Everyone has heard of Method acting . . . but what about Modern acting?
This book makes the simple but radical proposal that we acknowledge the
Modern acting principles that continue to guide actors' work in the
twenty-first century. Developments in modern drama and new stagecraft
led Modern acting strategies to coalesce by the 1930s - and Hollywood's
new role as America's primary performing arts provider ensured these
techniques circulated widely as the migration of Broadway talent and the
demands of sound cinema created a rich exchange of ideas among actors.
Decades after Strasberg's death in 1982, he and his Method are still
famous, while accounts of American acting tend to overlook the
contributions of Modern acting teachers such as Josephine Dillon,
Charles Jehlinger, and Sophie Rosenstein. Baron's examination of acting
manuals, workshop notes, and oral histories illustrates the shared
vision of Modern acting that connects these little-known teachers to the
landmark work of Stanislavsky. It reveals that Stella Adler, long
associated with the Method, is best understood as a Modern acting
teacher and that Modern acting, not Method, might be seen as central to
American performing arts if the Actors' Lab in Hollywood (1941-1950) had
survived the Cold War.