The Presence of the Actor

by Joseph Chaikin

Book Overview

Chaikin, who directed the celebrated Open Theater in the '60s, kindled an emphasis on communal playmaking whose impact is still evident today. This conversational review of his efforts details his methods and reveals the struggles involved in the creation of some of the most exciting theatre of our time.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1559360305
• ISBN13: 9781559360302
• Release Date: January 1993
• Publisher: Theatre Communications Group
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.47 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.3" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

Great read!

The great thing about Joseph Chaikin is that he doesn't just give you method's to work on. He tells you how he did it in detail. He gives life experiences and tells you the struggles he went through to do the method he is now telling you about. I would suggest this book because I believe he gives good notes on acting that would any actor.

Theatre and Art

He, Peter Brook and Oida all are on my favorite list of books about acting and theatre. This is a very valuable book and must be included for any person interested in contemporary drama and art. I gave my copy to my daughter but will purchase another one soon.

Disarmingly honest and insightful

If I could possess only one book, I would choose this book. Chaiken candidly describes profound moments of awareness in his work and in his life, and the relationship between these. This is not a conventional book about the theater, but rather a complicated and understandably inconclusive examination of being and enduring and striving toward authenticity within the confines of an inauthentic "setup." It begins..."Most of the people I know who are seriously interested in the theater don't really like it very much." If you like this book, try The Performance of Self in Everyday Life by Erving Goffman.