Professional Acting Workshop:  Professional Acting Techniques

Acting Techniques:
What the Heck are Acting Techniques?

For over a hundred years professional actors have been arguing, "Which is Better: Method Acting or Technical Acting (Technique)?"

Please don't confuse the terms Acting Styles and Acting Techniques -- we'll talk about both separately and in detail later on, but basically just understand that an Acting Style would be something like: Shakespearean, Naturalistic, Comedic, Dramatic, etc.

But, Acting Technique is the 'governing mode' the actor employs to portray the character -- generally pro actors tend to categorize themselves as either 'Method Actors' OR 'Technical Actors'.

Further, different acting techniques are required for each of the different acting media, stage, film, tv, commercial acting, and so on.

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'Method Acting' was pioneered in Russia's classical era at the famed Moscow Art Theatre, under the direction of Constantin Stanislavski (1863-1938). Stanislavski is considered the Father of the Method Acting technique, what many actors believe is the most "Naturalistic" of all Acting Styles.

Nowadays, Method Acting basically means that the actor trains themselves to actually FEEL what the character is feeling, while Technical Acting means that the actor does all that he needs to make the AUDIENCE believe he feels what the character is feeling, without necessarily 'feeling it' himself.

For example, one training exercise that pro actors using the Method Acting Technique utilize is called Sense or Emotional Recall, which basically means taking themselves back to a real moment in their own lives where they felt something very similar to what their character does.

Let's say the actor is portraying a character who is dealing with the death of their father -- through Emotional Recall the actor might remember the day that their own close relative or friend died and try to recapture or re-live those feelings to guide their portrayal of the character, as they are performing the part.

Different Acting Techniques are Required for Stage, TV and Film Acting

Method Acting requires a great deal of preparation -- perhaps this is why Stanislavski titled his landmark acting book "An Actor Prepares.."

Professional Acting Techniques Tip of the Day: Thursday March 28, 2024

Be a voracious reader of everything you can find relating to your chosen field(s) of acting. Build your own library of scripts, books, and eBooks, and check with acting friends or classmates for sharing opportunities.

Pro Acting Techniques for Specific Media: The acting techniques used by actors in film (big screen) are much different than those used for the smaller screens of TV, and streaming media, and vastly different than those used in the theater.

Earlier we talked about how stage actors, who must develop projection techniques for both voice and physical expressions that can reach the back of the auditorium, would look and sound grotesque if they didn't tone-down and naturalize their performance for any on-camera acting job.

So here's a basic rule: Since every actor should try to be as versatile as possible, you should seek out classes, training and experience in ALL the current acting techniques, including: classical theater, modern theater, big screen film, network TV (like CBS), streaming media (like Hulu), commercial acting, podcasts, voice-acting, and more.

We will be adding much more info on Acting Techniques over the coming weeks, so be sure to check back often.

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