Method Acting in the UK? Some Facts

It seems that with the opening of a so-called Method Acting schools in London, that Method acting is popular in the UK, certainly their marketing machine would have you believe so… The Method has never been popular in the UK, we don’t share the same history, the passion for psychoanalysis popular in the USA, nor the ‘largest’ of character with the average American.  Brits are a little more reserved, and our acting style has never suffered for it.

Here’s a few facts about Method acting for your consideration…

1) Method Acting and Stanislavski

Method Acting is often linked to Stanislavski, and his way of working is often called the Stanislavski Method of acting, but the ‘Method’ is an American construction and refers to a derivation of Stanislavski’s method which was made most famous by Lee Strasberg at the Actor’s Studio in New York City.

2) Method Acting and Strasberg

But the thing of it is, that two other major American theatre experts were also creating their own version of the Method.  Stella Adler, who had private training with Stanislavski (none of the others even met Stanislavski) focused on script analysis and the imagination, and Sanford Meisner, who focused on behaviour and the ‘other’.  Most people associate Method acting with Strasberg’s ideas. Wherever the word ‘Method Acting is used, it is usually associated with the emotional excesses of Strasberg’s work.

3) Method Acting and all those Academy Awards

It is true that those people known as Method Actors are often those that seem to win the glittering baubles.  But plenty of non-Method actors win Academy Awards too.  But yes, there does seem to be a propensity for Oscar to hand its awards to Method actors.  This fact is often used in the marketing material of so-called Method acting schools.  Since the Method was the mainstream acting technique in the USA for the past 70 years, it is likely that Method practitioners would make up the mainstay of the award winners. But if Method was so bad, surely they wouldn’t win? Not true at all. People’s taste in acting is shaped, and if the Oscar panel is mainly made up of voters that were Method trained, their taste is for the emotional nonsenses of Method acting.  In fact, the cinema-going audience’s tastes for acting has been shaped by people say THIS IS WHAT GOOD ACTING IS! (without any necessary justification)

4) Famous Method Actors

Here’s a strange thing… Daniel Day Lewis, Heath Ledger, Christian Bale, what do they have in common?  They’re all claimed as ‘Method’ actors, but not ONE of them has ANY method training in their background.  It’s pretty hard to claim them as example of good method acting, if they don’t have a lick of actual method training.  And if they do it without the training, then surely that suggest they don’t need that training in the first place?

5) Method Acting got it wrong…

Yes, I believe this is true.  Method Acting focuses on the actor as the unique creator in the production process.  Such a self-conscious mode of work often leads to highly self-absorbed performances which, hurricane-like suck the focus from everything around them – including all the other actors.  The emotional excesses have painted a picture of the theatre and film industry as a place of Drama-Queen-like emotional outpourings, but the reason people go to a performance is to enjoy a cracking good story.  If we notice the acting, we see the strings and therefore we are brought self-consciously ourselves back to the present.

So, some food for thought before you think about signing up for one of these Method courses in the UK…

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