The Director as Collaborator

The Director as Collaborator
Author: Robert Knopf
Publisher: CRC Press
Total Pages: 190
Release: 2015-10-05
Genre: Language Arts & Disciplines
ISBN: 1317343433

The Director as Collaborator teaches essential directing skills while emphasizing how directors and theatre productions benefit from collaboration. Good collaboration occurs when the director shares responsibility for the artistic creation with the entire production, including actors, designers, stage managers and technical staff. Leadership does not preclude collaboration; in theatre, these concepts can and should be complementary. Students will develop their abilities by directing short scenes and plays and by participating in group exercises.

Impro

Impro
Author: Keith Johnstone
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 206
Release: 2012-11-12
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1136610456

Keith Johnstone's involvement with the theatre began when George Devine and Tony Richardson, artistic directors of the Royal Court Theatre, commissioned a play from him. This was in 1956. A few years later he was himself Associate Artistic Director, working as a play-reader and director, in particular helping to run the Writers' Group. The improvisatory techniques and exercises evolved there to foster spontaneity and narrative skills were developed further in the actors' studio then in demonstrations to schools and colleges and ultimately in the founding of a company of performers, called The Theatre Machine. Divided into four sections, 'Status', 'Spontaneity', 'Narrative Skills', and 'Masks and Trance', arranged more or less in the order a group might approach them, the book sets out the specific techniques and exercises which Johnstone has himself found most useful and most stimulating. The result is both an ideas book and a fascinating exploration of the nature of spontaneous creativity.

The Psychology of Good and Evil

The Psychology of Good and Evil
Author: Laurent Bègue
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 265
Release: 2016
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 0190250666

The Psychology of Good and Evil expertly analyzes the shape that morality takes in our minds, its consequences in our lives, and how it affects our relationships with others. By exploring the core of human nature, Laurent Bègue uncovers the hidden mechanisms underlying the moral self, the apprenticeship of morality, how we relate to social norms, and the foundations of our beliefs.

Script Analysis for Theatre

Script Analysis for Theatre
Author: Robert Knopf
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 201
Release: 2017-02-09
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1408185180

Script Analysis for Theatre: Tools for Interpretation, Collaboration and Production provides theatre students and emerging theatre artists with the tools, skills and a shared language to analyze play scripts, communicate about them, and collaborate with others on stage productions. Based largely on concepts derived from Stanislavski's system of acting and method acting, the book focuses on action - what characters do to each other in specific circumstances, times, and places - as the engine of every play. From this foundation, readers will learn to distinguish the big picture of a script, dissect and 'score' smaller units and moment-to-moment action, and create individualized blueprints from which to collaborate on shaping the action in production from their perspectives as actors, directors, and designers. Script Analysis for Theatre offers a practical approach to script analysis for theatre production and is grounded in case studies of a range of the most studied plays, including Sophocles' Oedipus the King, Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, Henrik Ibsen's Hedda Gabler, Georg Büchner's Woyzeck, Oscar Wilde's The Importance of Being Earnest, Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire, and Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive, among others. Readers will develop the real-life skills professional theatre artists use to design, rehearse, and produce plays.

Flip Side

Flip Side
Author: Andrew Fusek Peters
Publisher: Evans Brothers
Total Pages: 73
Release: 2008
Genre: College and school drama, English
ISBN: 0237534010

This exciting drama puts a contemporary twist on a trio of traditional European folk tales. Together they explore the drama and tragedy of human relationships, the dangers of judging by appearances, and the importance of finding the truth about those around you.

Shared Fantasy

Shared Fantasy
Author: Gary Alan Fine
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
Total Pages: 298
Release: 2002-08-14
Genre: Games & Activities
ISBN: 0226249441

This classic study still provides one of the most acute descriptions available of an often misunderstood subculture: that of fantasy role playing games like Dungeons & Dragons. Gary Alan Fine immerses himself in several different gaming systems, offering insightful details on the nature of the games and the patterns of interaction among players—as well as their reasons for playing.

Creating Improvised Theatre

Creating Improvised Theatre
Author: Mark Jane
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 572
Release: 2021-08-18
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1000415155

Creating Improvised Theatre: Tools, Techniques, and Theories for Short Form and Narrative Improvisation is a complete guide to improvised theatre for performers and instructors. This book provides a modern view of improvised theatre based on the rapid evolution of this art form, shedding new light on classic theories as well as developing lesser known and emerging techniques, such as the Trance Mask. Instead of simply referencing classic theories, the book revisits them and places them in the context of contemporary improvisation techniques. Designed as a practical support, this guide contains over 130 exercises that allow its theories to come alive in workshops, rehearsals, and performance. The book is divided into four sections: Nuts and bolts: The fundamental tools of improvisation to explore how to be spontaneously creative, build with your partner, and learn from masks to discover your scene instant by instant. Short form: Techniques for scene work and short form performance, including how to get the most out of a scene, remain connected to the relational stakes, provoke change (physical, status, and emotional), and maintain a playful attitude. Narrative improvisation: Theories to help navigate long form narrative-based shows with "narrative waypoints," generate variety, develop protagonists, work on genres, and manipulate creative transitions. The bits box: Advice for warming-up before a rehearsal or a show with a collection of useful games. Written to inspire creativity and provide the tools to develop innovative improvised shows and experiences, Creating Improvised Theatre is an invaluable source book for anyone interested in the art of improvised theatre, whether a beginning student or experienced performer.

Mime the Gap

Mime the Gap
Author: Richard Knight
Publisher: The Crowood Press
Total Pages: 349
Release: 2018-08-23
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1785004646

Mime the Gap: Techniques in Mime and Movement explores the physicality of movement in storytelling, offering new ideas about acting and performance, whilst encouraging a contemporary resurgence of this traditional performance art. With detailed, step-by-step instructions of basic to advanced mime illusions, the book addresses the key areas of physicality, including when to move and when not to move, making the invisible 'visible' and the fundamental principles of physical articulation. Additional topics include how to use the elements of Fire, Earth, Water and Air for physical characterization; techniques for performing classic mime routines, such as the Glass Box and the Moonwalk; how to mime with props and objects, both visible and invisible; using breath, posture and gesture to enhance performance and perceptions, and finally, creating and producing an authentic performance. Offering numerous exercises suitable for solo or group work, this new book will help you to explore and develop your physicality and build an awareness of how to apply it to a performance.A practical guide to mime - a traditional performance art which is having a resurgence.Addresses the key areas of physicality including when to move and when not to move; making the invisible 'visible'; principles of physical articulation and much, much more.A valuable guide for acting students, mime artists and anyone looking to increase personal confidence and presentation skills.Gives detailed step-by-step instructions of basic to advanced mime illusions.Superbly illustrated with 181 colour photographs.Richard Knight has over thirty years experience of performing, directing and teaching in the theatre, film and television industry.

The Improv Handbook

The Improv Handbook
Author: Tom Salinsky
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 521
Release: 2017-10-19
Genre: Performing Arts
ISBN: 1350026174

The Improv Handbook is the most comprehensive, smart, helpful and inspiring guide to improv available today. Applicable to comedians, actors, public speakers and anyone who needs to think on their toes, it features a range of games, interviews, descriptions and exercises that illuminate and illustrate the exciting world of improvised performance. First published in 2008, this second edition features a new foreword by comedian Mike McShane, as well as new exercises on endings, managing blind offers and master-servant games, plus new and expanded interviews with Keith Johnstone, Neil Mullarkey, Jeffrey Sweet and Paul Rogan. The Improv Handbook is a one-stop guide to the exciting world of improvisation. Whether you're a beginner, an expert, or would just love to try it if you weren't too scared, The Improv Handbook will guide you every step of the way.

The Dangerous Philosophies of Michael Jackson

The Dangerous Philosophies of Michael Jackson
Author: Elizabeth Amisu
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 228
Release: 2016-09-26
Genre: Social Science
ISBN:

An essential companion to Michael Jackson's music, films, and books, this work offers 21 original, academic essays on all things Jackson-from film, music, and dance to fashion, culture, and literature. Going well beyond the average celebrity biography, this comprehensive book looks at why Jackson is regarded as one of the most important musicians of our time, offering insights into every facet of his art, life, and artistic afterlife. It looks at the methods by which his work was created, presented, received, and appropriated; discusses Jackson's varied personas along with his public and private appearances, albums, conceptual art, short films, and dance; and considers his use of costume, makeup, and reinvention. To help readers understand the phenomenon that was-and is-Michael Jackson, the book focuses on Jackson's historical context through an analysis of his films, songs, and books, examining him as an artist and shedding light on the political and ideological debates that surrounded him. Not shying away from the controversial aspects of Jackson's life and legacy, it also tackles questions of sexuality and racism, gender, and class, comparing Jackson to artists ranging from J. S. Bach to Andy Warhol. Through its examination of Jackson's entire catalog, the work connects all the aspects of his art and life to exemplify-and explain-the performer's unparalleled influence in the 20th and 21st centuries.