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. In fact, it is the actors instrument and how well rounded and how well developed it is.
The actors instrument as six general categories. Those elements include emotional expression, sensory expression, physical expression, empathy and intelligence. In the Meisner technique, all aspects of the actors instrument need to be addressed and considered and are essential to mastering the craft. Many actors have mastered many of the six aspects of their instrument and audiences can identify with and respond to those the most. Legendary actors are those that have mastered all six.
Sylvester Stallone is a physical actor who commands attention simply because of his physical presence onscreen. Stallone is certainly able to express emotionally, but overall his most powerful tool onscreen is his physical expression. As an actor he expresses emotional in a very physical, often external way. 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 one of the first things most up and coming actors focus on. Obsessing about how a character feels about something and how to express it is usually the primary thing actors concentrate on. 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. It's important to remember, however, that each of the six aspects of the instrument are related and must be developed and work together.
Of course, it is meaningful emotional expression that draws people into any character or story. It is through this kind of expression that the audience is drawn in to the story. 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. In Meisner acting students study emotions diligently, their own and those of others. They in fact, build a library of emotions and reactions and methods for communicating them. When called upon to create a specific character, they dig very deep and create and imagine (another part of the instrument) what that character's emotional story is. Having created a full emotional life and a foundation of behaviors, thoughts and ways of reacting, the actor can then bring the character to life, in the moment, in a spontaneous way.
Vulnerability, for example is an expression of the emotion of insecurity. It's one thing for an actor to understand that and work with it. But, if they have strongly developed other aspects of their instrument, such as physical expression and empathy, they will be able to present an authentic, vulnerable character. After all, vulnerability can be expressed through tears, or smashing something to pieces or just walking through a park. There is no predictable, safe way to do this.
One common myth is that acting is pretending to have certain emotions. Simply reciting inflections and gestures that express certain emotions is not acting. Acting is DOING, as master teacher Sanford Meisner always said. In other words acting is being in the moment and allowing any number of emotional reactions well up and take you over and turn you into the actual character. This may feel risky at first. The best actors do not pretend to feel something, or coach themselves to do anything while in character. They feel genuine, strong emotions and a sense of grief or loss and images makes them cry. Acting students who have developed a deep capacity of raw, true human experience that can express it using all aspects of the instrument are the ones that learn the most about the craft. 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. In the Meisner technique, all aspects of the actors instrument need to be addressed and considered and are essential to mastering the craft. Many actors have mastered many of the six aspects of their instrument and audiences can identify with and respond to those the most. Legendary actors are those that have mastered all six.
Sylvester Stallone is a physical actor who commands attention simply because of his physical presence onscreen. Stallone is certainly able to express emotionally, but overall his most powerful tool onscreen is his physical expression. As an actor he expresses emotional in a very physical, often external way. 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 one of the first things most up and coming actors focus on. Obsessing about how a character feels about something and how to express it is usually the primary thing actors concentrate on. 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. It's important to remember, however, that each of the six aspects of the instrument are related and must be developed and work together.
Of course, it is meaningful emotional expression that draws people into any character or story. It is through this kind of expression that the audience is drawn in to the story. 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. In Meisner acting students study emotions diligently, their own and those of others. They in fact, build a library of emotions and reactions and methods for communicating them. When called upon to create a specific character, they dig very deep and create and imagine (another part of the instrument) what that character's emotional story is. Having created a full emotional life and a foundation of behaviors, thoughts and ways of reacting, the actor can then bring the character to life, in the moment, in a spontaneous way.
Vulnerability, for example is an expression of the emotion of insecurity. It's one thing for an actor to understand that and work with it. But, if they have strongly developed other aspects of their instrument, such as physical expression and empathy, they will be able to present an authentic, vulnerable character. After all, vulnerability can be expressed through tears, or smashing something to pieces or just walking through a park. There is no predictable, safe way to do this.
One common myth is that acting is pretending to have certain emotions. Simply reciting inflections and gestures that express certain emotions is not acting. Acting is DOING, as master teacher Sanford Meisner always said. In other words acting is being in the moment and allowing any number of emotional reactions well up and take you over and turn you into the actual character. This may feel risky at first. The best actors do not pretend to feel something, or coach themselves to do anything while in character. They feel genuine, strong emotions and a sense of grief or loss and images makes them cry. Acting students who have developed a deep capacity of raw, true human experience that can express it using all aspects of the instrument are the ones that learn the most about the craft. Actors must give themselves permission to feel strong emotions, and express them (or not, if the role requires it) in physical, intelligent, empathetic ways.
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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.
