A Practical Handbook for the Actor by Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel (1986) Paperback

by Melissa Bruder

Excellent Book

Genres: Theatre, Nonfiction, Writing, Read For School, Drama, Reference, Film

Paperback

First published April 12, 1986

Reviews

[Linawings · Rating 5 out of 5]

One quote from this book reveals what is the meaning of acting to me "If you intend to manipulate, to show, to impress, you may experience mild suffering and pleasant triumphs. If you intend to follow the truth you feel in yourself - to follow your common sense, and force your will to serve you in quest for discipline and simplicity - you will subject yourself to profound despair, loneliness, and constant self-doubt. And if you persevere, the Theatre, which you are learning to serve, will grace you, now and then with the greatest exhilaration it is possible to know. "

[Lauren LoGiudice · Rating 5 out of 5]

The tips in this book are in fact practical. I found it a useful and quick read that I would recommend to any aspiring actor.

There nothing more to say - well presented and to the point.

[Rob Delaney · Rating 5 out of 5]

After some years of acting professionally I now know this is the only worthwhile book about acting I ever read, and I read a few. Read this book and make your own plays and films and don’t pay for drama school. No I will not elaborate.

[Rowan · Rating 4 out of 5]

1. What is literally happening in this scene: Rowan is reading a book.
2. The essential action: applying a theoretical framework over a highly intuitive skill to gain a sense of control and power
3. As-if: It is as if I am explaining the Apollonian/Dionysian distinction to a girl am I trying to dance with at a rave

[Emin Anılmaz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kitap sadede gelmiyor, direkt sadetten oluşuyor. <3

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a good example of the benefits of reading outside your concerns. I'm often delighted to find tips and solutions in places where I wasn't looking for them. I certainly found some useful bits for writing from the descriptions of action and the techniques of analyzing a scene. I also found useful tips for developing concentration, how to treat other people, get along with them, and work together toward a larger goal. If we read thoughtfully, we can find applications beyond the immediate setting.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this as a corollary to Shawn Coyne's The Story Grid, and his application of this process to Austen's Pride & Prejudice (Story Grid Edition.

I appreciated that this work is brief and to the point. I can see how these acting tools can be inverted/applied in writing. Not the answer to everything, but useful.

[Zanna Frith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, so don't believe everything you read but this is certainly a great start to understanding the technique of Practical Aesthetics.

[Tola · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best acting books I've read in a while. C

[Sam Figura · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a helpful book! This is my third time rereading it, and I can't express how much it's helped my acting. Highly recommend it to any aspiring actor!

[Kermy · Rating 4 out of 5]

In the final analysis I don't know how practical this book really is for the actor. The whole notion of constantly trying to break a scene down into actions (good) and then come up with analogies in one's own life to relate to those singular actions is tedious, and begins to resemble the very same methody hokum that the book purports to get away from. Definitely worth a read but the Mamet school of acting desperately tries to avoid the problem of emotion in a way that perhaps overcomplicates an already complicated problem.

[Cynthia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone in the arts!

[Natalie · Rating 3 out of 5]

For my acting class

[Sofia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very good book that explains how to act very clearly! The examples are great and I really feel like this method is something that isn’t super hard to learn and will really work.

[Morgan Elyse · Rating 2 out of 5]

Had to read for school... it was okay? i'm not a dude but a lot of it was aimed at a man... and i knew a lot of the material already. but it was interesting. I'm glad i actually read it - if i didn't know the material it would have been good

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

For such a short book this is packed with useful concepts that can actually be realistically applied. This is no-nonsense and offers some great solutions and advice for actors.

[Elle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Honestly a really interesting book for a “textbook” I feel as though a lot of it is applicable to everyday life

[•Kait• •Boers• · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit dry, but good if you're starting theater and want some tips and tricks to improve your acting. It put a lot of terms to concepts I was vaguely aware of.

[Cathy Ryan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Useful aide to writers as well as actors.

[Agnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent excellent book

[Joseph Hirsch · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's an old saying in boxing: don't look for the knockout or it won't come. A boxer should trust his corner, his training, and the process that's been developed over the course of hundreds of years of pugilism. Like a rifleman just barely grazing the trigger with the tip of his finger, he should be surprised by the great moment when it arrives. Great art rarely comes from overthinking. Analysis comes before or after one is in the ring.

Does this old saw speak to some deeper truth that can be applied to all crafts? Hell, I don't know, but having read "A Practical Handbook for the Actor," I can honestly say this principal works just as well for the thespian for the fighter.

"A Practical Handbook for the Actor" is just what it sounds like, a short, straightforward tome that dispels some pernicious myths about acting and instills some bedrock skills and ideas that one can use to become a better actor, no matter how serious they are about the craft. A method actor preparing to amputate his legs to play a paraplegic, or a teenager doing his high-school's production of "Fiddler" are both likely to find it a rewarding read.

My favorite part dealt with not trying to force emotion, but rather letting it occur naturally, in the moment, as a result of doing all of the prosaic preliminary work given in outline here. By interrogating a character's intention and then finding a simile for what this action is like, you can get a much better performance than by recalling how you felt when your cat died in childhood. Likewise, the section on "Keeping the Theater Clean" dispels a lot of myths about conflict and clash of egos resulting in great work. Actors are called "players" for a reason, and not even playing the most agonized and tragic character in history should be an exercise completely devoid of fun or inspiration. The toxic myth about art involving suffering and madness gave the world Jim Carrey's insufferable treatment of cast and crew when "becoming" Andy Kaufmann; contrast that with William H. Macy's mellow and respectful way with cast and crew on "Fargo" and his superlative performance in that picture, and you'll see that you don't have to be an a-hole to get results.

I've never acted, and have no intention of doing so, but the mystery of the craft that director Stanley Kubrick talked about—the ability to cry on cue with the clack of a clapboard—is a little less mysterious now. Highest recommendation for people in all walks of life, as the wisdom distilled here has uses in realms far beyond the playhouse. Hell, on second thought, maybe I will stick a pillow beneath my shirt, pretend to be porcine, and strut like Falstaff, at least in front of the mirror and for my dog's amusement.

[Benjamin]

I don't remember when I heard about this book or why exactly I got it -- I think I had some notion about needing to have a better handle on acting as I was gearing up to direct an improv show; and, of course, as someone who isn't an actor, I approached this material with a very particular stance.

That is, this is a book for actors and so has warning about memorizing your lines with line-readings that might not be applicable in the moment; and a reminder that your character in a scene can only respond to the other character in the scene. Which, like, coming from an improv background is a real weird point because of course you do that.

(Also fun crossovers: they discuss attention in a way that's a lot like mindfulness practice, i.e., your attention will wander, don't castigate yourself, just gently place it back where it should be; and their description of the heart of the scene -- your character wants something from another character -- is the foundation of the roleplaying game Hillfolk.)

The foundation of this book is scene analysis, which is to take a scene and ask yourself:

- what is the character literally doing?
- what is the character's action (which is pretty close to physicalized intention, or goal)?
- what is that like in your own life?

In this model of acting, there's no real pretense to illusion -- you're not trying to convince yourself that you are really angry or happy or in love. There's just: what does this look like to the audience. It's very interesting, and I'll be curious to see how it impacts my non-scripted acting work (in improv and roleplaying).

[Rich B · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first book about acting I’ve read, picked it up based on some feedback that looking at how actors prepare for roles / performance is an interesting way to look at how to improve your own personal impact in other everyday situations.

It was interesting to read, if a little short. Delivered what it promised in the title, with some practical tips on how to prepare for different situations that a stage actor might face.

It wasn’t a full on “how to act” guide, and did assume you already have some prior knowledge about acting. Gave me some things to think about, and learned a few things I didn’t know, but it definitely felt more geared to those who were already well into acting.

But it’s clearly written, and mostly to the point. Easy enough to follow and understand the key points, even for someone who doesn’t know the subject.

Also, while I’m sure the techniques still apply to acting today, many of the cultural references now feel a little dated (it was written in the 80s). There was also the odd time it bordered on pretentiousness / luvviness about acting, not so much to spoil the book, but also not what I was looking for.

Worth a read if you want to learn more about what’s involved with acting (rather than “how” to act).

[Anne Elise Teeling · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. Their approach to acting consisted mirrors Mamet’s. Actors should be portraying the lines truthfully, focusing energy on the other character, and trying to accomplish a goal that makes sense within the context of the play. It laid out a simple structure to follow for scene analysis consisting of three questions. It walked the reader through examples, provided a space to try our own, and corrected examples that didn’t work. I appreciate the idea that spontaneity in acting is created by trying to achieve the goal of the scene and reacting to how the other characters respond. I have often found it difficult to “be sad” or play an emotion. This was helpful, and I will definitely reference it as I continuing acting!

[Jason Cady · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not an actor and I don't aspire to be one. I read this to gather insight into how actors analyze scripts—and for a more general sense of how actors approach their craft. For that it was somewhat helpful. The book is quite concise, and I'm not complaining about that, but maybe if it had been just a little longer the ideas could have been more developed.

David Mamet wrote the introduction, and it seems that he was the inspiration for the work. I think Mamet is not a good writer. All of his characters have the same way of speaking, and they seem to just be mouthpieces for the author's shallow and cruel worldview. Of course, Bruder is the author of this manual and she does not seem to share Mamet's shortcomings.

[Megan Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just, yes. So good. A graciously simple technique and approach to acting. Despite its simplicity, it is not easy. Hopefully I'll be able to work on this technique over the coming months and years and put it to my use.
Favorite quotes were on page 75:
"The reason great actors are so compelling is that they have the courage to bring their personalities to bear on everything they do. Don't ever play a part as someone else would play it. Remember that it is you onstage, not some mythical being called the character."
And
"Reflect... on the words of Stanislavsky: 'The person you are is a thousand times more interesting than the best actor you could ever hope to be.' "

[Thani Abuhamad · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm very impressed with how succinctly and effectively this book goes about delivering its intention! It is incredibly practical and down-to-earth with simple and clear instructions for how an actor should go about analyzing a scene and producing a character.

I've often find myself quite cynical about the nebulous and abstract approaches to acting that are centered around contriving emotion. This book was an encouraging alternative; none of the techniques in this short reference guide can be categorized as esoteric in the slightest. Each piece of advice is pragmatic and intended to creating the most dependable results on the stage consistently.

[Rachel Gorman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like this book and found it helpful, I have a background in both Stanislavski’s system and Meisner and it is nice to have a book that combines the two. However, I did not like the insistence that you cannot become the character or actually believe in the fictional circumstances, you absolutely can. It requires a level of sensitivity and empathy that can’t really be taught, though, and that’s the thing about actions, is that they are logical and can be taught. This is a great little handbook for actors, I just wish the authors were more kind to those of us who can fully enter the play.

[James D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Practical Handbook for the Actor, by Melissa Bruder, is an absolutely great book to read. As an actor, this book has helped me improve my skills and learn more about acting without being boring. This book is such well written, usually when I'm reading acting books I struggle to get through them, however with this book I couldn't put it down! I love the writing style and I LOVE how they use example when teaching these concepts. Another thing that I really like were there philosophical takes. Overall this book is perfect for any performers trying to Improve themselves in the theater world.

[Nate Jenson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the book, partly because it's short and simple. The techniques are explained clearly.

As for content, it makes sense, but I was listening to an audio book on acting over the same few days that I was reading this book. They have contradictory suggestions. That's fine, because everyone has their method and their own experience.

In the end, I felt this gave me some great tools to be able to put into practice.