The Stanislavsky Method
When I came off of the stage that first night, I knew what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I was ecstatic, on a natural high. Suddenly, I had found my place in the world. As I have gotten older and more experienced, I have learned that acting is not just
reciting lines in front of an audience. There is a technique to acting. It is known as the “method”, “method acting”, or the “Stanislavsky method”.
The method was created by Konstantin Stanislavsky, a Russian actor, director,producer and founder of the Moscow Art Theatre which opened in 1898. Stanislavsky had many shortcomings as an actor and worked obsessively to improve his voice, diction and body movement. As a director ...
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One of Stanislavsky’s most famous students, Lee Strasberg, believed it to be the actor’s worst enemy. The exercise Stanislavsky developed for relaxation is meant to
help the actor find hidden tension in all muscles of the body, most importantly the face, where most mental tension manifests itself. The exercise begins with the actor sitting in a straight backed, armless chair. First, the actor must find the position that he or she
would be most likely to sleep in, if absolutely necessary. Then, starting with the fingers and working all the muscles in sequence, finding the tension hiding in each muscle, and will the muscle to relax. The first time I performed this exercise was in Beginning
Drama, my freshman year. My instructor, Mrs. Daniels, had each student find a space on the floor and lay down on their back. From there Ms. Daniels went through each of our muscles telling us to relax each one as we went through them. This exercise helps the
actor find where they, ...
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Once able to do that, the actor moves on to bringing up past events and actions from his own life.
One of the major keys to acting, and making each of the exercises work is concentration. The actor needs to be able to concentrate on an object. An object is not just a physical object, it can be anything on which the actor chooses to concentrate. An
object can be an idea, a person, a dream or anything else that the actor wishes. Ideally,the object is somehow related to the play, but that does not always have to be the case. For example, if two actors are having difficulty with a scene, a director might give each
one something different to concentrate on. The director then gives ...
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"The Stanislavsky Method." Essayworld.com. July 10, 2005. Accessed April 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/The-Stanislavsky-Method/29847.
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