Method Acting Essay Research Paper The Application

Method Acting Essay, Research Paper

The Application of Method Acting to Shakespearean Text

Preface

* I never really believed that acting could, or should for that matter, be taught. There is no concrete way to act. For some people, the ability to do theatre, and to do it well comes naturally; for others, it does not. I have always held the conviction that to teach acting is to rob the art of it’s truth, it’s beauty.

Over the summer, I performed in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. I was directed by someone who really made me understand the harsh realities of the “business,” and yet at the same time, gave me a deeper appreciation for good theatre, and the intensity that goes into creating it. Through watching him on stage and listening to him, I have gained new insight to my own future in acting. I realized what a sloppy actor I am, and how much refinement I desparately needed.

I still believe that you cannot teach someone to act. However, I do know that someone’s inherent acting abilities can be refined. Now, the kicker here is how. There has to be some sort of common language among actors and directors that can be used in maturing theatre techinique. By developing the system of method acting, Konstantin Stanislavski did just that. He created continuity in the refinement of technique, and thus allowed communication to occur within the acting realm. *

For years I have unknowingly used various aspects of the “method” in my own acting. When my mentor told me to read Stanislavski’s system by Sonia Moore, I was expecting some sort of ephiphany which would immediately broaden my whole theatrical outlook. Thus was not the case. Stanislavski strove to give an actor control over the phenomenon of inspiration. (Moore; 1974) He did this by creating a system which simply involved developing a common language which could be applied to acting technique.

Sonia Moore took Stanislavski’s main principles and described what they are and the technology and experiences that aided him in the development of his teachings. Although much of what I read was rather obvious, (or, perhaps, merely intrinsic to me), it did call my attention to many of the simple things that I may or may not do in my acting. It gave me a common ground. And this I have found to be imperative to the refinement of my work.

Theater, said Stanislavski, is a pulpit which is the most powerful means of influence. With the same power with which theater can ennoble the spectators it may corrupt them, degrade them, spoil their taste, lower their passions, offend beauty. My task is to elevate the family of artists from the ignorant, the half-educated, and the profiteers, and to convey to the younger generation that an actor is the priest of beauty and truth. Some actors and actesses love stage and art as fish love water. They revive in the atmosphere of art. Others love not art itself but an actor’s career, success; they revive in the backstage atmosphere. The first are beautiful, the others are abominable. The habit of being always in public, of exhibiting oneself and showing off, of receiving applause, good reviews, and so on, is a great temptation. A serious artist cannot be satisfied for long with such existence, but superficial people are enslaved by the temptations of the stage, and become corrupted. This is why, in our work more than in any other, one must constantly keep oneself in hand. An actor needs a soldier’s disicipline.

Theatre is a collective effort and thus Stanislavski believed discipline to be essential to the welfare of the group. He based his teachings around the idea that an actor must discipline him/herself in order to aspire to true greatness. His goal was to, through his system, give the actor some clear basis by which he/she could evoke inspiration. When an actor is inspired he is in the same natural and spontaneous state that is ours in life, and he lives the experiences and emotions of the character he portrays. Stanislavski’s aesthetic and ethical beliefs formed the point of departure in his work and the driving force in the creation of his System. (Moore, 1974)

There are many elements involved in the Stanislavski system. However, most importantly is the concept of physical actions, and how by executing them with truth, they can portray the deepest emotions. “The method of physical actions,” said Stanislavski, “is the result of my whole life’s work.” Stanislavski discovered that there is an unbreakable tie between the psychological and the physical in humans. Behind every physical action is some sort of psychological premise. Thus, in order to convey true believability on stage, one must have very consise expressions and mannerisms.

In order to create intuitive, truthful actions, an actor’s subconsious must be “turned on.” Stanislavski describes a myriad of techiniques by which this can be done, the first being the ever elusive “magic if.” He knew that an actor probably cannot honestly believe in the truth and reality of events on stage, but they could believe in the possibility of them. What an actor must do is question “what if I were in Juliet’s position.” “This ‘magic if,’ as Stanislavski calls it, transforms the character’s aim into the actor’s.”(Moore, 1974) “If,” takes the actor into the imaginary circumstances, and with it he/she no longer needs to force themself into believing such given events.

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