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The Actor's Art and Craft
- William Esper Teaches the Meisner Technique
- Narrated by: Michael Esper, Damon Dimarco
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Entertainment & Performing Arts
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Publisher's Summary
William Esper, one of the leading acting teachers of our time, explains and extends Sanford Meisner's legendary technique, offering a clear, concrete, step-by-step approach to becoming a truly creative actor.
Esper worked closely with Meisner for 17 years and has spent decades developing his famous program for actor's training. The result is a rigorous system of exercises that builds a solid foundation of acting skills from the ground up, and that is flexible enough to be applied to any challenge an actor faces, from soap operas to Shakespeare. Co-writer Damon DiMarco, a former student of Esper's, spent over a year observing his mentor teaching first-year acting students. In this book, he recreates that experience for us, allowing us to see how the progression of exercises works in practice. The Actor's Art and Craft vividly demonstrates that good training does not constrain actors' instincts - it frees them to create characters with truthful and compelling inner lives.
What the critics say
"Utterly inspirational.... The best book on the craft of acting that I have ever read." (Mary Steenburgen)
"As far as I'm concerned, there is only way to learn the craft of acting, and that is through the Meisner technique. And there is only one person to learn that technique from, and that is William Esper." (Patricia Heaton)
"The essence of this book is like William Esper himself: kind/clear, caring/generous, passionate/graceful, brilliant/profound. Inspiring. Invaluable." (Jeff Goldblum)
What listeners say about The Actor's Art and Craft
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Timothy Anderson
- 2020-04-19
Superb!
This wonderful audio rendering at once amplified and brings to life the text of Bill Espers important book - and is also wholly entertaining. Superb! An important companion to the written work.
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- Steven Reily
- 2020-04-12
Required reading for the actor!
The finest book on the Meisner technique available. A must read for anyone who is serious about the craft of acting.
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- T. Stickney
- 2019-07-30
Excellently Done! I really boot the feeling of being in the room.
The voices were perfect. Just enough character to keep it clear. The notes and office conversations with the writer and Esper are extremely helpful and clear.