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A Practical Handbook for the Actor by Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
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A Practical Handbook for the Actor

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Introduction by David Mamet

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Introduction by David Mamet

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Introduction by David Mamet

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Introduction by David Mamet

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Read by Rose Byrne, Chris Bauer, Alison Wright, David Mamet and Max Meyers
Introduction by David Mamet

By Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
Read by Rose Byrne, Chris Bauer, Alison Wright, David Mamet and Max Meyers
Introduction by David Mamet

Best Seller
Paperback $17.00

Apr 12, 1986 | ISBN 9780394744124

Ebook $5.99

Apr 25, 2012 | ISBN 9780307499134

Audiobook Download $10.00

Feb 08, 2022 | 128 Minutes

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    A Practical Handbook for the Actor by Melissa Bruder, Lee Michael Cohn, Madeleine Olnek, Nathaniel Pollack, Robert Previto and Scott Zigler
    Paperback $17.00
    Apr 12, 1986 | ISBN 9780394744124

    Buy from Other Retailers:

    See All Formats (2) +
    • $17.00

      Apr 12, 1986 | ISBN 9780394744124

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Apr 25, 2012 | ISBN 9780307499134

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    • Feb 08, 2022 | ISBN 9780593553596

      128 Minutes

      Buy from Other Retailers:

    Buy the Audiobook Download:

    About A Practical Handbook for the Actor

    For anyone who has ever wanted to take an acting class, “this is the best book on acting written in the last twenty years” (David Mamet, from the Introduction).

    This book describes a technique developed and refined by the authors, all of them young actors, in their work with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Mamet, actor W. H. Macy, and director Gregory Mosher. A Practical Handbook for the Actor is written for any actor who has ever experienced the frustrations of acting classes that lacked clarity and objectivity, and that failed to provide a dependable set of tools. An actor’s job, the authors state, is to “find a way to live truthfully under the imaginary circumstances of the play.” The ways in which an actor can attain that truth form the substance of this eloquent book.

    About A Practical Handbook for the Actor

    For anyone who has ever wanted to take an acting class, “this is the best book on acting written in the last twenty years” (David Mamet, from the Introduction).

    This book describes a technique developed and refined by the authors, all of them young actors, in their work with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Mamet, actor W. H. Macy, and director Gregory Mosher. A Practical Handbook for the Actor is written for any actor who has ever experienced the frustrations of acting classes that lacked clarity and objectivity, and that failed to provide a dependable set of tools. An actor’s job, the authors state, is to “find a way to live truthfully under the imaginary circumstances of the play.” The ways in which an actor can attain that truth form the substance of this eloquent book.

    About A Practical Handbook for the Actor

    For anyone who has ever wanted to take an acting class, “this is the best book on acting written in the last twenty years” (David Mamet, from the Introduction).

    This book describes a technique developed and refined by the authors, all of them young actors, in their work with Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright David Mamet, actor W. H. Macy, and director Gregory Mosher. A Practical Handbook for the Actor is written for any actor who has ever experienced the frustrations of acting classes that lacked clarity and objectivity, and that failed to provide a dependable set of tools. An actor’s job, the authors state, is to “find a way to live truthfully under the imaginary circumstances of the play.” The ways in which an actor can attain that truth form the substance of this eloquent book.

    Listen to a sample from A Practical Handbook for the Actor

    About Melissa Bruder

    Melissa Bruder is a native New Yorker and graduate of NYU, where she studied with the Stella Adler Conservatory, David… More about Melissa Bruder

    About Lee Michael Cohn

    Lee Michael Cohn holds a BFA from NYU Drama as a departmental scholar and an MFA in Creative Writing from… More about Lee Michael Cohn

    About Madeleine Olnek

    Madeleine Olnek is a filmmaker and playwright who has had four films at Sundance, including the comedies Codependent Lesbian Space… More about Madeleine Olnek

    About Nathaniel Pollack

    Nathaniel “Ned” Pollack studied at the New York University Undergraduate Drama Department, taking classes with the Stella Adler Studio and… More about Nathaniel Pollack

    About Robert Previto

    Robert Previto is a playwright and director whose work has been produced in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Graduating… More about Robert Previto

    About Scott Zigler

    Scott Zigler has been directing since 1985 and teaching acting since 1987. He is a founding member of the Atlantic… More about Scott Zigler

    About Melissa Bruder

    Melissa Bruder is a native New Yorker and graduate of NYU, where she studied with the Stella Adler Conservatory, David… More about Melissa Bruder

    About Lee Michael Cohn

    Lee Michael Cohn holds a BFA from NYU Drama as a departmental scholar and an MFA in Creative Writing from… More about Lee Michael Cohn

    About Madeleine Olnek

    Madeleine Olnek is a filmmaker and playwright who has had four films at Sundance, including the comedies Codependent Lesbian Space… More about Madeleine Olnek

    About Nathaniel Pollack

    Nathaniel “Ned” Pollack studied at the New York University Undergraduate Drama Department, taking classes with the Stella Adler Studio and… More about Nathaniel Pollack

    About Robert Previto

    Robert Previto is a playwright and director whose work has been produced in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Graduating… More about Robert Previto

    About Scott Zigler

    Scott Zigler has been directing since 1985 and teaching acting since 1987. He is a founding member of the Atlantic… More about Scott Zigler

    About Melissa Bruder

    Melissa Bruder is a native New Yorker and graduate of NYU, where she studied with the Stella Adler Conservatory, David… More about Melissa Bruder

    About Lee Michael Cohn

    Lee Michael Cohn holds a BFA from NYU Drama as a departmental scholar and an MFA in Creative Writing from… More about Lee Michael Cohn

    About Madeleine Olnek

    Madeleine Olnek is a filmmaker and playwright who has had four films at Sundance, including the comedies Codependent Lesbian Space… More about Madeleine Olnek

    About Nathaniel Pollack

    Nathaniel “Ned” Pollack studied at the New York University Undergraduate Drama Department, taking classes with the Stella Adler Studio and… More about Nathaniel Pollack

    About Robert Previto

    Robert Previto is a playwright and director whose work has been produced in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. Graduating… More about Robert Previto

    About Scott Zigler

    Scott Zigler has been directing since 1985 and teaching acting since 1987. He is a founding member of the Atlantic… More about Scott Zigler

    Product Details

    Category: Performing Arts

    Paperback | $17.00
    Published by Vintage
    Apr 12, 1986 | 112 Pages | 5-3/16 x 8 | ISBN 9780394744124

    Category: Performing Arts

    Ebook | $5.99
    Published by Vintage
    Apr 25, 2012 | 112 Pages | ISBN 9780307499134

    Category: Performing Arts | Audiobooks

    Audiobook Download | $10.00
    Published by Random House Audio
    Feb 08, 2022 | 128 Minutes | ISBN 9780593553596

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    Praise

    “This is the best book on acting written in the last twenty years.” —from the introduction by David Mamet

    “Simple, clear and consise—just what was needed. A deeply interesting and valuable piece of work.” —Sidney Lumet

    “This terse and lucid handbook might well be for the actor what Strunk and White’s The Elements of Style is for the writer.” —John Guare

    “This book is wonderful. It is clear, direct, and to the point, with none of the hokum that accompanies most books on the theatre, especially about acting. I learned an enormous amount.” —Robert Benton

    “This beautifully written book offers a clear guide to the most profound acting technique I  know. Every young actor should read it, re-read it, and then keep it under his pillow.” —Lindsay Crouse

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