Any actor interested in studying the Meisner technique should explore what's known as the actors instrument. Making a comparison between acting and an instrument is helpful in categorizing aspects of the acting craft and what makes a good actor. Even the most inexperienced audience knows when acting is good or not, simply by how engaged they are in the material being presented. It may also just be a sense of something not coming across in the right way. They can also sense when an actors instrument is not well developed, because they don't "believe" the character portrayal.
The actors instrument as six general categories. Those elements include emotional expression, sensory expression, physical expression, empathy and intelligence. Mastering the craft of acting with the Meisner Technique requires that all six aspects of the instrument are well developed. If you run down the categories mentioned, anyone even slightly interested in acting should be able to name successful actors who have mastered several of these aspects of expression. Rarely, the are actors that come along and become the best of the best by being gifted at them all.
Take, for example, Sylvester Stallone who is know for his commanding physical presence and physical expression. This doesn't mean that he can't express himself emotionally, it just means that his physical presence is the most developed of his acting tools. Although he is practiced at developing an emotional side of his characters, those expressions are often communicated through physical means. Actors must focus and learn about all the aspects of the acting instrument, which will help them be diverse and capable of many types of roles.
Emotional expression is the most common aspect of the instrument that actors are focused on. How a character feels about something and delivering lines powered by that feeling is a very common practice for newer actors. While it can be short sighted to put too much weight on any one aspect of the actors instrument, emotional expression is certainly a key acting tool to master. Each of the six aspects need to be studied and mastered so that they can all work together.
Of course, it is meaningful emotional expression that draws people into any character or story. It clues the audience in to what the character is about, the conflicts they face, what their deepest needs are. It is common in classes teaching Meisner acting in nyc to create an emotional history of a character, imagine it in detail and then use all the aspects of the instrument to express them. Meisner acting students are masters of human emotion, the full range and complexity of the human experience. They in fact, build a library of emotions and reactions and methods for communicating them. Specific characters can be created by delving very deep into the imagination and using the "library" of human behavior they have created. They create and live the emotional life that the character would live so that it is instilled in them and can be called upon at will.
Just as an example, vulnerability can express many characteristics, from innocence to deep insecurity. There are many actors who, with hard work, can learn to differentiate and express this complex emotion. If the actor has also worked hard to develop other aspects of the instrument, such as imagination, sensory expression and intelligence, the complexity of emotions will be there. A single tear, without words can accomplish this, but how about a sense of vulnerability shown while one is smashing a clock to pieces? This is a subjective, creative process.
Acting is not pretending to have an emotion. However, acting is not simply reciting words using certain inflections and gestures to communicate emotions. Sanford Meisner was often heard to say, "acting is DOING." You must be in the moment and allow emotional reactions and behaviors to appear, and you must follow them. Great acting is, moment by moment, opening up to the character and allowing them to take you places you may not have imagined. Legendary actors do not force themselves to show emotion. What they feel is genuine, and the results can range from crying and screaming to sitting perfectly still to express an emotion. Developing a deep capacity to understand and feel the full range of human emotions and experiences is a great way to become an open, flexible acting student, the best kind of student. Actors must give themselves permission to feel strong emotions, and express them (or not, if the role requires it) in physical, intelligent, empathetic ways.
The actors instrument as six general categories. Those elements include emotional expression, sensory expression, physical expression, empathy and intelligence. Mastering the craft of acting with the Meisner Technique requires that all six aspects of the instrument are well developed. If you run down the categories mentioned, anyone even slightly interested in acting should be able to name successful actors who have mastered several of these aspects of expression. Rarely, the are actors that come along and become the best of the best by being gifted at them all.
Take, for example, Sylvester Stallone who is know for his commanding physical presence and physical expression. This doesn't mean that he can't express himself emotionally, it just means that his physical presence is the most developed of his acting tools. Although he is practiced at developing an emotional side of his characters, those expressions are often communicated through physical means. Actors must focus and learn about all the aspects of the acting instrument, which will help them be diverse and capable of many types of roles.
Emotional expression is the most common aspect of the instrument that actors are focused on. How a character feels about something and delivering lines powered by that feeling is a very common practice for newer actors. While it can be short sighted to put too much weight on any one aspect of the actors instrument, emotional expression is certainly a key acting tool to master. Each of the six aspects need to be studied and mastered so that they can all work together.
Of course, it is meaningful emotional expression that draws people into any character or story. It clues the audience in to what the character is about, the conflicts they face, what their deepest needs are. It is common in classes teaching Meisner acting in nyc to create an emotional history of a character, imagine it in detail and then use all the aspects of the instrument to express them. Meisner acting students are masters of human emotion, the full range and complexity of the human experience. They in fact, build a library of emotions and reactions and methods for communicating them. Specific characters can be created by delving very deep into the imagination and using the "library" of human behavior they have created. They create and live the emotional life that the character would live so that it is instilled in them and can be called upon at will.
Just as an example, vulnerability can express many characteristics, from innocence to deep insecurity. There are many actors who, with hard work, can learn to differentiate and express this complex emotion. If the actor has also worked hard to develop other aspects of the instrument, such as imagination, sensory expression and intelligence, the complexity of emotions will be there. A single tear, without words can accomplish this, but how about a sense of vulnerability shown while one is smashing a clock to pieces? This is a subjective, creative process.
Acting is not pretending to have an emotion. However, acting is not simply reciting words using certain inflections and gestures to communicate emotions. Sanford Meisner was often heard to say, "acting is DOING." You must be in the moment and allow emotional reactions and behaviors to appear, and you must follow them. Great acting is, moment by moment, opening up to the character and allowing them to take you places you may not have imagined. Legendary actors do not force themselves to show emotion. What they feel is genuine, and the results can range from crying and screaming to sitting perfectly still to express an emotion. Developing a deep capacity to understand and feel the full range of human emotions and experiences is a great way to become an open, flexible acting student, the best kind of student. Actors must give themselves permission to feel strong emotions, and express them (or not, if the role requires it) in physical, intelligent, empathetic ways.
About the Author:
The Maggie Flanigan Studio provides training for serious actors committed to improving their craft. Find out more about meisner acting nyc by reading this article about actors instrument by visiting the studio website.
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