Stella Adler

In her long-awaited book, the legendary acting teacher Stella Adler gives us her extraordinary insights into the work of Henrik Ibsen ("The creation of the modern theater took a genius like Ibsen. . .Miller and Odets, Inge and ONeill, Williams and Shaw, swallowed the whole of him"), August Strindberg ("He understood and predicted the forces that would break in our lives"), and Anton Chekhov ("Chekhov doesnt want a play, he wants what happens in life. In life, people dont usually kill each other. They talk").Through the plays of these masters, Adler discusses the arts of playwriting and script interpretation ("There are two aspects of the theater. One belongs to the author and the other to the actor. The actor thinks it all belongs to the author. . .The curtain goes up and all he knows are the lines. . .It is not enough. . .Script interpretation is your profession").She looks into aspects of society and class, and into our cultural past, as well as the evolution of the modern spirit ("The actor learns from Ibsen what is modern in the modern theater. There are no villains, no heroes. Ibsen understands, more than anything, there is more than one truth").Stella Adler--daughter of Jacob Adler, who was universally acknowledged to be the greatest actor of the Yiddish theater, and herself a disciple of Stanislavsky--examines the role of the actor and brings to life the plays from which all modern theater derives: Ibsens Hedda Gabler, The Master Builder, An Enemy of the People, and A Dolls House; Strindbergs Miss Julie and The Father; Chekhovs The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, and Three Sisters ("Masha is the sister who is the mystery. You cannot reach her. You cannot reach the artist. There is no logical way. Keep her in a special pocket of feelings that are complex and different"). Adler discusses the ideas behind these plays and explores the world of the playwrights and the history--both familial and cultural--that informed their work. She illumines not only the dramatic essence of each play but its subtext as well, continually asking questions that deepen ones understanding of the work and of the human spirit. Adlers book, brilliantly edited by Barry Paris, puts her famous lectures into print for the first time.

In her long-awaited book, the legendary acting teacher Stella Adler gives us her extraordinary insights into the work of Henrik Ibsen (The creation of the modern theater took a genius like Ibsen . . . Miller and Odets, Inge and ONeill, Williams and Shaw, swallowed the whole of him), August Strindberg (He understood and predicted the forces that would break in our lives), and Anton Chekhov (Chekhov doesnt want a play, he wants what happened in life. In life, people dont usually kill each other. They talk). Through the plays of these masters, Adler discusses the arts of playwriting and script interpretation (There are two aspects of the theater. One belongs to the author and the other to the actor. The actor thinks it all belongs to the author . . . The curtain goes up and all he knows are the lines . . . It is not enough . . . Script interpretation is your profession). She looks into aspects of society and class, and into our cultural past, as well as the evolution of the modern spirit (The actor learns from Ibsen what is modern in the modern theater. There are no villains, no heroes. Ibsen understands, more than anything, there is more than one truth). Stella Adlerdaughter of Jacob Adler, who was universally acknowledged to be the greatest actor of the Yiddish theater, and herself a disciple of Stanislavskyexamines the role of the actor and brings to life the plays from which all modern theater derives: Ibsens Hedda Gabler, The Master Builder, An Enemy of the People, and A Dolls House; Strindbergs Miss Julie and The Father; Chekhovs The Seagull, Uncle Vanya, The Cherry Orchard, and Three Sisters (Masha is the sister who is the mystery. You cannot reach her. You cannot reach the artist. There is no logical way. Keep her in a special pocket of feelings that are complex and different). Adler discusses the ideas behind these plays and explores the world of the playwrights and the historyboth familial and culturalthat informed their work. She illumines not only the dramatic essence of each play but its subtext as well, continually asking questions that deepen ones understanding of the work and of the human spirit. Adlers book, brilliantly edited by Barry Paris, puts her famous lectures into print for the first time.

El arte de actuar constituye un valioso compendio de las enseñanzas de Stella Adler, centrada principalmente en la atención, el reconocimiento y una actitud abierta al mundo. Aplicaba un metodo propio, basado en los principios de Stanislavski pero con diferencias notables: para ella, el talento, el esfuerzo, asi como la autoestima son los pilares de una buena interpretacion. Sus clases fueron reproducidas y reunidas en el año 1988 por Howard Kissel con la ayuda de Glenn Young, ambos importantes criticos teatrales, basandose en grabaciones, en notas tomadas por sus alumnos y en conferencias y entrevistas.

« La quasi-totalité des productions cinématographiques du monde ont été influencées par les films américains, qui étaient eux-mêmes influencés par les enseignements de Stella Adler. Nous sommes nombr

« La quasi-totalité des productions cinématographiques du monde ont été influencées par les films américains, qui étaient eux-mêmes influencés par les enseignements de Stella Adler. Nous sommes nombr

Por el Stella Adler Studio of Acting, fundado en 1949 y con sedes en Nueva York y Los Ángeles, han pasado actores y actrices de la talla de Marlon Brando, Warren Beatty, Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Melanie Griffith, Benicio del Toro y Mark Ruffalo. Su fundadora, Stella Adler, criada en la tradicion del teatro yidis del Lower East Side de Manhattan, aplicaba un metodo propio, basado en los principios de Stanislavski pero con diferencias notables: en su version del celebre metodo, insistia sobre todo en el conocimiento y la conciencia de uno mismo. Para ella, el talento, el esfuerzo, asi como la autoestima un actor no triunfa si en su interior no siente, toda la vida, que es Dios, son los pilares de una buena interpretacion. Sus clases fueron reproducidas y reunidas en el año 1988 por Howard Kissel con la ayuda de Glenn Young, ambos importantes criticos teatrales, basandose en grabaciones, en notas tomadas por sus alumnos y en conferencias y entrevistas. El arte de actuar, pues, constituye un valioso compendio de sus enseñanzas, basadas en la atencion, el reconocimiento y una actitud abierta al mundo. Para Stella Adler, actuar es hacer, y para ello los actores y las actrices deben estar predispuestos a creer, como niños, que todo es verdad.