The Actor Training Reader is an invaluable resource for students and teachers of acting, offering access to a wide range of key texts that identify, explore, illuminate and interrogate the challenges, practices and processes involved in training the modern actor. A companion volume to the highly-acclaimed Actor Training (Hodge 2010), this book collects key writings by influential actor training practitioners of the twentieth century, introduced with essays from leading academics in the field of actor training. Key practitioners included are: Eugenio Barba; Anne Bogart; Bertolt Brecht; Peter Brook; Michael Chekhov; and Konstantin Stanislavsky. The book sets established, widely used texts alongside less well-known ones in order to trace the development of actor training from the pioneering advances of Eastern Europe to the acting games of Augusto Boal. The texts are grouped into thematic sections rather than chronologically in order to encourage a comparison of different approaches to similar aspects of the craft. Each section will have a specially commissioned introductory essay by an expert in that area of actor training, which will bring context, critical engagement and contemporary relevance to the extracts and offer provocations for further discussion.

Table of Contents:
Introduction Mark Evans, Coventry University, UK. Prologue Jacques Copeau: Rudlin, J. & Paul, N. (eds.) (1990) Copeau: Texts on Theatre Konstantin Stanislavsky: Stanislavski, C. (1980) My Life in Art Purpose The Purpose of Actor Training Ian Watson, Rutgers University, USA. Extracts: Mike Alfreds: Alfreds, M. (2007) Different Every Night: Freeing the Actor Eugenio Barba: Barba, E. (1979) The Floating Islands Augusto Boal: Boal, A. (1995) The Rainbow of Desire: The Boal method of theatre and therapy Michael Chekhov: Chekhov, M. (1985) Lessons for the Professional Actor Edward Gordon Craig: Craig, E. G. (1983) Craig On Theatre Jerzy Grotowski: Grotowski, J. (1997) 'Performer', in Schechner, R. & Wolford, L. (eds.) (1997) The Grotowski Sourcebook, Jacques Lecoq: Lecoq, J. (2000) The Moving Body: Teaching creative theatre Yoshi Oida: Oida, Y. & Marshall, L. (1997) The Invisible Actor Konstantin Stanislavsky: Stanislavski, K. (2008) An Actor’s Work Technique Training the Actor’s Voice and Body Jonathan Pitches, University of Leeds, UK. Extracts: Antonin Artaud: Artaud, A. (1970) The Theatre and its Double Eugenio Barba: Barba, B. (1986) Beyond the Floating Islands Augusto Boal: Boal, A. (2002) Games for Actors and Non-Actors Moshe Feldenkrais: Feldenkrais, M. & Schechner, R. (1966) ‘Image, Movement, and Actor: Restoration of Potentiality - A discussion of the Feldenkrais Method and Acting, Self-Expression and the Theater’ Dario Fo and Franca Rame: Fo, D. & Rame, F. (1983) Theatre Workshops at the Riverside Studios Jerzy Grotowski: Grotowski, J. (1969) Towards a Poor Theatre Rudolf Laban: McCaw, D. (ed.) The Laban Sourcebook Jacques Lecoq: Lecoq, J. (2006) Theatre of movement and gesture Kristin Linklater: Linklater, K. (1976) Freeing the Natural Voice Vsevolod Meyerhold: Bruan, E. (1969) Meyerhold on Theatre Michel Saint-Denis: Saint-Denis, M. (1982) Training for the Theatre Tadashi Suzuki: Suzuki, T. (1986) The Way of Acting: The theatre writings of Tadashi Suzuki Yevgeny Vakhtangov: Malaev-Babel, A. (ed.) (2011) The Vakhtangov Sourcebook Phillip Zarrilli: Zarrilli, P. (2009) Psychophysical Acting: An Intercultural approach after Stanislavski Character and Composition The Self and the Fictive Other in Creation, Rehearsal and Performance Bella Merlin, University of California, Riverside, USA. Extracts: Stella Adler: Adler, S. The Art of Acting (2000) Eugenio Barba: Barba, E. (2010) On Directing and Dramaturgy: Burning the House Anne Bogart and Tina Landau: Bogart, A. & Landau, T. (2005) The Viewpoints Book Bertolt Brecht: Willett, J. (ed.) (1978) Brecht on Theatre: The Development of an Aesthetic Michael Chekhov: Chekhov, M. (2002) To The Actor Dario Fo: Fo, D. (1991) The Tricks of the Trade Jacques Lecoq: Lecoq, J. (2000) The Moving Body Sanford Meisner: Meisner, S. & Longwell, D. (1987) Sanford Meisner on Acting Odin: Christoffersen, E. E. (1993) The Actor’s Way, Open Theatre: Pasolli, R. (1972) A book on the Open Theatre Konstantion Stanislavsky: Stanislavski, K. (2008) An Actor’s Work Presence Presence, Physicality, Play and Communion Dick McCaw, Royal Holloway University, UK. Extracts: Peter Brook: Brook, P. (1993) There Are No Secrets: Thoughts on Acting and Theatre Joseph Chaikin: Chaikin, J. (1991) The Presence of the Actor Jacques Copeau: Rudlin, J. & Paul, N. (eds.) (1990) Copeau: Texts on Theatre Philippe Gaulier: Gaulier, P. (2006) The Tormentor: le jeu, light, theatre Keith Johnstone: Johnstone, K. (1981) Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre Jacques Lecoq: Lecoq, J. (2006) Theatre of Movement and Gesture Joan Littlewood: 'Working with Joan: Theatre Workshop actors talking to Tom Milne and Clive Goodwin' Ariane Mnouchkine: extracts from: Féral, J., Mnouchkine, A. & Husemoller, A. (1989) ‘Building up the Muscle: An Interview with Ariane Mnouchkine’ Wlodzimierz Staniewski: Staniewski, W. with Hodge, A. (2004) Hidden Territories: the theatre of gardzienice Ruth Zaporah: Zaporah, R. (1995) Action Theater: The improvisation of presence Epilogue Yoshi Oida: Oida, Y. & Marshall, L. (1997) The Invisible Actor Afterword Mark Evans, Coventry University, UK