Posts Tagged ‘Acting’

« Older Entries

The Biggest Common Myth About Method Acting

Monday, January 4th, 2010

One of the biggest misunderstandings about Method Acting is that it was invented by Constantin Stanislavski. Mr Stanisnlavski was alive at the end of the 1800s/ early 1900s, and did contribute significantly to the later developments within ‘The Method’ but let’s be clear, he didn’t invent ‘The Method’ he invented ‘The System’.

The amount of Drama Schools and Acting Schools that continuously get this wrong is staggering.

Lee Strasberg invented The Method.

Not Sanford Meisner, Stella Adler or any other practitioner, which is another common misconception.

The Method is very different from the teachings of Adler, Meisner and Stanislavski.

One of the main differences is the use of Affective Memory. Stanislavski initiated this concept which was later explored more fully by Lee Strasberg.

Affective Memory is the use of the actor’s own personal memories to produce the correct emotional content for a scene.

This tool is only used by Method Actors and is probably one of the most important tools for the actor.

Basically, it ensures that the actor can create emotion on demand. When action is called or when the curtain rises, the actor has emotional memory tools to produce the inspired emotion at will.

Otherwise, the actor is hoping that inspiration will turn up.

I have always been obsessed with developing dependable reliable tools for actors. There is nothing worse than turning up for an acting job and not being able to produce what the Director wants from you emotionally.

A final misconception of The Method is that Method Actors are emotionally out of control. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, they are extremely adept at manipulating their emotions to deliver the correct emotional content for scenes.

Method Acting courses cover this important acting tool within the method acting training.

“Brian is a Acting Coach with over 18 years experience in the industry and is The Leading Expert on Method Acting in the UK. He has taught actors appearing in London?s West End shows to high profile films. Brian recently appeared on the BBC2 programme ?Murder Most Famous? teaching TV Actors; Sherrie Hewson (Coronation Street/
Emmerdale) and Angela Griffin (Coronation Street/ Holby City) Method Acting techniques. “

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Drama Articles | No Comments »

Acting Training for beginners – London

Wednesday, December 30th, 2009

One of the main barriers to taking the leap into professional acting is a lack of confidence and not knowing whether you are any good or not.

This is a hard question to answer at the beginning. You have to view actor training in the same way as you would any other job. How would you know if you are any good at being an accountant until you have studied the subject?

Most beginners have a desire and aptitude for acting, and thatâ??s enough to start with. If you take the correct drama course, you can begin to develop your raw ability to a professional standard.

Right from the start itâ??s important to consider your acting training and what kind of acting approach you would like to study. A typical Drama School or Acting School tends to give you a pickâ??nâ??mix approach. They teach you a little bit of different techniques, and then you have to cobble together a mixture of everything.

The problem with this approach is that it leads you to being a â??jack of all trades and master of noneâ??. In my experience, itâ??s sensible to look at what the most successful actors do to achieve a high standard of acting.

With a little research on the subject, you will discover that many leading actors, particularly in the US, use Method Acting classes. One of the reasons they use it is because it achieves an exceptionally high standard of acting consistently.

It is important to teach this approach - Method Acting - to people who have little or no acting experience. There are acting classes and acting courses that focus in depth on Method Acting, to allow you to improve your acting ability to an exceptional standard, from day one.

Some acting lessons are split between acting technique and practical application within scenes. It is important to find a Method Acting class that is fundamental in training your talent, and are not about merely saying lines effectively and repeating them the same way each time.

“Brian is a Acting Coach with over 18 years experience in the industry and is The Leading Expert on Method Acting in the UK. He has taught actors appearing in London’s West End shows to high profile films. Brian recently appeared on the BBC2 programme ‘Murder Most Famous’ teaching TV Actors; Sherrie Hewson (Coronation Street/
Emmerdale) and Angela Griffin (Coronation Street/ Holby City) Method Acting techniques. ”

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Drama Articles | No Comments »

Who do the stars use for method acting training?

Saturday, December 26th, 2009

The majority of top creative Hollywood actors work with acting teachers who are Actors Studio members. The Actors Studio, New York, is the home of Method Acting. The current co-presidents are Al Pacino, Harvey Keitel and Ellen Burstyn. This gives you an idea of the standard of acting striven for at the studio.

Method Acting produces an extremely high level of acting. Over 75% of Best Actor Oscars since the year 2000 have gone to Method Actors. More recently, Forest Whitaker in 2007, Daniel Day-Lewis in 2008 and this year, Sean Penn. Their acting training is Method Acting.

Method Acting was born in the US, and many British actors have been rumoured to have taken up the technique, including Anthony Hopkins and Peter O’Toole.
Brian Timoney is the UK’s Leading Method Acting Coach and Method Acting Expert. He has appeared in the UK media, including the BBC; teaching TV soap stars Method Acting techniques. Brian has also been featured in The Metro, The Sunday Express and The Stage.

Brian believes that taking up Method Acting can benefit the UK acting scene enormously.

He says “Many Drama Schools, particularly London Drama Schools, have an aversion to the technique because it has an emotional focus. In Drama Schools, they basically teach you how to fake emotions rather than recreate them for real. This effectively short-changes the actor and the audience, which is why my actors’ studio specialises in Method Acting. It’s a proven technique used by the best actors in the world, and it’s all about NOT faking your performance.’’

Whether UK Drama Schools will follow Timoney’s lead is yet to be seen. Brian holds drama classes and drama courses in Central London, which are open to beginners who are serious about training at a professional level.

There is certainly much credence to the Method Acting approach. It’s hard to argue with the results it produces - just look at the performances of the many, many leading actors that use it.

Acting training, in general, is a complex area, with many requirements placed upon the actor. Actors have to deal with emotional content and external characterisation to produce high calibre work. In short, there is no easy answer, but hard work, lots of acting classes and courses (many of them Method Acting classes and courses) and a healthy diligent approach to acting is needed to achieve the desired results.

“Brian is a Acting Coach with over 18 years experience in the industry and is The Leading Expert on Method Acting in the UK. He has taught actors appearing in London?s West End shows to high profile films. Brian recently appeared on the BBC2 programme ?Murder Most Famous? teaching TV Actors; Sherrie Hewson (Coronation Street/
Emmerdale) and Angela Griffin (Coronation Street/ Holby City) Method Acting techniques. “

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Drama Articles | No Comments »

Acting Classes In London

Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009

That REALLY Teach You How To Act

I am a very positive and optimistic person. In fact, when I choose students who study with me, I also look for these traits. That being said, what I am about to say may seem slightly negative, but I tell you in order to let you know the truth.

Ok, here it is…

Most acting classes in London are terrible.

This is not ’sour grapes’ on my part or a ploy to get you to take my classes. I have too many students as it is, so it’s not that.

It’s just that many acting classes are badly designed and taught.

For example, there are the light runaround classes, which may be good for a laugh but no good if you are serious about acting. There is the pseudo intellectual class that pretends to be serious and deep, but is in actual fact self indulgent and pretentious.

I know this because during my own training many, many years ago I experienced these acting classes, and not very much has changed since then.

This is why I decided to give London what it really needed. Acting Classes that really teach you how to act. No hidden agendas or pretentions, just honest, high quality teaching in a safe and creative atmosphere.

Actually, I am always touched by the way students on my 3 day Introduction to Method Acting Boot Camp bond and become encouraging and supportive with each other. They become a mini-family for the weekend.

My teaching is always in depth and honest. Also, the focus is always on YOU. You wouldn’t believe the amount of acting teachers that have egos the size of small houses, and spend most of the time talking about themselves. I like to talk about you and your ability and how to move it on. That is what interests me.

When you are looking at taking acting classes in London, have a look at the technique they teach. I teach the world’s most successful acting technique - Method Acting - because I am obsessed with acting excellence. If you are too, then you may want to join me?

I can promise you an amazing experience.

“Brian is a Acting Coach with over 18 years experience in the industry and is The Leading Expert on Method Acting in the UK. He has taught actors appearing in London?s West End shows to high profile films. Brian recently appeared on the BBC2 programme ?Murder Most Famous? teaching TV Actors; Sherrie Hewson (Coronation Street/
Emmerdale) and Angela Griffin (Coronation Street/ Holby City) Method Acting techniques. “

Tags: , ,
Posted in Drama Articles | No Comments »

Creative movement from children’s storybooks: going beyond pantomime; Acting out stories provides a cross-disciplinary entree to the creative-dance experience.: … of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance

Tuesday, December 22nd, 2009

Product Description
This digital document is an article from JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, published by Thomson Gale on November 1, 2005. The length of the article is 4260 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Creative movement from children’s storybooks: going beyond pantomime; Acting out stories provides a cross-disciplinary entree to the creative-dance experience.
Author: Ritchie Gabbei
Publication: JOPERD–The Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance (Magazine/Journal)
Date: November 1, 2005
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 76 Issue: 9 Page: 32(6)

Distributed by Thomson Gale

Creative movement from children’s storybooks: going beyond pantomime; Acting out stories provides a cross-disciplinary entree to the creative-dance experience.: … of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Book Reviews and Shop | No Comments »

« Older Entries