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Directing Actors
A Practical Aesthetics Approach
Lee Michael Cohn
- 196 pages
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
Directing Actors
A Practical Aesthetics Approach
Lee Michael Cohn
About This Book
Directing Actors: A Practical Aesthetics Approach is the first book to apply the Practical Aesthetics acting technique to the craft of directing.
Lee Cohn lays out a step-by-step, no-nonsense methodology for the director that includes a deep dive into the mechanics of storytelling, the rehearsal process, working with writers, and the practical realities of the director's job. Featuring end-of-chapter exercises, this book provides a clear and effective means of breaking down a script in order to tell a story with clarity, simplicity, and dramatic force and gives directors a clear working vocabulary that will allow effective communication with actors. The techniques in this book are applicable to any theatrical style and any media platform in which a director might work. Written in an accessible, conversational style, this book strips the process of directing down to its most essential components to explain how to become an "actor's director."
A must-read for students in directing courses and professional directors working with actors who prescribe to the Practical Aesthetics technique, as well as anyone interested in the process of working with actors, Directing Actors will help directors to get the very best their actors are capable of while approaching the work with a joyful, open spirit.
Frequently asked questions
Information
PART I PREPARATION
1 INTRODUCTION
- The story rules everything. All direction to the actors, indeed all the choices made by a director, must serve the needs of the story. The directorâs preparation revolves around understanding the overall intent of the story and then parsing each scene into a dramatic conflict that serves that idea. (More on this. . . a lot more on this. . . to come.)
- The director must understand every characterâs intention in every scene. If directors do not understand why each character is in a given scene and what they want, then they cannot direct the scene.
- Everything comes from action. Everything â from what to tell the actors, to how to stage a scene, to costume choices â stems from the actions being pursued by the actors within the imaginary circumstances of the scene. Everything.
- Every scene must have a conflict. Some scenes are more confrontational than others, but every scene must involve opposing forces fighting for what they want. Even in a poorly written scene, it's the directorâs job to tease out as much conflict as the scene will organically support.
- An actor can only perform an action. All direction must ultimately be reduced to a simple, playable action, that is, the pursuit of a clearly defined goal. âTo get a favor,â âto offer an apology," and âto correct a false impressionâ are common tasks that an actor can actually perform. You can do any of them right now. Go ahead, give one a try. Now, actions like âto make the world a better placeâ or âto convert a clam into a seahorseâ are not actable. Go on, knock yourself out. See what I mean?Years ago, a teacher of mine put it like this: if youâre moving into a new house, you can give the movers instructions like, "Be careful with the big mirrorâ or âPut the couch against the wall and the love seat by the window.â They are simple and clear. But if you say something like âPlease make me feel happy in my new home,â the movers would probably stare at you like youâre from another planet and try to get out of there as quickly as possible. Acting choices work the same way. They have to be doable right now, otherwise they are useless.
- An actor cannot perform a psychological or emotional state of being. Any direction that asks the actor to portray a state of being will lead to self-consciousness and indicating. All bad acting can ultimately be reduced to indicating, which simply means that the actor is showing the audience what they think the character should be thinking and/or feeling. An actorâs job is always pursue a singular goal (action) in each scene, not to pretend to feel or think something. Donât ever ask an actor to âbeâ something; directions like âbe happy,â âbe angry,â or âbe confusedâ will lead the actor to counterfeit behavior akin to their basic understanding of that particular state of being. Rather, tell the actor to do something. âGet a friend to wise up,â âstand up to a bully," or âdemand clarificationâ are much better ways to get the intended results from the actor because they are simple, outwardly directed tasks.
- Good direction is free of jargon. Directors often get caught up in technical mumbo jumbo. Also, usually with the best of intentions, directors often try to speak to each actor specifically from the vantage point of that actorâs training. This often creates a âTower of Babel effectâ wherein what makes sense and is useful to one actor may be complete nonsense to another. For instance, the use of sense memory or emotional memory might work well with Method actors but be completely counterproductive with an actor steeped in Practical Aesthetics or classical British theatre training. Part of the goal of this book is to help the director create, in essence, a universal language that any actor can easily process. (For my fellow Star Wars geeks, the directorial equivalent of Galactic Basic.)
- BE PREPARED! The rehearsal process must always contain room for the birth of new ideas and happy accidents born of the actorsâ spontaneity. Itâs important to enter into each rehearsal with a spirit of openness and exploration, but the director must identify the nature of the conflict in the scene and have a clear idea of what each character wants from the other. If the director doesnât understand these things, they havenât done their job, and thus they are not ready to direct the scene. Now, as Hank Williams said, âThe good Lord willinâ and the creek donât rise," as a director watches a scene come to life, they might have an insight that will take things in a new direction. But the director MUST begin each rehearsal with a clear agenda and an understanding of the mechanics of each scene.
- Good direction is invisible. I once directed a show that got numerous excellent reviews and went on to win a bunch of awards. I was not mentioned in many of the reviews, so naturally, my ego was a bit bruised. I worked my butt off on this thing, I thought. I wanted to see my name in print adjacent to superlatives like âgenius,â âbrilliant,â and âwe ought to erect a statue in Mr. Cohnâs honor.â And then it finally occurred to me: the fact that I wasnât mentioned actually meant that I did a good job. If an audience is thinking about the direction â the actor's performances, staging, pacing, use of theatrical elements, you name it â you messed up, my friend. The seams are showing. The audienceâs attention should always be on the story. If they are thinking of your direction, however brilliant, it means that the audience is now aware of the artifice. Theyâve stopped dreaming the dream of the play. Theyâve stopped living vicariously through the characters. In short, theyâve checked out.
- 10. Donât be a jerk. Treat the actors, and everyone else, with respect. Period. Be polite and keep your hands to yourself.
Table of contents
- Cover
- Half Title
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Dedication Page
- Table of Contents
- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
- AUTHORâS NOTE
- PART I PREPARATION
- PART II THE REHEARSAL PROCESS
- SUGGESTED READING AND VIEWING
- INDEX