The actor in you : sixteen simple steps to understanding the art of acting / Robert Benedetti.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Each Part and Chapter concludes with "Summary." Preface. I. UNDERSTANDING ACTING. Why Study Acting? 1. What Does an Actor Do? Acting in Everyday Life The Tradition of the Actor Getting into the Tradition 2. Action in Life and in Performance. Action in Everyday Life Action and Drama Believability in Life and in Performance 3. Internal and External Action. Interactions 4. Understanding Emotion and Character. Emotion Character and the Magic If The Actor in You 5. The Actor's State of Mind. Dual Consciousness Indicating II. PREPARING YOURSELF TO ACT. The Creative State 6. Relaxation and Centering. Relaxation Finding Center 7. Breathing, Sound, and Moving from Center. Your Relationship to Gravity The Cycle of Energy 8. Creating Together. Creating a Scene III. PREPARING TO REHEARSE: ANALYZING THE SCRIPT. Discipline The Purpose of Analysis Sample Scenes A Scene of Your Own 9. Dramatic Function. Supporting Characters and Individual Scenes Function and Recognition Traits 10. Play and Scene Structure. Finding the Crisis Units and Levels of Action 11. The Given Circumstances. Who Where When What IV. REHEARSAL. Getting and Giving Notes 12. Personalization. Emotional Recall and Substitution 13. Inner Action. The Stimulus Automatic and Spontaneous Actions Choice The Inner Monologue 14. Actions and Objectives. Defining Useful Objectives Playable Actions Direct and Indirect Action: Subtext Not Doing Obstacles and Counter-Actions 15. Scenario, Score, Through-Line, and Superobjective. The Score Through-Line and Superobjective Personalizing the Superobjective 16. Final Rehearsals and Performance. Blocking Shaping and Pacing Spontaneity Emotion in Performance Evaluating Your Work Afterword: Your Sense of Purpose. Appendix A: Sample Scenes. Scene 1: From The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams Scene 2: From A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry Scene 3: From Zoot Suit by Luis Valdez Scene 4: From Cheers by Tom Reeder Appendix B: Suggested Plays and Anthologies. Plays Play Anthologies Anthologies for Students of Color Glossary. Index.