Stanislavski+Method

=The Stanislavski Method= Realism was the guiding principle for Stanislavski who demanded that the actors’ essential task is to reproduce a credible reality on stage or screen, founded on acute observations of the world. Where naturalism implied a concern with and highly detailed realistic portrayal of, lower class life, realism emerged from it and could be recognised by its selection and distillation of the observation of everyday life, not the life itself.

When following this Method and developing answers to the “given circumstances”,(see below) an actor must understand the answers to the following: What is the sub-text? What is my super-objective? Do I reach it? What is the through-line of my action in this performance and how does it intersect those of other characters? (A useful way of recording this would be a graph in your Learning Log showing progress towards the overall objective). Divide the text into beats so that you can work on each one separately before running them together.

Glossary Physical and emotional memory: the actor draws on anecdotal emotional and physical experiences to capture the realism he or she is trying to convey.

The magic if: If is a word which can transform our thoughts; through it we can imagine ourselves in virtually any situation. "If I suddenly became wealthy..." "If I were vacationing on the Caribbean Island..." "If I had great talent..." "If that person who insulted me comes near me again..." The word if becomes a powerful lever for the mind; it can lift us out of ourselves a give us a sense of absolute certainty about imaginary circumstances.

Beat : a scene can be divided into sections or beats or units which can be isolated from the rest for intense development due to the specific nature of one or more components e.g. setting, focus, mood, characters onstage, theme, source of tension etc.

Sub-text: the unspoken but understood meaning running beneath the surface dialogue and action.

Super-objective : the motivating force - the fundamental wish or desire - that determines the character's actions all through the play. This, of course, must be closely related to the author's main purpose in writing the play. To put it another way, the character’s super-objective is dependent on the fundamental action and conflict which the play is intended to represent. For example, Hamlet's super-objective, according to one director, is his search for the truth. How the character goes about achieving that super objective will be via the interaction of his/her through-line and a series of text units or beats.

Source: http://www.actors-studio.com/history/clurman.html

Through-line : what makes the character tick and act/react the way he or she does along the path to achieving their super-objective. I.e. the spiritual ethos of the character which will be a product of what has happened in their past, where they are now and what they see in their future. The through-line will coherently link all the units of action and any minor objectives.

__**The Given Circumstances**__


 * What are the given circumstances?** This includes details of your recent past (yesterday, today and five minutes ago), how you are feeling now, what is about to happen to you and any other relevant details of your present situation. Circumstances change moment to moment; they are not constant.


 * Who am I?** Think about what your character is like in terms of personality, appearance, age, family background, beliefs, values, interests and so on.


 * What are my relationships?** Consider the relationships to other characters, to events and to the things that surround you, such as the location, or objects. How do they react to you and you to them? Is there a difference?


 * What time is it?** Consider the century, the year, the season, the day of the week, the month, the date and the time in which the action of the play takes place. What effects might this context have on your character?


 * What is the action?** The action is what you are doing to get what you want. What physical and verbal actions are you using to reach your objective? You play an action because you want to achieve your objective. You should have a reason for doing every physical action.


 * What is my objective?** Know what you want in each scene, what your motivation, or reason for action is. You will be able to show your objective if you think in terms of action and say to yourself, ‘I want to...’ or ‘I must...’ For example, your objective might be ‘I want to convince you’, ‘I will insult you’ or ‘I must defend myself’


 * Where am I?** Consider the setting of the play. Does it take place in the country or the city? Does it take place in an area like the one you live in? What kind of house do the characters live in? What kind of neighbourhood? Where does the action occur?


 * What is my obstacle (driving tension)?** Know what problems you are facing and what problems you must attempt to overcome in order to achieve your objective. The obstacles that stand in your way create conflict in the drama and provide the tension to drive your character.

__Here are some web links on Stanislavski__
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-the-stanislavski-method-of-acting.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stanislavski's_system

__This is a Teaching lesson based on Stanislavski System__
http://www.learnnc.org/lp/pages/3352

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