Morning Coffee-“The Science of Acting”
The Science of ACTING
(Why You Think The Way You Do And How To Change It)
Written by Sam Kogan, edited by Helen Kogan
The Science of Acting: (http://www.asad.org.uk/actingschool/).
Publisher: Routledge.
This is the biggest thing to hit the acting technique since The Method.
Innovative thinker and acting technique creator, Sam Kogan once asked “how can an actor understand a character if they do not understand themselves� This takes the reader on a fascinating journey of understanding, which ultimately explains why people think the way they do and how to change it.
The Science of Acting is more than a milestone in acting technique. It presents the reader with a groundbreaking understanding of thinking and how it can be applied to their everyday lives. These changes can be easily implemented and can yield positive changes on a daily basis and for the long term of one’s personal life or in one’s acting ability.
Kogan uses his theories on the relationship between neuroscience, psychology and acting to help people identify their invisible thoughts – thoughts which they may have been thinking over a number of years that they no longer realize are being thought.
What you will learn in this book:
– The beauty of this acting technique, which can also change your life.
– The format is a manual – all you need to know in one book.
– How our pasts dictate our future, showing us freedom from our pasts to live the future that we want.
Chapter Summaries:
1 Complexes: The building blocks of our consciousness.
2 Awareness: We all have thinking we can see and thinking we cannot see. Kogan explains how you can start seeing more of that “invisible†thinking, which is crucial for every actor.
3 Events: Having an argument, going for an audition, brushing your teeth – the difference between Events, circumstances and happenings.
4 Purposes: No acting book is complete without addressing the subject of objectives or Purposes.
5 Formation of Consciousness: Important ways in which our consciousness was formed.
6 Mindprint: Just as your fingerprint is important to your individual physiology, the Mindprint is unique to each individual character.
7 Actions: What I say and how I say it are two different things. I can say “I love you†and either share, belong or provoke guilt.
8 Finishing Off Thinking: Kogan shows us how with our unfinished thoughts we see less of the thinking that is running our lives, and how we can Finish-Off this unfinished thinking.
9 Tempo-rhythm: Ever wonder why you click with some people and not with others?
10 Imagination: The noise in your head is put to rest with finished off thinking so Imagination can come through. A fundamental tool for every actor!
11 Attention: How do you really know when you have your Attention on something?
12 Free Body: How thoughts manifest in body tension?
13 Talent: What does it mean to be Talented?
14 The Ten Steps: Now at the final chapter everything that has been covered has been pulled together to show you how to work on a complete play/script.
About Sam Kogan:
Sam, who died in 2004, studied at the Moscow Institute of Theatre Arts (now the Russian Academy of Theatre Arts) under the tutelage of Professor Maria Knebel, who was a pupil of Stanislavski. He established The Science of Acting, a complete stand-alone technique.
About Helen Kogan:
Helen, Sam’s daughter, is the chair and former principal of The Academy of the Science of Acting and Directing, and has helped to shape her father’s words and work for the publication of this book.
Workshops on this technique will be given in New York City the last week in January, 2010 and in Los Angeles, the first week of February, 2010. Helen Kogan is also available for interviews.
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