Product Description

William Esper, one of the leading acting teachers of our time, explains and extends Sanford Meisner's legendary technique, offering a clear, concrete, step-by-step approach to becoming a truly creative actor.

Esper worked closely with Meisner for seventeen years and has spent decades developing his famous program for actor's training. The result is a rigorous system of exercises that builds a solid foundation of acting skills from the ground up, and that is flexible enough to be applied to any challenge an actor faces, from soap operas to Shakespeare. Co-writer Damon DiMarco, a former student of Esper's, spent over a year observing his mentor teaching first-year acting students. In this book he recreates that experience for us, allowing us to see how the progression of exercises works in practice. The Actor's Art and Craft vividly demonstrates that good training does not constrain actors' instincts—it frees them to create characters with truthful and compelling inner lives.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #45053 in Books
• Published on: 2008-04-08
• Released on: 2008-04-08
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 304 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780307279262
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

About the Author
William Esper is a graduate of Western Reserve University and the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre in New York City. Bill trained as both actor and teacher under Sanford Meisner. Bill and Sandy worked closely together for 17 years, during which time Bill served as Associate Director of the Playhouses's Acting Department (1973-1976). Bill founded the William Esper Studio in 1965 and the Professional Actor Training Program at Rutgers University's Mason Gross School of the Arts in 1977. These two schools are renowned for routinely contributing actors of the highest quality to the International stage and screen.

Damon DiMarco earned his M.A. from the Rutgers University Mason Gross School of the Arts under Bill Esper's tutelage. He has acted professionally on stage, screen, and TV and currently teaches acting and directing at Drew University. Damon's other books include, Tower Stories: an Oral History of 9/11; Out of Bounds (with Roy Simmons); and Heart of War: Soldiers' Voices from the Front Lines of Iraq.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
ONE

BEGIN AGAIN--

EMPTY YOUR CUP

"How is it that little children are so intelligent and men so stupid? It must be education that does it."

--Alexander Dumas

Sixteen students wait for Bill to arrive, eight men and eight women. These actors have been carefully selected for their talent, potential, and seriousness of purpose. They come from across the United States and around the world. Some have long resumes stocked with impressive credits; some have acted only in small theaters. Many have studied with various teachers who have espoused different approaches to the craft of acting. Each actor seems to possess talent. In their admission interviews, however, each disclosed unique problems--issues and obstacles that have blocked them from fully realizing their talent.

Everyone smiles in a nervous but genuine way. Introductions are made here and there. We wait.

The room's walls are painted neutral gray. There are no windows and only one door. The class is seated in chairs on low risers stacked against the room's southern end, facing this door across an open space. The risers form the students' gallery. Bill's desk is situated to the side--also looking into the playing area.

The floor is bare, save for two mattresses lying on low bed frames, one against the west wall, one against the east. A shelving unit set to one side contains an array of props: liquor bottles, vases, books, plates, kitchen utensils, strings of Christmas lights, coffee mugs, and a manual typewriter that easily dates back to the 1940s, all available for communal use.

The door to studio C swings open and Bill enters. Everyone quiets instantly. Bill moves to his desk without pausing and grunts a hello, which the class returns enthusiastically. Taking a seat at his desk, he opens a brand-new class roster and reads it for a long moment. Then, apparently satisfied, he looks up and begins.

"Once there was a student who desperately wanted to learn about Zen. So he approached the house of a great Zen master. The master, in a moment of uncharacteristic graciousness, invited the student inside.

"They sat down to tea and the master asked the student, 'Why have you come?' The student opened his mouth and started to babble. A torrent of words poured forth: testaments to his immense curiosity, his passion, his understanding and confusion regarding Zen. On and on the student talked. The master blinked, then set to work making tea. He set out cups, ground the tea leaves, and boiled water while the student kept talking.

"The young man only shut his mouth when the master started to pour the tea. The old man filled the student's cup until the tea reached the brim and overflowed, running all over the table, scalding hot. 'My God!' cried the student. 'What have you done?'

"The old man stopped pouring and said, 'Your mind is like this cup of tea. How can I put anything in it when it's already full? If you wish to learn Zen, you must bring me an empty cup.'"

Bill sits there, watching, as the class takes this in.

"Now tell me," he says. "Why are you here?"

At first no one speaks. Then someone from the back row says: "To study acting."

Bill thinks about this. "Yes, but what is acting exactly? If you wish to study it, it's good to be clear about what it is."

No one speaks. So Bill says, "All right, let me put it this way. Suppose that today you were walking down the streets of Manhattan and you bumped into a Martian. A real, honest-to-God Martian--an alien from another planet. You know he's a Martian because of his short build, green skin, and wiggling antennae."

I glance around. Everyone's eyes are wide.

"Well, naturally you're a little curious, right? So let's say you strike up a conversation with this guy. 'How's life on Mars?' 'Oh, not bad. How's life on Earth?'--that sort of thing. And pretty soon the Martian gets around to asking you, 'So, what is it that you do? By that I mean, what is your profession?' And you say to him--proudly, I hope: 'Well. I'm an actor.'

"The Martian says, 'Really? An actor? What's that? We don't have any actors on Mars.' How would you explain to him what exactly an actor does?"

A thin, wiry young man with a contagious grin and a shock of coarse black hair raises his hand. From the previous introductions I know that his name is Trevor. Bill points to him, and Trevor says, "Acting is living in make-believe."

Bill cocks an eyebrow. "Hmmm. You're onto something. When you say make-believe, I take it you're trying to bring up a point about imagination, am I right?"

Trevor thinks. Nods.

"Good. Because imagination is very important for actors, and we'll be using it a lot. But let's leave that alone and come back to it. Who else has an idea?"

A pretty blond girl with a soft British accent raises her hand. She introduces herself as Amber. Bill points at her. "So what do you think? What is acting?"

"Acting is a form of entertainment," she says.

Bill winces. "Okay," he says. "But so are carnival freak shows, croquet matches, and wrestling. When you get right down to it, tiddlywinks is a form of entertainment. I'd hoped we could aspire to something a little higher than that in here. I don't mean to be sharp, but it's got to be more than entertainment. Much more. Otherwise we'd all be stand-up comedians instead of artists."

Vanessa, a petite African-American woman, says, "You know what I'd tell that Martian? I'd tell him that acting is portraying a character from a story."

Bill thinks. "Okay," he says. "But let me get this straight. This story you're talking about. It takes place onstage, right? So . . . is it real?"

Vanessa thinks for a moment. Then she shakes her head.

"No, it's not," says Bill. "In other words, it's a work of imagination. So here we are again, bringing up this point about imagination." He looks back at Trevor, who nods. "Maybe we've pinned down that acting must have something to do with the imagination."

Several students have begun to take notes. Bill continues: "Here in the studio we have a working definition of acting. This definition comes straight from my own teacher, Sanford Meisner, and--after forty years of teaching--I personally believe it's still valid. Sandy said that 'Acting is the ability to live truthfully under imaginary circumstances.' Have you got that?"

Sixteen heads bob up and down as the class bends to its notebooks.

Bill scratches his chin through his beard and frowns. Then he continues: "All right, then. Let's examine this a bit. Acting is living truthfully under imaginary circumstances. Fine. But before we go any further, let's break that definition down. It seems to me that there are two important factors in that definition that need to be defined. What are they?"

"Living truthfully," says someone in the front row.

"That's right," says Bill. "That's a big one. What else?"

"Imagination. Imaginary," says a female voice from behind me.

"Okay," says Bill. "Let's try to define those things."

Bill looks at the door to the studio for a moment, as if waiting for someone to walk through it. Then he says, "Truth is so important to art, because isn't that how we judge the things we see? Think about it. Have any of you ever come out of a play or a film and said, 'Oh, I really loved it! It was so phony! I didn't believe one moment of it!'"

Everyone laughs. Bill chuckles, too. "Truth is the blood of art. Without truth a piece of art fails to touch the human spirit." Someone in the back row grunts their approval, and Bill continues. "Now let's look at the other side of this definition, the imaginary part. Imagination is pivotal for actors because everything we do, every piece of our craft takes place in the world of imagination.

"When you go to see a play--Hamlet, for instance--you know the man dressed in black isn't really a prince of Denmark. That woman who's marrying her brother-in-law isn't really the queen. As a matter of fact, you're not even in Denmark. You're sitting in upper-mezzanine seats in a Broadway house on Forty-fifth Street and the whole thing is a tissue of lies, a figment of William Shakespeare's imagination. So, if it's all lies, how can we talk about it being truthful?"

Amber looks up. "Because if the actors are skilled, you forget that it's a lie."

Bill nods. "That's right. If the actors are skilled, we'll begin to react to the events onstage as if they were real, as if we were bystanders at some actual event. Do you know why this happens?"

Amber thinks, then shakes her head.

"Because if in fact the actors are skilled, what we're watching isn't pretend. It is an actual event. Do you see how that could be? Hemingway once said, 'All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they had really happened.' Isn't that exactly what we're talking about here?"

More notes. Bill presses forward. "Are you familiar with the late great Harold Clurman? He was an esteemed critic, director, and teacher who was instrumental in founding the Group Theater--maybe the most important theater we've ever had in this country. One of his books was a collection of his theater reviews which he titled Lies Like Truth. I love that title because it captures the essence of theater in three simple words. Lies Like Truth. That's the nature of all good acting: illusion that is real. Imagination made true."

An older woman named Joyce raises her hand. I remember Bill telling me about her. She'd been a moderately successful regional-theater actor for years before taking time off to raise a family. "So are you saying that actors are liars?"

The class ...

Customer Reviews

the Actor's Art and Craft
As Mary Steenburgen said: "It's the best book on the craft of acting", - if your using the Meisner Technique by Bill Esper - you'll find that his teaching style is sensible, creative, and compassionate. It makes you want to run to New York and get this class in person. I can see why his students love him.

Engrossing, inspiring, full of humanity
This book came around at a strange time in my life...which I suppose is still happening. Although I was never part of the BFA or MFA program at Rutgers, I did take a few acting classes there as well as get involved in some college theatre. Bill Esper was an icon even back then but I completely took for granted what it is he did and more importantly, who he is. Since getting out and pounding the pavement for some real work, I've had moments of brilliance, some of which has garnered me a handful of (minor) speaking roles on notable television shows. Gradually, I began to regress in my preparation and in my respect for the craft because in my mind, I didn't see it as a necessity anymore. After all, who needs an applicable technique when you've booked work on Law & Order, Fringe, etc.? I became increasingly arrogant and felt entitled to success, all because I've had a little taste of it, probably from luck or what have you. In the past two years or so, I've been making big investments on casting director/agent workshops, all designed to get you seen, as long as you're willing to pay the price. One night, not too long ago, we had to watch our playback auditions at one of these "classes". I was certain I had nailed it because I "felt good" about what I did. I was in for a rude awakening when I saw my work. I was stiff, lacking life...natural perhaps but uninteresting. In the past, I would always respond by preparing harder the next time and I would continue to take more acting seminars. This time, for whatever reason, I was willing to admit to myself that whatever technique I had was unfocused. That I was easily assuaged by complimentary notes by casting directors and peers so that I can move on with my life. I believe it was a good friend of mine who recommended me this book. And now I realize how naive and foolish I've been these past couple of years.

The Actor's Art and Craft taught me that while commercial success should be commended, it's not worth sacrificing your very being for it. After a while, from audition to audition, you start to make choices that you THINK people want to see, regardless of how inorganic. But like all forms of art, one must be dedicated in his/her pursuits and strive for the perfection of the craft. I've read a handful of other acting books, but none as engrossing as this one. It covers the first year of Meisner and that includes repetition work, activities, criminal action problems, having an objective. The format is such that you feel that you are in the classroom with Bill and the company he teaches. There are characters you can easily identify with because you probably know them in real life. Some of the students are new to the craft, others have been pursuing the arts for a while. For me, though, the highlights of this book are the beautifully simple yet poetic words from William Esper himself, his notes to the class, his views on how important it is to LIVE. Really LIVE. It surprised me that at times I was brought to tears by some of the quotations because they were really moving and cathartic. One in particular had to do with how disconnected our modern society can be, what with all the iPods, gadgets, social networking sites etc. Nobody lives in the moment anymore.

Esper and DiMarco have put together a wonderful book that attacks the myths of what the Meisner technique can do for someone. It's not about emoting, it's about doing as well as being. You can't control how you feel, however you can allow yourself to be AFFECTED by what is going on around you. He talks about the importance of the precipitating circumstance: the one event that causes the two (or more) people on stage to come together in this time, in this place. Of course, before all of that, he teaches the importance of being yourself, to unlearn what society has taught you, to empty the garbage so to speak. Only then can you truly be free to follow your instincts. There is so much more I'd like to talk about in detail as far as specific exercises but I suggest you read it yourself if you're serious about learning the craft, or even reinvigorating your passion for it. When you're out in the real world, you'll hear people throw around the word "Meisner" and "objective" as if they really understand what it all entails. Many of them probably do and that is commendable. But there is a large majority who don't REALLY get it. I was one of them. I hope to continue my studies now that I've been humbled, and I hope to acquire practical skills and technique that's based on higher principles.

If you're as jaded as I was, you may be rolling your eyes at this gushfest. But I know what I want from all this: when I'm on stage or in front of a camera, I want to feel truly alive. When I'm NOT on stage or in front of the camera, I want to realize how remarkable it is to BE alive. This book is my first step towards my own salvation and my admission of cynicism and laziness. I hope to study with him one day.

Good insight into the "Meisner" approach
I'm deeply interested in HONEST acting (with affectation, pushing and demonstrating) and this book gets you off and running. I think these are great techniques to use with actors, and can quickly separate the wheat from the chaff, and get to the heart of open, honest acting, BUT they are deceptively simple exercies, and you need to know what you are looking for when things go awry, and how to address them. This books goes much further in revealing the goals behind the exercises than does Sandy's book. I think it is truly enlightening.

That being said, my frustrations are this: 1.), Bill and Damon stop after the first year of (arguably) foundation work. In short, they stop before getting into the "next level stuff." I honestly hope they put together year 2 of this training technique and not keep all the "in depth" goodies to themselves. 2.) My fear is that this approach discourages shaping a character that is an honest revelation of what is in the text. Not all instincts are ARTFUL instincts (another beef I have with Bill about encouraging actors to "let go" in real life - human nature is, by instinct, SELFISH), and not every actor inclination is going to be true to the text. Hopefully, an actor who is worth their salt will marry this approach with serving the text and a playwright worth their salt will have crafted a script that reveals vibrant characters, but as an ART form, I don't want to trust a performance to the whims of an actor who may, in any given moment, be struck with something funny their partner has done and runs with it. It may be engaging, but it won't necessarily be true to the play. That is my fear and question to Bill - how do you keep actors from running afoul of a simpler instinct? Perhaps your book on year 2 is the answer I await.