Acting

by John Harrop

Published 1 January 1992
While all value judgements about the arts are problematical, there does seem to be a special problem with acting. It seems to be the easiest of arts; if an art at all. Moreover the better the technique the easier it seems. This book examines society's conceptions of acting, the language it uses, and the criteria employed to distinguish good acting from bad acting. John Harrop addresses the intellectual problems associated with the idea of acting - distinguishing the actor from the character. He covers the range of contemporary actor training and practice from Stanislavski to the Postmodern, and examines the spiritual and moral purpose of acting within society.