Shakespeare for American Actors and Directors - Softcover

Frankel, Aaron

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0879104511 ISBN 13: 9780879104511

Publisher: Limelight, 2013

Synopsis

Fear grips many American actors and directors faced with the opportunity to perform Shakespeare live. The challenges of Elizabethan British speech patterns, the thought of using verse for hours, the debate over staging a period piece versus “updating” the Bard of Avon – all can cause psychogenic trauma on this side of the Atlantic.

Let Broadway legend Aaron Frankel show the way in Shakespeare for American Actors and Directors. This book views Shakespeare's work through the lens of American performance, catering specifically to the learning sensibilities of American-bred talent. Its streamlined size and reader-friendly presentation make it a practical tool for actors and directors wishing to learn Bard-based performance tactics.

Aaron Frankel plunges readers into the meanings of scenes so they can envision the interplay of characters and step into a role to experiment with ways to convey those meanings. He provides scene examples through which to apply performance techniques.

To capture the spirit of the book in Frankel's words, “What is totally current is that Shakespeare's dramatic forte, which is the involvement of his characters with each other, and the core of American acting, which is actors affecting each other, make a perfect match.”

About this title

About the Author:

Aaron Frankel (New York, NY) has directed over 100 plays and musicals, from Broadway and Off-Broadway to summer stock and university theater. He has worked with such stars as Zero Mostel, Walter Matthau, and Robert Redford. An internationally known theater teacher, Frankel has taught at universities across the country and led a Shakespeare workshop at New York's HB Studio for more than 30 years.

About this edition

• Publisher: Limelight
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0879104511
• ISBN 13: 9780879104511
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 134