Letters to a Young Actor

by Robert Brustein

Copyright 2005 by Robert Brustein All Rights Reserved.

Categories:  Arts  Contemporary  Entertainment

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Description

The founder and director of the Yale Repertory Theater, as well as Harvard's American Repertory Theater, and the drama critic for The New Republic for going on thirty years, Robert Brustein is a living legend in theatrical circles. In Letters to a Young Actor, he not only seeks to inspire the multitudes of struggling dramatists out pounding the pavement, but also to reinvigorate the very state of the art of acting itself. Brustein is a man of strong opinions and formidable intellect. Stocked with a wealth of stories about the now rich and famous (he has at various points in his career cultivated such talent as actors Meryl Streep, Marisa Tomei, Cherry Jones, Debra Winger, Sigourney Weaver, Christopher Walken, Tony Shalhoub, Henry Winkler, Christopher Lloyd, Claire Bloom, and many, many more), he brings both passion and a peerless authority to his subject. His telling anecdotes from decades of experience help explain how and why those who made it big are the successes they are today-and what struggles they faced along the way. From why Method acting is not the answer, to the critical importance of paying attention in English Lit. classes, Brustein's advice is clear, persuasive, and inspiring.

Reviews

"Robert Brustein's Letters to a Young Actor is the ideal book for parents to give to children who've just announced they're switching majors from international relations to drama"
— The Boston Globe

"This smart, no-nonsense primer-cum-directive on the art and science of acting comes stocked with information and peppered with anecdotes that will inspire the ambitious actor, despite the daunting nature of Brustein's curricula. Brustein, founder and director of the Yale Repertory Theatre and Harvard's American Repertory Theatre, is no lightweight, and this book may come as a shock to those who think acting is something innate and easy. ...This is a sharp, accessible but far from simplistic Cliffs Notes on being an actor."
— Publishers Weekly

"All you have to do is speak to anyone whose life was affected by Bob Brustein and you know he is one of theater's greatest cauldrons of talent."
— Bruce Whitacre, Executive Director, National Corporate Theater Fund Executive Director

"A beauty ... Letters to a Young Actor is full of Brustein's first-hand, hands-on wisdom combined with his wonderful good nature and generous spirit. This all-around man of the theater loves actors."
— Christopher Walken

Extended Copyright Information

Copyright 2005 by Robert Brustein.

Originally published by Basic Books,
A Member of the Perseus Books Group.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Opening Lines (Experimental)

Dear Young . . .
But what shall I call you? If we are going to spend time together as writer and reader, you must have a name. Are you male or female, gay or straight? What generic title can appropriately identify the variety of genders and types you represent? Faced with a similar dilemma, ...

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