Acting the Essence examines the theory, practice, and history of the art of the performer from the perspective of its inner nature as work on oneself, within, around, and beyond the pedagogy of the actor.
Ref lecting primarily on the legacy of Jerzy Grotowski, this book is composed of a series of ref lections on the Stanislavskian lineage of practitioners and related authors, in an attempt to revive awareness of the original path traced by the Russian master and to refine certain ambiguities in contemporary training. In a new media age of image and sound, accompanied by a proliferation of new technologies and means to communicate, emphasised by the COVID-19 crisis, a classic question comes to be asked of us again: What is the essence and the principal objective of the work of the performer? Is performing art still necessary? While proposing a theoretical advancement of the discipline and an historical overview of the relevant practices, this book provides tools for a better understanding of the traditional function of the performer’s practice as work on the self, for its ecological renaissance through a conscient use of trance, attention, and altered states of consciousness.
This book offers insight for students in drama, theatre, and performance courses studying acting and performance at university.
List of Figures
Acknowledgements
INTRODUCTION
Acting with bad intentions
PART ONE: STANISLAVSKI AND GROTOWSKI. THE PERFORMER’S WORK ON THE SELF IN EUROPEAN THEATRE
Chapter One
The Work on One’s Self in Stanislavski’s lineage
Chapter Two
Grotowski from Theatre to Ritual Arts
PART TWO: THEATRE AND RITUAL. THE PERFORMER’S WORK ON THE SELF BEYOND THEATRE
Chapter Three
Performances and Altered States of Consciousness (ASC). An overview
Chapter Four
Trance, Possession and Acting
PART THREE: PIRANDELLO AND WEIL. THE PERFORMER’S WORK ON THE SELF OUTSIDE THEATRE
Chapter Five
Pirandello’s Actor
Chapter Six
Simone Weil, Performance and Attention
Photographs
Notes
Index
Biography
Giuliano Campo is a Performer, Director, and Lecturer in Drama at Ulster University.
