Meisner based - if you want a more practical read).

Enjoy!


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Toni Brooks
Actor

Michael Simkins is hilarious. Another one for light relief is The Art of Course Acting by Michael Green. Old but very funny.


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