Acting: The First Six Lessons by Richard Boleslavsky - Book Report/Review Example

Acting: the first six lessons by Richard Boleslavsky Chapter 1: Concentration The first chapter begins with a dialogue or questioning of the actors to understand their in-depth about acting. The respondents ask a number of questions, which they believe are essential to enable them grasp the concepts of acting. Similarly, the chapter entails students asking best ways that can enable them to concentrate when on stage as well as their feelings about acting. More so, there are a number of cases when the chapter has given examples of real time action and the ways they contribute to enhancing concentration in a play. Lastly, the chapter outlines different factors that actors have to consider in order to attract the concentration of their audience and to enable them concentrate in all they are doing (Boleslavsky 1-15). I have read the chapter and found that it is informative and educative in matters pertaining concentration when acting. It helps the actors and individuals with elements of concentrations. One of the elements I realized important to enable the concentration is the use of catchy words and phrases. There are a number of actions, which attracts concentration of audience as well as the actors in the play. The chapter elaborated different ways of achieving aspect of concentration by outlining examples as well as role-play to help audiences and the actors with knowledge of the same. Lastly, the chapter added a new knowledge since it taught me something I never knew concerning concentration hence believes it achieved the point Chapter 2: memory of emotion The chapter explains the importance of memory and emotions is a play. The chapter notes that emotions drive a play and make it pass a meaning to the audience by creating a feeling, which the actors associate within a play. The chapter also notes the importance of memory since it affects the play by the actions of both actors and audiences. For instance, the chapter assumes that a play should create memorable moments among the audiences to make them identify with the play. This means that a play must have some scenes that will make audiences remember what they saw and contribute towards selling point of the play. Moreover, the actors must have a sharp memory to enable them grasp and have confident when on stage. The chapter outlines the concept of memory and emotion by giving examples through questioning, acting and role play (Boleslavsky15-34). My reflection on this chapter is that it grasps some of the factors that actors need to consider before entering the stage and when formulating their plays. I understand the role of sharp memory in helping actors to gain confidence when performing. Similarly, actors must make their plays have memorable moments, which audiences can remember. This will act as the selling point of the play, hence making it pleasing. Moreover, the concept of emotion is very important because it makes audiences identify with the play. An emotional play will attract concentrations of audiences and make them stay focused towards the play. Hence, I believe the chapter has put important point, which actors must consider to gain confidence in stage. Chapter 3: Dramatic action The chapter talks about dramatic actions that drive a play. The author acknowledges the role of dramatic actions as one of the features in a play that makes people pay attention hence very important. Similarly, the chapter elaborates how different actors within a play can achieve a dramatic action to bring the entertaining part of the play. The chapter is very clear in outlining different stages, which actors can use to arrive at the dramatic action, which is always the climax of any play. Throughout the chapter, the author has used and questioned on the use of dramatic actions that is very vital for understanding of ways of achieving the same (Boleslavsky 36-50). I feel the chapter is very important for anyone who wants to make it higher in the play. It gives the readers in-depth understanding of ways of achieving dramatic actions since it is the core of any play. Therefore, I am challenged on what I should be doing to make me achieve dramatic actions, which will keep my audience moving. The chapter on dramatic action is also vital to anyone to understand the concepts to employ when he or she wants to achieve the desired goals of making the audience enjoy a play or an action. I believe putting these concepts into practice will be vital to the realization of entertainment goal. Chapter 4: characterization The chapter is about different actors who take part in a play and their roles. The chapter also talks about different forms of characterization and the different roles they play in ensuring that the action portrays the theme and message to the audience. The chapter asserts that characterization is very important in any play because it assign roles to various actors hence helping in plot development. The chapter also notes that characterization should be considered when acting because it contributes to the understanding of the play due to assigned responsibilities of different players. Moreover, the chapter has elaborated how characterization is enhanced in any play and how they can be organized to promote the understanding of the actions. It also acknowledges that actors should be assigned roles they are capable of performing in order to have confidence required for performances. Different characters should be familiar with their roles, hence meet the expectations of the audience and to give a meaning to the play (Boleslavsky 53-76). From the reading of this chapter, I have learned that characterization is essential in any play because it gives the audience the hint about their actions. There are also instances when players have been judged using characters and this determines the perception the audience will give a play. Therefore, characterization is important and actors should consider those to include and participate in active role. Similarly, actors should know the best characters to include in a play, hence those who are active should play the central role and the non-active ones be assigned passive roles. This will be key to improving the effects of characterization in a play. Chapter 5: observation The chapter outlines the aspects of observation characterized by any play. The author has used various examples regarding observation to help readers understand what it entails. Because of this, the author assumes that observation is important and imply to the actors and the audience. For instance, the chapter outlines that observation is important for actors to know the reaction of the audience in the course of the play. This is important in determining if the audiences are enjoying the play or in case it is boring to them. This will make the actors to judge and change the narration. Similarly, the chapter outlines that observation is important to the audience in order to follow the play and get the meaning and different features contained (Boleslavsky 77-90). According to my reflection, this chapter is very insightful to me as an audience and as an actor. It highlights an important point that many actors have ignored, making them unsuccessful in their play. On many occasions, actors do not score high since they are unable to observe the reaction of their audience. Being able to observe the audience is essential in guiding them when in stage. Because of their failure to use observation, many are booed and others thrown out of the stage from angry audiences. Therefore, it is important as highlighted in the chapter to consider different observation methods starting from the actors and ending with audiences. Chapter 6: Rhythm The chapter highlights the flow of a play to make it understandable by the audience. The flow of a play, rhythm, must follow a certain format, which allows for transition of information to portray different themes within a play. Hence, the chapter outlines the importance of rhythm by stating that it helps the audience to have an easy transition and enjoy a play. It also allows the audiences to follow the play and relate different scenes in a manner that they can understand and give its analysis. The chapter outlines different examples of rhythm and their contributions in the play to make it flow and connect. Similarly, the chapter advises actors to consider the importance of rhythm in any work they produce because it contributes to the attraction of audiences and promotes their understanding of the same (Boleslavsky 92-115). The chapter is very inspiring to anyone who wants to make it big in the theatre and performance industry. It highlights ways rhythm or flow of actions can affect the performance and make it not portray the goal to the audience. Similarly, it informs actors to consider its inclusion in order to ease linking of information in the play. Therefore, I believe the chapter is very educative to the actors who aspire to attract a larger fan base and entertain the audience. Similarly, it helps bring new knowledge in the theatre industry by focusing on some factors or lesson, which are ignored but have an important influence on the audience - actor relationship. Work Cited Bolesharlavsky, Richard. Acting: First six lessons. New York: Routledge, 2004. Print. Read More