Once you have the script, what do you actually prepare?
Irreverent Acting, by Eric Morris.
What the book addresses
Morris's craft handbook develops obligations, choices, choice approaches, preparation and the distinction between rehearsal and performance irreverence.
How to read it
Separate the requirement of the material from the means you choose to meet it. A script may require a particular relationship or emotional event; that does not settle which preparation will make the event available to this actor today. Read the author's terms in their full context before treating a favorite choice as a universal solution.
An original rehearsal investigation
Make two columns for a short scene. In the first, record requirements you can support from the text. In the second, record possible preparations, marking them as experiments. Test one preparation at a time and observe the exchange with your partner. If a choice makes you busy inside yourself while the relationship disappears, reconsider the choice.
Connections and distinctions
Pair the book with deep Script and Character Analysis. Morris's vocabulary can help organize preparation, while the particular play continues to determine what must be fulfilled. Read Acting from the Ultimate Consciousness for the next development of this craft inquiry.
Instrumental work and acting craft
Instrumental work develops the actor’s expressive resources; craft applies those resources to the demands of a role. At JBAS, the six craft tools are Sensory Work, Improvisation, Archetype Work, Externals, Imaging and deep Script and Character Analysis, with voice supporting the work throughout. Morris’s work informs the distinction between instrument and craft. Roy Hart voice work and the Stones’ Psychology of Selves contribute further resources for vocal expression, awareness and imaginative exploration.
This is an original JBAS reading guide with an attributed overview and study questions. Read the complete book for the author's developed argument and exercise instructions.
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