From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For legal meaning of acting, see Acting (law).

For the military sense, see Acting (rank).

Acting is the work of an actor or actress is a person in theatre, television, film, or any other storytelling medium who tells the story by portraying a character and, usually, speaking or singing the written text or play. From the Latin word agĕre meaning "to do", this is precisely what acting is. In acting, an actor suppresses or augments aspects of their personality in order to reveal the actions and motivations of the character for particular moments in time. The actor is said to be "assuming the role" of another, usually for the benefit of an audience, but also because it can bring one a sense of artistic satisfaction. The first actor is believed to be Thespis of Icaria, a man of ancient Greece. He supposedly was the first to break away from the traditional singing chorus of the time ("plays" of this time involved only a chorus whom sang a story reminiscent of an opera), literally stepping away from the chorus and speaking to them as a separate character in the story. This may only be a legend, but in his honor a word was crafted: thespian, meaning any sort of performer but chiefly an actor. The International Thespian Society, a society comparable to a fraternity (yet possessing the troupe system of the Girl Scouts) for students involved in the arts has also been named in his honor.

Actors are generally expected to possess a number of skills, including good vocal projection, clarity of speech, physical expressiveness, a good sense of perspective, emotional availability, a well developed imagination, the ability to analyze and understand dramatic text, and the ability to emulate or generate emotional and physical conditions. Well-rounded actors are often also skilled in singing, dancing, emotional expressiveness, imitating dialects and accents, improvisation, observation and emulation, mime, stage combat, and performing classical texts such as Shakespeare. Many actors train at length in special programs or colleges to develop these skills, which have a wide range of different artistic philosophies and processes. Modern pioneers in the area of acting have included Mani Madhava Chakyar, Konstantin Stanislavski, Jerzy Grotowski, Lee Strasberg, Uta Hagen, Stella Adler, Michael Chekhov, Viola Spolin, Sanford Meisner, Bertolt Brecht, and Maria Ouspenskaya.

For history and other details, see actor, thespian, or Thespis.

Contents 1 The Professional Actor 2 Drama / Acting Schools 2.1 British Schools 2.2 American Schools 2.3 Australian Schools 3 Suggested Reading

Not all people working as an actor in film, television or theatre are professionally trained, but the vast majority are. Chances of succeeding as an actor are greatly enhanced by going to a drama school (or acting school). Most offer two to three years extensive and intense training on all aspects of acting, including work on voice, gesture, posture, facial expression, awareness of space and movement, either across the stage or around the camera, but generally both. Applications to drama schools are through auditions, and those who show their talent well are offered a place. Anybody over the age of 18 can usually apply to drama school to become a professional actor or actress.

A list of some of the best drama schools is given below ('Drama / Acting Schools')

• Academy Of Live & Recorded Arts
• Birmingham School Of Acting
• Bristol Old Vic Theatre School
• Central School Of Speech & Drama
• East 15 Acting School
• Liverpool Institute Of Performing Arts
• London Academy Of Music & Dramatic Art (LAMDA)
• Manchester Metropolitan University School Of Theatre
• Oxford School Of Drama
• Rose Bruford College
• Royal Academy Of Dramatic Art (RADA)
• Royal Scottish Academy Of Music & Drama
• Royal Welsh College Of Music & Drama

For more on British drama schools see the Conference Of Drama Schools Website below;

• The Conference Of Drama Schools

• Chapman University: School of Film and Telivision
• FSU: Film School
• EMAS: Los Angeles Acting School
• Loyola Marymount University: School of Film and Television
• University of Southern California: School of Cinema Television
• NYU: Tisch School of the Arts Maurice Kanbar Institute of Film and Television

• NIDA: National Insitute of Dramatic Art
• VCA: Victorian College of the Arts
• WAAPA: Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts
• ACA: Actors Centre Australia
• ACTT: Actors' College of Theatre and Television
• HSPA: Hunter School of the Performing Arts

• Letters to a Young Actor by Robert Brustein (Basic Books, 0465008062, 2005).
• Sanford Meisner on Acting by Merlin Marston, Dennis Longwell (Random House, 0394750594, 1987).
• An Actor Prepares by Konstantin Stanislavski, Elizabeth Reynolds Hapgood (Routledge, 0878309837, 1989).