Hurlyburly & Those the River Keeps


David Rabe - 1995
    This edition contains the definitive versions of these works, a foreword in which Rabe examines the interwoven relationship of the plays, and an afterword in which he discusses the process of their construction.

Theatre and Audience


Helen Freshwater - 2009
    It argues for more audience-responsive approaches to what theatre does for those who witness, watch or participate.

Thinking Shakespeare: A How-To Guide for Student Actors, Directors, and Anyone Else Who Wants to Feel More Comfortable with the Bard


Barry Edelstein - 2007
    Based on Barry Edelstein's twenty-year career directing Shakespeare's plays, this book provides the tools that actors need to fully understand and express the power of Shakespeare's language.

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof: Tennesse Williams (York Notes Advanced)


Steve Roberts - 2007
    One of his best-loved and most famous plays, it exposes the lies plaguing the family of a wealthy Southern planter of humble origins.

Freeing Shakespeare's Voice: The Actor's Guide to Talking the Text


Kristin Linklater - 1992
    Detailing exercises and analyzing characters' speech and rhythms, Linklater provides the tools to increase understanding and make Shakespeare's words one's own.

Notes and Counternotes


Eugène Ionesco - 1962
    

Performance Theory


Richard Schechner - 1988
    For more than four decades his work has challenged conventional definitions of theatre, ritual and performance. When this seminal collection first appeared, Schechner's approach was not only novel, it was revolutionary: drama is not just something that occurs on stage, but something that happens in everyday life, full of meaning, and on many different levels. Within these pages he examines the connections between Western and non-Western cultures, theatre and dance, anthropology, ritual, performance in everyday life, rites of passage, play, psychotherapy and shamanism.

The Stanislavski System: The Professional Training of an Actor


Sonia Moore - 1965
    Now, in light of books and articles recently published in the Soviet Union, Sonia Moore has made revisions that include a new section on the subtext of a role. She provides detailed explanations of all the methods that actors in training have found indispensable for more than twenty years. Designed to create better actors, this guide will put individuals in touch with themselves and increase personal sensitivity as well.

My Name is Rachel Corrie


Rachel Corrie - 2006
    But what it can do, when it’s as good as this, is to send us out enriched by other people’s passionate concern.” –Guardian (London)“An impassioned eulogy… It’s hard not to be impressed – and also somewhat frightened – by the description of her as a two-year-old looking across Capital Lake in Washington State and announcing, ‘This is the wide world, and I’m coming to it.’” –New York TimesOn March 16, 2003, Rachel Corrie, a twenty-three-year-old American, was crushed to death by an Israeli Army bulldozer in Gaza as she was trying to prevent the demolition of a Palestinian home. My Name is Rachel Corrie is a one-woman play composed from Rachel’s own journals, letters and emails – creating a portrait of a messy, articulate, Salvador Dali-loving chain-smoker (with a passion for the music of Pat Benatar), who left her home and school in Olympia, Washington, to work as an activist in the heart of Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Since its Royal Court premiere (London), the piece has been surrounded by both controversy and impassioned proponents, and has raised an unprecedented call to support political work and the difficult discourse it creates.ALAN RICKMAN is a British actor and director, who directed the London and New York productions of the play. KATHERINE VINER is an award-winning journalist and editor of the Guardian’s Weekend Magazine.

A Practical Handbook for the Actor


Melissa Bruder - 1986
    Macy and director Gregory Mosher. It is written for any actor who has ever experienced the frustrations of acting classes that lacked clarity and objectivity, and that failed to provide a dependable set of tools. An actor's job, the authors state, is to "find a way to live truthfully under the imaginary circumstances of the play'.' The ways in which an actor can attain that truth form the substance of this eloquent book.

The Dramatic Imagination: Reflections and Speculations on the Art of the Theatre


Robert Edmond Jones - 1941
    The volume includes A New Kind of Drama, To a Young Stage Designer and six other of Jones's reflections.

Notes on Directing


Frank Hauser - 2003
    The notes gathered over a long career and polished to a sharp edge documented the teachings and directions that Hauser shared privately with a host of theatrical and cinematic figures, including Sir Alec Guinness, Richard Burton, Sir Ian McKellen, Dame Judi Dench, Kevin Spacey, and many others who called Hauser their director, mentor, teacher, or boss.Now, the former student has expanded and enhanced his mentor's private notes into a book-length format suitable for anyone searching for the timeless gems of the director s craft. Drawing on years of training, decades of experience, and the distilled wisdom of leading practitioners, Notes on Directing is filled with enduring good advice expressed in assertive, no-nonsense language. More than a how-to, this is a tool for directors looking to better translate the page to the stage or to the screen. With one hundred and thirty directives supported with explanatory commentary, helpful examples, and rare quotes, this deceptively slim volume has the impact of a privileged apprenticeship to a great master.Whether you are a student or a professional, a playgoer, moviegoer, or enthusiast, Notes on Directing provides a thrilling glimpse into the hidden process of creating a live, shared experience.

Directing Actors


Judith Weston - 1996
    Internationally-renowned directing coach Weston demonstrates what constitutes a good performance, what actors want from a director, what directors do wrong, script analysis and preparation, how actors work, and shares insights into the director/actor relationship.

Acting as a Business: Strategies for Success


Brian O'Neil - 1993
    Any number of books preached persistence, but O'Neil was the first writer who actually told actors how to be persistent. The book is such a vital resource that it won a spot on "Entertainment Weekly"'s exclusive list of Industry Bibles.Now in this third edition, O'Neil updates his indispensable resource to keep up with the latest show-business trends and help you put control of your acting career where it belongs: in your own hands. You won't just read "Acting As a Business," Third Edition, you'll dog ear, underline, and bookmark it as you discover: a how-to guide to writing your theatrical resume - for both the East-Coast and the West-Coast actor specific examples of cover letters and other important correspondence practical ways to join the performer's unions tactics for getting an agent and finding out casting information well in advance tips on preparing for and answering the questions most often asked by agents in an interview - and what you should ask them techniques for auditioning in an agent's office the dos and don'ts of effective interview follow-up strategies for finding work in the theater, on soap operas, and in independent films a chart for recording which casting directors know your work an effective approach to interviewing a prospective personal manager a discussion of the "League" schools the best ways to make use of the internet.

The Intent to Live: Achieving Your True Potential as an Actor


Larry Moss - 2004
    There is a two-year waiting list for his advanced acting classes. But now everyone–professionals and amateurs alike–can discover Moss’s passionate, in-depth teaching.Inviting you to join him in the classroom and onstage, Moss shares the techniques he has developed over thirty years to help actors set their emotions, imagination, and behavior on fire, showing how the hard work of preparation pays off in performances that are spontaneous, fresh, and authentic. From the foundations of script analysis to the nuances of physicalization and sensory work, here are the case studies, exercises, and insights that enable you to connect personally with a script, develop your character from the inside out, overcome fear and inhibition, and master the technical skills required for success in the theater, television, and movies.Far more than a handbook, The Intent to Live is the personal credo of a master teacher. Moss’s respect for actors and love of the actor’s craft enliven every page, together with examples from a wealth of plays and films, both current and classic, and vivid appreciations of great performances. Whether you act for a living or simply want a deeper understanding of acting greatness, The Intent to Live will move, instruct, and inspire you.From the Hardcover edition.