Konstantin Stanislavski

Konstantin Stanislavski is one of the greatest and most influential of modern

theatre practitioners.

Before Stanislavski, acting was primarily presentational. Actors relied on broad,

mechanical gestures and stiff theatricality. Stanislavski understood that the theatre
required technical skills like vocal projection and cheating out toward the audience, but
he despised unnatural voices and artificial movements. His most common critique to his
acting students was, “I don’t believe you.”

The main thing to remember is that he takes the approach that the actors should really
inhabit the role that they are playing. So the actor shouldn’t only know what lines they
need to say and the motivation for those lines, but also every detail of that character’s
life offstage as well as onstage. In this way we can establish Stanislavski as a director
and practitioner whose productions are naturalistic.

Stanislavski’s background

Stanislavski’s real name was Konstantin Sergeyevich Alexeyev but he adopted the stage
name of Stanislavski in 1884. Born in 1863 to a life of considerable comfort as a member
of one of the most affluent families in Russia, he died in 1938 at the age of 75. His family
loved the theatre and he was able to indulge in amateur theatricals as a boy. But when
he took a stage name it was to conceal his theatrical work from his family. However, in
1887 he had his father’s approval and eventually became an established figure.

As a serious theatrical practitioner, he made careful notes and evaluated his work, a
habit he followed from the first steps in his career. Later he was to write major texts on
the art of performance: ‘My Life in Art’ , ‘An Actor Prepares’ , ‘Building a Character’ and
‘Creating a Role’

Stanislavski’s techniques

The System

This term refers to the methods used by Stanislavski to foster a good performance in his
actors. It focuses mainly on helping an actor recall the emotions needed for a role. Don’t
confuse
‘method
acting’ with
the System.
Method
acting is how
Stanislavksi’s
work was
interpreted
by others, in
particular,
actors and
directors in
the film
industry.
Given circumstances

The given circumstances are the information about the character that you start off with
and the play as a whole. How old is the character? What’s their situation in the play and
in relation to the other characters? Are there any notes provided about the play and its
characters? Such notes and stage directions may not tell you everything you need to
build a character but they are the starting point from which you’ll work to examine the
other questions.

Emotional memory

Emotional memory is when the actor finds a real past experience where they felt a
similar emotion to that demanded by the role they are playing. They then ‘borrow’ those
feelings to bring the role to life.

Method of physical actions

Imagine a simple activity like cleaning your teeth and then imagine a husband cleaning
his teeth whilst deliberating on how to tell his wife that he wants a divorce. This is a
simple illustration of how a physical action can release the necessary emotions.

Subtext

The script of a play could be called the text. The subtext is the actual meaning and
motivation behind the lines that are spoken and the actions taken. For example, the
heroine might say to the hero, “I love you” and we might assume that it is the happy
ending fairy tale moment. But the delivery would be very different if she was worried that
he was about to walk out on her.

If

Stanislavski said that the character should answer the question, 'What would I do if I was
in this situation?' Also known as the ‘magic if’, this technique means that the actor puts
themselves into the character’s situation. This then stimulates the motivation to enable
the actor to play the role.

Objective, super-objective and the through line

An objective is the reason for our actions. What are we trying to achieve? Life, people
and circumstances constantly put up barriers in our way. Each of these barriers presents
us with the objective of getting through them. You shouldn't try to express the meaning
of your objective in terms of a noun, always use a verb, eg 'I wish to...'

The super-objective is an over-reaching objective, probably linked to the overall

outcome in the play. A character’s objectives are likely to be stages in the journey
towards the super-objective. If that journey is perceived as a clear path to the super
objective, then you have your through line.

For example, in Keith Waterhouse’s famous play, Billy Liar, Billy yearns to escape from his
provincial life and his family in a Yorkshire town. So this is his super-objective. Billy is
faced with many barriers throughout the play, often of his own making. His objectives
change during the play according to a new barrier or circumstance, eg 'I wish to retrieve
the engagement ring from Barbara'. But ultimately all his objectives throughout the play
are working toward the single super-objective, 'I wish to escape' so there is a through
line. Sometimes Billy does this through fantasy and sometimes by constructing mini
dramas to liven up his dull existence. This through line of action galvanises all the
smaller units and objectives and directs them toward the super-objective. From then on
they all serve the common purpose.

Tempo and rhythm

Stanislavski felt that an inner and an outer tempo and rhythm were vital if you were to
enact movements truthfully and link them to the expression of emotions and feelings. He
linked tempo to the speed of an action or feeling and the rhythm to the intensity or depth
of the experience.

How Stanislavski has influenced acting today

Decades later, much of our acting training and techniques still come from Stanislavski’s
teaching. Other practitioners have also been influenced by Stanislavski’s work to create
their own methods.

Lee Strasbourg – The Method

Lee Strasberg, a well-known American actor, director and acting teacher used
Stanislavski’s teachings to great acclaim in the Actors Studio in New York from the 1950s
until his death in 1982. Strasberg was known as the creator of ‘method acting’, which
was inspired by Stanislavski’s ‘system’. Strasberg coached several generations of theatre
and film’s most well-known talents such as Marlon Brando, James Dean, Marilyn Monroe,
Paul Newman, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino and many more. The Method trains actors to use
their physical, mental and emotional self in the creation of a character and stresses the
way in which personal experience can fire the actors imagination

Stella Adler

Stella Adler studied at The Moscow Theatre under Stanislavski and learnt a lot from his
methods, her approach is a direct response to his teachings. Adler’s technique is founded
on an actor’s ability to imagine a character’s world. Adler believed that over-reliance on
personal, emotional memories limited an actor’s range. Her technique encourages actors
to expand their understanding of the world, in order to create compelling performances.
Adler taught her actors to deliberately observe the textures, aesthetics, and sounds of
everyday life, enabling them to conjure detailed and realistic mental images on stage.
When those mental images are nuanced—and the actor can authentically express this
imagery to the audience—the actor delivers a truthful performance.

Uta Hagen
Hagen had a unique way of using principles from Stanislavski’s System—which
encouraged actors to behave realistically in imaginary circumstances—to develop
practical tools for actors. Most notably her Six Steps or Nine Questions which are a great
starting point for developing a character.