The Actor As Storyteller: An Introduction to Acting

by Miller, Bruce

• ISBN13: 9780879103866
• ISBN10: 0879103868
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2012-01-01
• Publisher: NATIONAL BOOK NETWORK

Summary

Most high school and college actors enroll in theater programs to learn about the craft. Often their impressions of what acting is all about were developed by watching television and film. Many have little or no knowledge of theater and how it works. The Actor as Storyteller is intended for serious beginning actors. It opens with an overview, explaining the differences between theater and its hybrid mediums, the part an actor plays in each of those mediums. It moves on to the acting craft itself, with a special emphasis on analysis and choice-making, introducing the concept of the actor as storyteller, then presents the specific tools an actor works with. Next, it details the process an actor can use to prepare for scene work and rehearsals, complete with a working plan for using the tools discussed. The book concludes with a discussion of mental preparation, suggestions for auditioning, a process for rehearsing a play, and an overview of the realities of show business. Included in this updated edition are: * A detailed examination of script analysis of the overall play and of individual scenes * A sample of an actor's script, filled with useful script notations * Two new short plays, one written especially for this text * Updated references, lists of plays, and recommended further reading

Author Biography

Bruce Miller is a professor and the director of acting programs at the University of Miami, where he teaches acting and script analysis. Miller has conducted acting workshops nationally and internationally, including a series for the Educational Theatre Association's Professional Development Program, and is the winner of the EDTA's Founders Award given for lifetime achievement in educational theater. Miller is a member of AEA, SAG, and AFTRA and holds an MFA in acting from Temple University. He lives in Miami, Florida.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. xi
Background
Why the Theatre to Study Acting?	p. 3
Acting Students Today	p. 3
The Ravages of Mass Media	p. 6
Discovering All Your Actor's Roots	p. 7
Going to the Source	p. 8
Summary	p. 12
What Is Theatre?	p. 13
A Definition of Theatre	p. 13
The Performer	p. 16
The Performance	p. 18
The Audience	p. 19
Summary	p. 21
Stage Acting and Film Acting: Same Game, Different Surface	p. 23
Some Misconceptions about Stage and Screen Acting	p. 23
The Actor's Medium versus the Director's Medium	p. 25
Adjusting to Technical Demands	p. 29
Summary	p. 34
Inside Out, Outside In: From Stanislavski to Strasberg?	p. 37
Craft versus Art	p. 37
Technique: Stanislavski or Strasberg?	p. 38
Choosing Wisely	p. 43
Summary	p. 44
Advancing the Story
The Actor in Service of the Script	p. 47
Good Actors Tell the Story	p. 48
Finding the Conflict and Playing Objectives	p. 49
Building Dramatic Conflict	p. 51
Physical Actions: Beginnings, Middles, and Ends	p. 52
Telling Good Stories	p. 53
Using Each Other: Where the Story Lies	p. 55
Masters Doing the Basics	p. 56
Summary	p. 57
Given Circumstances and Playing the Action	p. 59
Given Circumstances	p. 59
The "Magic If"	p. 61
Learning the Score	p. 63
Action and Emotion	p. 67
"As Ifös	p. 68
Summary	p. 69
Acting with Conflict	p. 71
Using Conflict	p. 72
Finding the Story	p. 73
Types of Conflict	p. 75
Conflict to Objective	p. 76
Conflict and Character	p. 77
Summary	p. 78
Finding and Playing Objectives	p. 81
Actions Make Emotions	p. 81
Selection, Control, and Repeatability	p. 83
Playing the Dramatic Situation	p. 83
Discovering Objectives and Stakes	p. 85
Building the Story through Objectives	p. 88
Character through Actions: Tactics and Risk	p. 89
Simplicity and Playing the Positive	p. 90
Summary	p. 92
Listening and Staying In the Moment	p. 93
The Importance of Listening	p. 93
Improving Your Listening Ability	p. 95
Listening and Playing Objectives	p. 98
Summary	p. 102
Interpreting and Using Dialogue	p. 103
Contextual Meaning and Subtext	p. 104
The Importance of Subtext and Context	p. 106
Analyzing a Script to Tell the Story	p. 108
Summary	p. 113
Working with People, Places, and Things	p. 115
Relating to Things	p. 115
Categorizing	p. 122
Defining and Using the Space	p. 122
Defining and Using Relationships	p. 123
Summary	p. 124
Good Storytelling: Using Objectives and Circumstances Effectively	p. 125
Dialogue and Levels of Meaning	p. 126
Circumstances Define Story	p. 126
Dealing with Emotional Circumstances	p. 127
Objectives and Circumstances	p. 129
Using "As Ifös	p. 130
Actions from Emotions and Emotions from Actions	p. 131
Always Analyzing and Making Choices	p. 131
Summary	p. 134
Applying the Tools
Script Analysis: A Blueprint for Storytelling	p. 137
Reading for the Story	p. 138
Asking the Right Questions	p. 139
Dialogue Serving the Story	p. 141
Summary	p. 148
Rehearsing the Scene: Preparing for the First Read	p. 149
Choosing a Scene	p. 150
The First Read	p. 151
Using Improv	p. 155
Summary	p. 156
Rehearsing the Scene: Blocking and Working It	p. 157
Using Blocking to Tell the Story	p. 157
Playing in a Defined Space	p. 158
Movement	p. 159
Gestures	p. 161
Props and Business	p. 162
Working through the Scene	p. 164
Final Notes	p. 165
Summary	p. 166
Using the Words: Discovering and Telling the Story	p. 167
Elevated Language	p. 167
Using Literal, Contextual, and Sub textual Meaning	p. 174
Justifying the Lines	p. 182
Summary	p. 186
Taking the Script Apart and Putting It Together: A Review and Practice
A Review	p. 187
The Physical Aspects of Acting	p. 188
The Script	p. 188
Analysis	p. 194
Synthesis: Finding and Playing the Actions	p. 202
Summary	p. 203
Theatrical Conventions and Style	p. 205
Conventions and Believability	p. 208
Language and the Playwright's Style	p. 209
Types of Style	p. 211
The Roots of Style	p. 214
The World of "Realism"	p. 215
Some Concluding Thoughts about Style	p. 217
Summary	p. 217
Criticism	p. 219
Critiquing a Production	p. 221
Critiquing Work in Class	p. 225
Receiving Criticism Effectively	p. 227
Summary	p. 230
Putting the Pieces Together
Auditioning	p. 233
Casting	p. 233
Auditioning with a Scene	p. 236
Cold Readings	p. 237
Auditioning with a Monologue	p. 239
Performing the Audition	p. 245
Auditioning with a Song	p. 246
Summary	p. 249
Defining the Role	p. 251
Putting the Pieces Together	p. 251
Characters Serve the Play	p. 253
Research and Analysis	p. 254
Reading for the Author's Viewpoint	p. 255
Reading for the Audience's Viewpoint	p. 257
Reading for the Character's Viewpoint	p. 260
Summary	p. 263
Developing the Role: The Rehearsal Process	p. 265
The Arc or Throughline of Action	p. 265
Developing the Role through the Rehearsal Process	p. 271
Summary	p. 281
What You Need to Succeed	p. 283
Luck	p. 285
Knowing the Right People	p. 286
Money to Sustain You	p. 287
Looks and the Willingness to Recognize Yourself as a Commodity	p. 287
A Healthy Ego	p. 289
Patience	p. 291
Aggressiveness	p. 292
Avoiding Comparisons	p. 293
Talent and Training	p. 294
Summary	p. 295
Train Coming, by Alan Haehnel	p. 297
Acknowledgments	p. 305
Suggested Reading	p. 307
Glossary	p. 313
Bibliography	p. 321
Index	p. 323
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