The 10 Commandments of Theater: The Gospel According to Stanislavski for Young Actors - Softcover

Anne Johnston-Brown

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9781575255842: The 10 Commandments of Theater: The Gospel According to Stanislavski for Young Actors

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1575255847 ISBN 13: 9781575255842

Publisher: Smith & Kraus, 2007

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So, you nailed your monologue, somehow managed not to trip on the way out, and impressed the director enough that he went out on a limb and actually cast you. Either that, or you've already been told you've been precast for the role. Regardless, you've got a lot of work ahead of you. Don't go into it lightly. Dive in headfirst, and take every step of the process very seriously. After all, this is what you want to
do, right? And you owe yourself, your audience, and your fellow actors the decency of a good performance, not to mention the debt you owe the
director for casting you. Keep in mind that the day this all gets boring and mundane, it's time to get out! But I hope that day never comes because, if you truly possess the gift of
performing, you are one of the most blessed people around. Thousands would amputate a limb to have the ability you have, so find the glory and
fun in what you do. Give everything you have to your role, even if that role has the fewest lines and the least stage time. There is a reason and purpose for every part in a play; if not, the playwright would have just left your character out and not
wasted everyone's time. Every role deserves a believable and committed portrayal. After all, it is the purpose of theater to enlighten the audience and, thus, change the world, and it
takes every actor playing his or her part-whether big or small-to achieve that purpose. Though it is always the goal of the actor to win the audience over with a truthful and engaging
performance, it is never our goal to upstage the other actors-a concept that will be covered in more depth later on. Playing bigger does not
always mean better, nor does volume effect believability. Some of the most gripping performances by the most notable actors in history have been delivered with a minimalist, even calm, dynamic. You must find the essence of your character, knowing his or her deepest
desire, then play it with truth (see Seventh Commandment). Do not be an audience to yourself.
Let the audience be the audience!
A good actor should be able to use anything he or she is given within a scene. I've heard far too often: "I just couldn't connect with the other
actors because they were unfocused and not playing the moments." That is never a good excuse. If you have done your homework and have
truly committed to your character, you can use any circumstance-even distraction-within that scene to achieve your character's goal. The buck stops with you-period!
Ultimately, the key to your success as an actor is respect-respect for yourself, your role, the other roles, the other actors, the director, the
stagehands, and the list goes on and on. Respect breeds respect. If you do not have respect for all the people who work to make a show happen, you will unwittingly sabotage your own future as an actor and doom your career to failure.
Reputations are made and broken every day in this business, and we are usually our own worst enemy.
As you begin to get better roles and make more connections in the industry, it will become more and more important to keep your head out of the clouds. Remember, the guy you thumb your nose at today could be the head of Paramount tomorrow! It never hurts to be nice to everybody. Enough preaching. A theater actor myself, I believe that theater is the greatest of all
performance arts. There is nothing like the feeling you get from interacting with an audience-hearing their laughter, their applause, and even their sobs. We talk about magic in the theater, and that is when everything is clicking as it should between all the players (the actors, the audience, the technicians, the stagehands), a surreal-almost
supernatural-effect is produced. Although this magic should occur with every performance, in actuality, it only happens occasionally when all
elements of the equation are in harmony.

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From the Back Cover:

The Ten Commandments of Theater is a ten-chapter, step-by-step handbook to guide theater actors through the acting process from the moment they are first cast in a role until the final curtain comes down. Each chapter is written as a Commandment-a rule of the theater that must be respected to achieve success in a particular performance, as well as an overall acting career.

These Commandments include points on: * proper warm-up routines * scoring a script * researching and developing a character * formulating a personal acting process -and other guidelines that fall under Method acting.

Unlike many other acting handbooks, The Ten Commandments of Theater is concise and understandable for even the greenest of actors. It is a must for young and veteran actors alike, providing tried-and-true techniques to facilitate more successful acting.

About the Author:

Anne Johnston-Brown was born October 7, 1967, in Mesquite, Texas. She is the twin sister to her brother, Joe Johnston III, and the daughter of
Joe and Barbara Johnston of Sedona, Arizona. She was married in 1989 to her husband, Thomas Brown, and graduated with highest honors from California State University, San Bernardino, earning her BA degree in Theater Arts, acting emphasis. Anne was working as a legal secretary when she got the call to become a professional actor. On pure inspiration, and with the backing of her loving husband, she enrolled at Cal State and began her acting career. She is currently a member of Actors' Equity Association and works
steadily as a musical theater actor in the Los Angeles area.
For most of Anne's adult life, she has composed music-from secular to gospel songs and even choral pieces. Inspired by her father, one of
Anne's favorite pastimes is choral direction, and she has worked as a choir director for various musical institutions off and on for over a decade. Currently, she is a professional headshot photographer for the entertainment industry, and
she recently published her first children's book, The Chronicles of Pleasant Grove. As an actor, Anne played the part of the Narrator in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Kodak Theater in Los Angeles. Her other acting credits include Annie Oakley (Annie Get
Your Gun), Mama Rose (Gypsy), Blanche DuBois (A Streetcar Named Desire), Rosie Alvarez (Bye, Bye
Birdie), Mame Dennis (Mame), Fanny Brice (Funny Girl), Maria Rainer (The Sound of Music)-and many more.
Anne is also a member of the renowned Mohos, a comedy troupe founded and led by comedian Fred
Willard and his wife, Mary. Anne's greatest love is the theater. Although
God, her husband, and her dogs come first (in that order), after them-it's theater!

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