Friday, September 30, 2011

ACTIVE VERBS

 :|:

From "David Mamet: a life in the theater" by Ira Bruce Nadel
"I'm of the Aristotelian School: characters are nothing but habitual action. You don't create a character; you describe what he does. . .the theory of true action. . .is the essential understanding of drama." - David Mamet pp. 42

Accelerate

Accommodate

Accomplish

Accumulate

Achieve

Acquire

Act

Activate

Adapt

Add

Address

Adjust

Administer

Advertise



Advise

Advocate

Aid

Aide

Align

Allocate

Amend

Analyze

Answer

Anticipate

Apply

Appoint

Appraise

Approve

Arbitrate

Arrange

Articulate

Ascertain

Assemble

Assess

Assign

Assist

Assume

Attain

Attend

Attract

Audit

Augment

Author

Authorize

Automate

Avert

Award

Bargain

Begin

Bolster

Boost

Bought

Brief

Broaden

Budget

Build

Built

Calculate

Calibrate

Canvass

Capture

Care

Catalog

Catalogue

Categorize

Cater

Cause

Centralize

Chair

Charge

Chart

Check

Clarify

Classify

Co-operate

Coach

Code

Collaborate

Collate

Collect

Combine

Comfort

Commence

Communicate

Compare

Compile

Complete

Compose

Compute

Conceive

Conceptualize

Conciliate

Conclude

Condense

Conduct

Confer

Confirm

Connect

Conserve

Consider

Consolidate

Construct

Consult

Contact

Contract

Contribute

Control

Convert

Convey

Convince

Cooperate

Coordinate

Copy

Correct

Correlate

Correspond

Counsel

Create

Critique

Cultivate

Customize

Dealt with

Debate

Debug

Decide

Decrease

Dedicate

Deduce

Defend

Defer

Define

Delegate

Deliver

Demonstrate

Depict

Depreciated

Derive

Describe

Design

Detail

Detect

Determine

Develop

Devise

Devote

Diagnose

Diagram

Differentiate

Direct

Discharge

Disclose

Discover

Discriminate

Discuss

Dispatch

Display

Dissect

Disseminate

Distinguish

Distribute

Diversify

Document

Draft

Draw

Drew

Earn

Edit

Educate

Effect

Elect

Elicit

Eliminate

Emphasize

Employ

Enable

Encourage

Enforce

Engineer

Enhance

Enlarge

Enlighten

Enlist

Enrich

Ensure

Enter

Entertain

Enumerate

Equip

Establish

Estimate

Evaluate

Examine

Exchange

Execute

Exercise

Exhibit

Expand

Expedite

Experiment

Explain

Explore

Express

Extend

Extract

Extrapolate

Fabricate

Facilitate

Familiarize

Fashion

File

Filter

Finalize

Fine-tune

Fix

Focus

Forecast

Formulate

Fortify

Forward

Foster

Found

Frame

Fund

Furnish

Further

Gather

Gauge

Generate

Govern

Grade

Grant

Greet

Guide

Handle

Head

Help

Highlight

Hire

Host

Identify

Illustrate

Impart

Implement

Import

Improve

Improvise

Incorporate

Increase

Index

Individualize

Influence

Inform

Initiate

Innovate

Inspect

Inspire

Install

Institute

Instruct

Insure

Integrate

Interact

Interface

Interpret

Intervene

Interview

Introduce

Invent

Inventory

Investigate

Involve

Join

Judge

Justify

Label

Launch

Lead

Learn

Lecture

License

Lighten

Liquidate

List

Listen

Litigate

Lobby

Localize

Locate

Log

Maintain

Manage

Manufacture

Map

Market

Master

Maximize

Measure

Mechanize

Mediate

Mentor

Merge

Methodize

Minimize

Mobilize

Model

Moderate

Modernize

Modify

Monitor

Motivate

Narrate

Navigate

Negotiate

Notify

Nurse

Nurture

Observe

Obtain

Officiate

Offset

Operate

Orchestrate

Order

Organize

Orient

Orientate

Originate

Outline

Overhaul

Oversaw

Oversee

Package

Participate

Perceive

Perfect

Perform

Persuade

Photograph

Pilot

Pioneer

Plan

Practice

Predict

Prepare

Present

Preserve

Preside

Prevent

Print

Prioritize

Probe

Process

Produce

Program

Project

Promote

Propose

Provide

Publicize

Publish

Purchase

Qualify

Quantify

Quote

Raise

Ran

Rank

Rate

Read

Reason

Recall

Recognize

Recommend

Reconcile

Record

Recreate

Recruit

Rectify

Reduce

Refer

Refine

Register

Regulate

Rehabilitate

Reinforce

Relate

Related

Release

Remodel

Render

Renew

Reorganize

Repair

Replace

Report

Represent

Research

Reserve

Resolve

Respond

Restore

Restrict

Retain

Retrieve

Revamp

Reveal

Review

Revise

Revitalize

Route

Sample

Save

Scan

Schedule

Screen

Script

Scrutinize

Search

Secure

Segment

Select

Serve

Service

Set goals

Set up

Settle

Shape

Share

Show

Simplify

Simulate

Sketch

Sold

Solicit

Solve

Sort

Speak

Spearhead

Specialize

Specify

Spoke

Stage

Standardize

Start

Stimulate

Straighten

Strategize

Streamline

Strengthen

Structure

Study

Submit

Substantiate

Substitute

Suggest

Summarize

Supervise

Supply

Support

Surpass

Survey

Sustain

Symbolize

Synthesize

Systematize

Tabulate

Tail

Target

Taught

Teach

Tend

Terminate

Test

Theorize

Time

Tour

Trace

Track

Trade

Train

Transcribe

Transfer

Transform

Translate

Transmit

Transport

Transpose

Travel

Treat

Triple

Troubleshot

Tutor

Uncover

Undertook

Unify

Unveil

Update

Upgrade

Upheld

Use

Utilize

Validate

Value

Verify

View

Visit

Visualize

Vitalize

Volunteer

Weigh

Widen

Win

Withdraw

Witness

Write



Book Description:

ACTIONS: The Actors' Thesaurus is a vital companion for actors in rehearsal—a thesaurus of action words to revitalize performance.


Actors need actions. Actors cannot ‘act’ adjectives, they need verbs. Verbs are an aim to achieve, an action to perform.
‘Actions’ are active verbs. ‘I tempt you.’ ‘You taunt me.’ In order to perform an action truthfully--and therefore convincingly-- an actor needs to find exactly the right action to suit that particular situation and that particular line. That is where this book comes in….
ACTIONS is a thesaurus of active verbs that the actor can use to refine performance until s/he hits exactly the right one to help make the action come alive. ACTIONS: The Actors’ Thesaurus by Marina Caldarone & Maggie Lloyd-Williams has gathered together the (formerly) dogged-eared photocopied lists of action verbs from greenrooms and rehearsal rooms and put them together in this pocket-sized thesaurus. All with a view to helping actors get to the heart of meaning and to a great performance. This thesaurus of action words is indispensable in developing mood, line readings, and acting choices for each and every line.

From the Publisher
This new book just released by Drama Publishers gathers together -- for the first time -- the acting community’s –- formerly — secret lists of action words and makes them available in an organized and comprehensive format.

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"The play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king."

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

DARREN ARONOFSKYO ON WORKING WITH ACTORS


The best words of wisdom I've heard about working with actors and finding your voice. Worth listening to "over and over and over again." - José Angel Santana
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"The play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king."

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

COLE WILEY WINS BEST SCREENPLAY

Cole Wiley and Producer, Molly Asher

Cole Wiley wins Best Screenplay Award at the 15 Annual Urbanworld Festival for his script, AFTER THE STORM.

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"The play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king."