Take It Personally: On the Art and the Process of Personal Acting: Paperback Book

Features

• Cover Type: Paperback with 194 pages
• Published by: Applause Books February 1, 2000
• Written in: English
• ISBN 10 Number: 1557833907
• ISBN 13 Number: 978-1557833907
• Book Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Weighs: 8.2 ounces

Product Description
Gordon Phillips begins with the qualities possessed by the most exciting actors and then proceeds to the practical acting tools needed to make those qualities work for every actor. Each tool is accompanied by a clarifying exercise. Many of these tools can be used to enhance life as well as stage life.

Reader Reviews
This is an interesting and useful book. What attracted my attention when I first saw the book was the cover photo of Mr. Phillips. His energy, humor and directness leap off the cover, inviting the reader into a very informative "conversation" about the acting tools he has developed and used over a long career. I don't know why, but Mr. Phillips' bio does not appear in the book, though it became apparent as I read that he taught a number of fine actors including Bruce Dern, Sandy Dennis and Judd Hirsch, acted in a wide array of plays, films and television, and taught at both the Actor's Studio with Lee Strasberg and the H. B. Studio with Uta Hagen and Herbert Berghof. These are impressive credentials. The tone of the book is practical and personal, like Mr. Phillips' collection of tools, which he calls The Process. He describes the 17 tools of The Process and gives exercises for each that can be done alone, with a partner or in a group. He also describes how to use these tools in a role. He illustrates how The Process works using examples from productions and humorous and touching anecdotes based on his own experiences with fellow teachers and actors and his own students. One thing I particularly like is that, after describing a tool in a narrative form, he also gives step-by-step instructions for easy reference. There are also two wonderful little chapters, one on 9 types of actors and what you can learn from them about what to avoid, and the other is on what to look for--and what to avoid--in an acting teacher. Very useful. At the heart of Mr. Phillips' Process is a kind of Zen approach to acting, which stresses neutralizing first yourself, aiming for what in Zen is called Beginner1s Mind, and then the script, the other actors and the acting space. These particular tools are invaluable for cancelling out ingrained and inhibiting bad habits in acting. I have made good use of the tools that make up Mr. Phillips' Process, both in my own personal work and in the interactive interpersonal dynamics workshops I lead. All in all, I can call this a good read and an invaluable collection of tools. All we have to do is put them to use. Incidentally, the caption on one chapter in the book is "A good actor is a bad actor who never gave up." I really love the optimism and encouragement. It fits perfectly with what I see in Mr. Phillips in the cover photo.