Meisner technique

The Meisner Technique is an approach to acting which was developed by the American theatre practitioner Sanford Meisner.^[1]

The Meisner technique develops externally, as opposed to "Method" acting, which develops from an internal source such as emotional recall, sense of memory, etc. The focus of the Meisner approach is for the actor to "get out of their head," such as that the actor is behaving instinctively to the surrounding environment. To this end, some exercises for the Meisner technique are rooted in repetition so that the words are deemed insignificant compared to the reactions. In the Meisner technique, there is a greater focus on the other actor as opposed to one's internal thoughts or feelings associated to the prescribed character.

About Meisner

"To be an interesting actor - hell, to be an interesting human being - you must be authentic and for you to be authentic you must embrace who you really are, warts and all. Do you have any idea how liberating it is to not care what people think about you? Well, that's what we're here to do." — Sanford Meisner^[2]

Meisner developed this technique after working with Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler at the Group Theatre and while working as head of the acting program at New York City's Neighborhood Playhouse. He continued its refinement for fifty years.

"In 1935, Sanford Meisner, one of the founding members of The Group Theatre (along with Stella Adler, Bobby Lewis, Harold Clurman, and Lee Strasberg), joined the faculty of The Neighborhood Playhouse. Over the years, he developed and refined what is now known as the Meisner Technique, a step-by-step procedure of self-investigation for the actor now globally recognized and among the foremost of modern acting techniques."^[3]

"Meisner believed that the study of the actor’s craft was rooted in acquiring a solid organic acting technique. It was a cornerstone of his teaching that this learning process occur not in a theoretical, abstract manner, but in the practical give and take of the classroom, where as he once said, “the students struggled to learn what I struggled to teach.” Through that struggle the gifted student, over time gradually begins to emerge solidly in his or her work."^[3]

Practitioners of Meisner

The William Esper Studio was founded in 1965 as a school for the performing arts in Manhattan, New York. The school is considered an internationally recognized authority on the acting technique of Sanford Meisner.^[4] Its founder, William "Bill" Esper (1932 - ), is often referred to as the best-known of Meisner's first generation teachers, and his most "authentic protege".^[5]

Sebastián Ligarde has been teaching acting at Taller de Actuación Sebastián Ligarde since 2006 in Miami. He trains actors in film acting, and is the only known "Meisner in Spanish" teacher. After 35 years as an actor he now enjoys his own acting academy and has, for now, retired from acting.

Joanne Baron is known for her dedication to the work of Sanford Meisner and is a teacher of the Meisner Technique.^[6] She owns the Baron Brown Studio and trained with Neighborhood Playhouse alum and master Meisner teacher, William Esper, who founded the MFA and BFA Professional Actor Training Programs at Rutgers University.^[4]

The Taylor School of Acting (Formerly called The Sanford Meisner Studio) in Burbank CA is the only school that still works with the Meisner Estate. ^[7] Alex Taylor has won 4 years in a row, The Best Acting Coach in all of Los Angeles. Backstage magazine also named The Taylor School of Acting one of the top 5 acting schools to study at in Los Angeles.

Components

Meisner Training is an interdependent series of training exercises that build on one another. The more complex work supports a command of dramatic text. Students work on a series of progressively complex exercises to develop an ability to first improvise, then to access an emotional life, and finally to bring the spontaneity of improvisation and the richness of personal response to textual work. The techniques developed the behavioral strand of Stanislavski's. The technique is used to develop improvisation skills as well as "interpreting a script, and creating the specific physical characteristics of each character the actor played".^[8]

An example of a technique Meisner invented to train actors' responses is called the Repetition Exercise:

"In this exercise, two actors sit across from each other and respond to each other through a repeated phrase. The phrase is about each other's behavior, and reflects what is going on between them in the moment, such as "You look unhappy with me right now." The way this phrase is said as it is repeated changes in meaning, tone and intensity to correspond with the behavior that each actor produces towards the other. Through this device, the actor stops thinking of what to say and do, and responds more freely and spontaneously, both physically and vocally.The exercise also eliminates line readings, since the way the actor speaks becomes coordinated with his behavioral response."^[8]

List of Meisner-trained actors

Sydney Pollack, together with Charles E. Conrad served as Meisner's senior assistants. The technique is helpful not just for actors, but also for directors, writers, and teachers. A number of directors also studied with him, among them Sidney Lumet and John Frankenheimer, and writers such as Arthur Miller and David Mamet.

Prominent actors who have trained in the Meisner technique include:

See also

• List of acting techniques

References

Sources

• Banham, Martin, ed. 1998. The Cambridge Guide to Theatre. Cambridge: Cambridge UP. ISBN 0-521-43437-8.
• Courtney, C. C. 2000. "The Neighborhood Playhouse." In Krasner (2000b, 291-295).
• Hirsch, Foster. 2000. "Actors and Acting." In Wilmeth and Bigsby (2000, 490-513).
• Hodge, Alison, ed. 2000. Twentieth Century Actor Training. London and New York: Routledge. ISBN 0-415-19452-0.
• Kraner, David. 2000a. "Strasberg, Adler and Meisner: Method Acting." In Hodge (2000, 129-150).
• ---, ed. 2000b. Method Acting Reconsidered: Theory, Practice, Future. New York: St. Martin's P. ISBN 978-0-312-22309-0.
• Longwell, Dennis, and Sanford Meisner. 1987. Sanford Meisner on Acting. New York: Random House. ISBN 978-0-394-75059-0.
• Postlewait, Thomas. 1998. "Meisner, Sanford." In Banham (1998, 719).
• Silverberg, Larry. 1994. The Sanford Meisner Approach: An Actor’s Workbook. Workbook One. New Hampshire: Smith and Kraus. ISBN 978-1-880399-77-4.
• Wilmeth, Don B, and Christopher Bigsby, eds. 2000. The Cambridge History of American Theatre. Vol 3. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge UP. ISBN 978-0-521-66959-7.

External links

• Sanford Meisner at the Internet Movie Database
• The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre
• The Sanford Meisner Center