ABSTRACT

Exercises for Embodied Actors: Tools for Physical Actioning builds on the vocabulary of simple action verbs to generate an entire set of practical tools from first read to performance that harnesses modern knowledge about the integration of the mind and the rest of the body.

Including over 50 innovative exercises, the book leads actors through a rigorous examination of their own habits, links those discoveries to creating characters, and offers dozens of exercises to explore in classrooms and with ensembles. The result is a modern toolkit that empowers actors to start from their own unique selves and delivers specific techniques to apply on stage and in front of the camera.

This step-by-step guide can be used by actors working individually or by teachers crafting the arc of a course, ensuring that students explore in physically engaged and dynamic ways at every step of their process.

part I|21 pages

Foundations for Physical Actioning

chapter 1|7 pages

Curiosity & Attention

chapter 2|5 pages

Action

chapter 3|7 pages

Translating Physical Language

part II|39 pages

Seeing Yourself

chapter 4|12 pages

The Physical Action Journal

chapter 5|9 pages

Creating Palettes

chapter 6|8 pages

Diagraming Identities

chapter 7|8 pages

The Pasta Maker

part III|51 pages

Building an Embodied Role

chapter 8|10 pages

Mapping Their World

chapter 9|22 pages

Making Text Physical

chapter 10|6 pages

Building Bridges to You

chapter 11|11 pages

Special Circumstances

part IV|53 pages

Experiments for the Classroom & Ensembles

chapter 12|25 pages

With a Partner

chapter 13|15 pages

With Three or More

chapter 14|11 pages

Skills Gymnasium

part V|25 pages

Program Notes

chapter 15|9 pages

Would Stanislavsky Disapprove?

chapter 16|14 pages

Will My Brain Get in My Way?