100 Best Acting Books of All Time

We've ranked the best acting books using expert recommendations, sales data, and millions of reader ratings. At Shortform, we know books. Our book guides are the best in the world. Learn why.

Sanford Meisner on Acting book cover1

Sanford Meisner on Acting

Sanford Meisner, Dennis Longwell, et al.

5.0
This book, written in collaboration with Dennis Longwell, follows an acting class of eight men and eight women for fifteen months, beginning with the most rudimentary exercises and ending with affecting and polished scenes from contemporary American plays. Throughout these pages Meisner is delight--always empathizing with his students and urging them onward, provoking emotion, laughter, and growin
Audition book cover2

Audition

Ryū Murakami

4.8
Documentary-maker Aoyama hasn't dated anyone in the seven years since the death of his beloved wife, Ryoko. Now even his teenage son Shige has suggested he think about remarrying. So when his best friend Yoshikawa comes up with a plan to hold fake film auditions so that Aoyama can choose a new bride, he decides to go along with the idea
3

Respect for Acting

Uta Hagen

4.8
Respect for Acting

"This fascinating and detailed book about acting is Miss Hagen's credo, the accumulated wisdom of her years spent in intimate communion with her art. It is at once the voicing of her exacting standards for herself and those she [taught], and an explanation of the means to the end."
--Publishers Weekly

"Hagen adds to the large corpus of titles on acting with vivid dicta drawn fr
4

An Actor Prepares

Constantin Stanislavski

4.8
Stanislavski's simple exercises fire the imagination, and help readers not only discover their own conception of reality but how to reproduce it as well.
Acting in Film: An Actor's Take on Movie Making book cover5

Acting in Film: An Actor's Take on Movie Making

Michael Caine

4.7
A master actor who's appeared in an enormous number of films, starring with everyone from Nicholson to Kermit the Frog, Michael Caine is uniquely qualified to provide his view of making movies. This new revised and expanded edition features great photos throughout, with chapters on: Preparation, In Front of the Camera - Before You Shoot, The Take, Characters, Directors, On Being a Star, and much m
Actions: The Actors' Thesaurus book cover6

Actions: The Actors' Thesaurus

Marina Caldarone and Maggie Lloyd-Williams

4.7
Actors need actions. They cannot act adjectives, they need verbs. This thesaurus of active verbs helps the actor to refine the action-word until they hit exactly the right one to make the action come alive.
The Actor's Life: A Survival Guide book cover7

The Actor's Life: A Survival Guide

Jenna Fischer and Steve Carell

4.7
Jenna Fischer’s Hollywood journey began at the age of 22 when she moved to Los Angeles from her hometown of St. Louis. With a theater degree in hand, she was certain everything would fall easily into place. Never mind that she didn’t know a single person in the entertainment industry. She was determined, she was confident, she was ready to work hard. So, what could go wrong?

Uh, basically everythin
Matthew Weiner portraitChristina Applegate portraitJon Hamm portrait Recommended by Matthew Weiner, Christina Applegate, Jon Hamm, and 2 others.
Matthew Weiner portrait
Matthew Weiner

Creator/Mad Men

How lucky for those who dream that Jenna Fischer has written this book and candidly explained the hard work, persistence, and delusion required to become a working actor. This book is generous, practical, and in the right hands will be a talisman for the deserving few who refuse to give up. [source]

Christina Applegate portrait
Christina Applegate

Actress / Married with Children

In The Actor's Life, Jenna Fischer lays out exactly what aspiring actors can expect from this crazy, unpredictable industry both practically and emotionally. Nothing is sugar-coated, nor is it cynical. It's just reality, plain and simple. At every level of success, we are all just artists trying to figure it out day by day. That’s the truth. [source]

Jon Hamm portrait
Jon Hamm

Actor / Mad Men

I loved reading Jenna's honest and sincere appraisal of the actualities of breaking into, finding one’s way, and then thriving in this business. I hope it is given out as a guidebook of sorts to any young actor when they land at LAX. [source]

The Art of Acting book cover8

The Art of Acting

Stella Adler

4.7
Stella Adler was one of the 20th Century's greatest figures. She is arguably the most important teacher of acting in American history. Over her long career, both in New York and Hollywood, she offered her vast acting knowledge to generations of actors, including Marlon Brando, Warren Beatty, and Robert De Niro. The great voice finally ended in the early Nineties, but her decades of experience and
Power of the Actor book cover9

Power of the Actor

Ivana Chubbuck

4.6
10

How to Stop Acting

Harold Guskin

4.6
"The Great Guskin" (John Lahr, The New Yorker) shares the approach he uses to help actors land roles, develop them, and keep them alive

Harold Guskin is an "acting doctor" whose clients include Kevin Kline, Glenn Close, James Gandolfini, Bridget Fonda, and dozens more. In How to Stop Acting, Guskin reveals the insights and techniques that have worked wonders for beginners as well as stars. Instead
11

On the Technique of Acting

Michael Chekhov

4.6
The most authoritive, authentic text of a classic guide to acting

In the four decades since its first publication, Michael Chekhov's To the Actor has become a standard text for students of the theater. But To the Actor is a shortened, heavily modified version of the great director/actor/teacher's original manuscript, and On the Technique of Acting is the first and only book ever to incorporate th
The Intent to Live: Achieving Your True Potential as an Actor book cover12

The Intent to Live: Achieving Your True Potential as an Actor

Larry Moss

4.6
“I call this book The Intent to Live because great actors don’t seem to be acting, they seem to be actually living.”
–Larry Moss, from the Introduction

When Oscar-winning actors Helen Hunt and Hilary Swank accepted their Academy Awards, each credited Larry Moss’s guidance as key to their career-making performances. There is a two-year waiting list for his advanced acting classes. But now everyone–pr
A Challenge For The Actor book cover13

A Challenge For The Actor

Uta Hagen

4.6
Theoretically, the actor ought to be more sound in mind and body than other people, since he learns to understand the psychological problems of human beings when putting his own passions, his loves, fears, and rages to work in the service of the characters he plays. He will learn to face himself, to hide nothing from himself -- and to do so takes an insatiable curiosity about the human condition.
The Actor's Art and Craft: William Esper Teaches the Meisner Technique book cover14

The Actor's Art and Craft: William Esper Teaches the Meisner Technique

William Esper

4.6
William Esper, one of the leading acting teachers of our time, explains and extends Sanford Meisner's legendary technique, offering a clear, concrete, step-by-step approach to becoming a truly creative actor.

Esper worked closely with Meisner for seventeen years and has spent decades developing his famous program for actor's training. The result is a rigorous system of exercises that builds a solid
The Artist's Way book cover15

The Artist's Way

Julia Cameron

4.6
Preview Summary
"Without The Artist's Way, there would have been no Eat, Pray, Love.” —Elizabeth Gilbert


A stunning gift edition of the powerful bestselling book on creativity.The Artist’s Way is one of the bestselling gift books of all time. Beautifully packaged with a slipcase and ribbon, this tenth anniversary gift edition is the ideal gift for loved ones engaged in creative lives.
Anand C portraitEmma Gannon portrait Recommended by Anand C and Emma Gannon.
Anand C portrait
Anand C

STARTING FROM AUTHENTICITY: by observing, showing humility and being grateful - I started being open to what’s in the sub-conscious more (30+ sessions in). Speaking your truth is a powerful result of this. One great book to help explore this. https://t.co/sOAgAHhWsO [source]

Emma Gannon portrait
Emma Gannon

Instead of all these fast paced books saying: ‘Here’s how to be amazing, here’s how to get a side hustle, here’s how to hustle, hustle, hustle.’ This is the total opposite. It’s about slowing right down and connecting with yourself again. [source]

16

Building a Character

Constantin Stanislavski

4.5
Building a Character is one of the three volumes that make up Stanislavski's The Acting Trilogy.

An Actor Prepares explores the inner preparation an actor must undergo in order to explore a role to the full. In this volume, Sir John Gielgud said, this great director "found time to explain a thousand things that have always troubled actors and fascinated students."

Building a Character discusses the
The War of Art book cover17

The War of Art

Steven Pressfield

4.5
Preview Summary
The Art of War meets "The Artist's Way" in this no-nonsense, profoundly inspiring guide to overcoming creative blocks of every kind.
Daniel Pink portraitJames Altucher portraitRyan Holiday portrait Recommended by Daniel Pink, James Altucher, Ryan Holiday, and 17 others.
James Altucher portrait
James Altucher

Founder/StockPickr

When a writer or an entrepreneur, or a manager, or an employee, or a…whatever…sits down to get to work, he or she is often met by “the resistance”. The excuses that come up: I can’t do this. I am too old. I don’t have enough money. I’m scared. “The War of Art” is the guide to getting through that block. The comfort zone is papered up and cemented shut by our excuses. Learn to blast through that wall. Because on the other side of the comfort zone are all the tools of success. [source]

Seth Godin portrait
Seth Godin

Author, Marketer, Entrepreneur

Also hard to find on audio. I find Steve's voice to be fascinating, and even before I knew him, I was fascinated by listening to him speak his own work. The War of Art is one of those books, at least for me when I finally was exposed to it, I said, 'Why wasn't I informed? Why did it take this long for this book to land on my desk?'... You need to be clear with yourself about what you are afraid of, why you are afraid, and whether you care enough to dance with that fear because it will never go away. [source]

Adam Johnston portrait
Adam Johnston

The last two pages of Steven Pressfield’s The War of Art gave me a swift kick in the ass. Do it or don’t do it. But if you don’t do it, you not only hurt yourself. You hurt your children. You hurt me. You hurt the planet. Pressfield wrote a beautiful book that you should read, but if nothing else, just read the last two pages of the book. I have them hanging on my wall in my office. [source]

18

Acting: The First Six Lessons

Richard Boleslavsky and Edith J. R. Isaacs

4.5

This classic work on acting is one of the very few that stands beside Stanislavsky as a must-have for all acting students and professionals. Richard Boleslavsky's Acting: The First Six Lessons is a treasure-box of wise observation about the art of acting, all wrapped up in six charming dialogues between a teacher and a student. Generations of actors have been enriched by Boleslavsky's witty and ac

True and False: Heresy and Common Sense for the Actor book cover19

True and False: Heresy and Common Sense for the Actor

David Mamet

4.5
The Pulitzer Prize winning playwright, director and teacher has written a blunt, unsparingly honest guide to acting. In True and False David Mamet overturns conventional opinion and tells aspiring actors what they really need to know. He leaves no aspect of acting untouched: how to judge the role, approach the part, work with the playwright; the right way to undertake auditions and the proper appr
20

Improvisation for the Theater

Viola Spolin

4.5
Here is the thoroughly revised third edition of the bible of improvisational theater.

Viola Spolin's improvisational techniques changed the very nature and practice of modern theater. The first two editions of Improvisation for the Theater sold more than 100,000 copies and inspired actors, directors, teachers, and writers in theater, television, film. These techniques have also influenced the field
21

Creating a Role

Constantin Stanislavski

4.5
Creating a Roleis the culmination of Stanislavski's masterful trilogy on the art of acting. An Actor Preparesfocused on the inner training of an actor's imagination. Building a Characterdetailed how the actor's body and voice could be tuned for the great roles he might fill.
This third volume examines the development of a character from the viewpoint of three widely contrasting plays: Griboyedov's
A Practical Handbook for the Actor book cover22

A Practical Handbook for the Actor

Melissa Bruder

4.5
6 working actors describe their methods and philosophies of the theater. All have worked with playwright David Mamet at the Goodman Theater in Chicago.
23

The Empty Space: A Book About the Theatre: Deadly, Holy, Rough, Immediate

Peter Brook

4.4
From director and cofounder of the Royal Shakespeare Company Peter Brook, The Empty Space is a timeless analysis of theatre from the most influential stage director of the twentieth century.

As relevant as when it was first published in 1968, groundbreaking director and cofounder of the Royal Shakespeare Company Peter Brook draws on a life in love with the stage to explore the issues facing a thea
Michael Billington portrait Recommended by Michael Billington.
24

Self-Management for Actors: Getting Down to (Show) Business

Bonnie Gillespie

4.4
No other book for actors focuses so succinctly on the business of self-management. Whether an actor has an agent or manager or is building toward assembling that team, "Self-Management for Actors" will provide a roadmap for surviving--and thriving--in the entertainment industry. There is nothing magic or even a little mystical about the business side of the business. There is, however, a cloak of
25

Impro

Keith Johnstone

4.4
First published in 1987. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
26

The Actor and the Target

Declan Donnellan

4.4

“Acting is a reflex, a mechanism for development and survival. . . . It isn’t ‘second nature,’ it is ‘first nature.’”—Declan Donnellan

This immensely popular and ever-practical book on acting takes a scalpel to the heart of actors’ persistent fears, helping them to release their talent on stage. It is straightforward and unpretentious, with a spirit of artistic and personal freedom.
27

The Technique of Acting

Stella Adler, Marlon Brando

4.3
The world-renowned drama teacher of Brando, DeNiro and many other successful actors writes a comprehensive and practical book on acting. Includes Adler's memories of Stanislavski, her expert views on American acting today, and a photo insert from her personal scrapbook.
Freeing the Natural Voice: Imagery and Art in the Practice of Voice and Language book cover28

Freeing the Natural Voice: Imagery and Art in the Practice of Voice and Language

Kristin Linklater

4.3
A classic text for theatre and film it has sold 100,000 copies in its first edition.
Acting for the Camera: Revised Edition book cover29

Acting for the Camera: Revised Edition

Tony Barr

4.3
Culled from Tony Barr's 40 years' experience as a performer, director and acting teacher in Hollywood, this highly praised handbook provides readers with the practical knowledge they need when performing in front of the camera. This updated edition includes plenty of new exercises for honing on-camera skills; additional chapters on imagination and movement; and fresh material on character developm
Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative book cover30

Steal Like an Artist: 10 Things Nobody Told You About Being Creative

Austin Kleon

4.3
Preview Summary
You don’t need to be a genius, you just need to be yourself. That’s the message from Austin Kleon, a young writer and artist who knows that creativity is everywhere, creativity is for everyone. A manifesto for the digital age, Steal Like an Artist is a guide whose positive message, graphic look and illustrations, exercises, and examples will put readers directly in touch with their artistic side.
Ryan Holiday portraitSeth Godin portraitAndra Zaharia portrait Recommended by Ryan Holiday, Seth Godin, Andra Zaharia, and 8 others.
Ryan Holiday portrait
Ryan Holiday

Author

Part of ambition is modeling yourself after those you’d like to be like. Austin’s philosophy of ruthlessly stealing and remixing the greats might sound appalling at first but it is actually the essence of art. You learn by stealing, you become creative by stealing, you push yourself to be better by working with these materials. Austin is a fantastic artist, but most importantly he communicates the essence of writing and creating art better than anyone else I can think of. It is a manifesto for any young, creative person looking to make his mark. Pair up with Show Your Work which is also excellent. [source]

Seth Godin portrait
Seth Godin

Author, Marketer, Entrepreneur

Breezy and fun and yes, scary. Scary because it calls your bluff. [source]

Andra Zaharia portrait
Andra Zaharia

While I was thinking of the best books to add to this short list, I realized that not even half of them are directly related to digital marketing. This is because I believe that the best marketers are people who understand human nature deeply and aim to bring out the best in it. Call me naive, but that’s how I see it. If I were to want to pursue a career in marketing, I’d read … Steal Like An Artist. [source]

The Hero With a Thousand Faces book cover31

The Hero With a Thousand Faces

Joseph Campbell

4.3
Preview Summary

The first popular work to combine the spiritual and psychological insights of modern psychoanalysis with the archetypes of world mythology, the book creates a roadmap for navigating the frustrating path of contemporary life. Examining heroic myths in the light of modern psychology, it considers not only the patterns and stages of mythology but also its relevance to our lives today--and to the life

Ray Dalio portraitBryan Callen portraitCatherine Plano portrait Recommended by Ray Dalio, Bryan Callen, Catherine Plano, and 4 others.
Ray Dalio portrait
Ray Dalio

Founder/Bridgewater Associates

The book I’d give every graduating senior in college or high school would be … Joseph Campbell’s 'Hero of a Thousand Faces'. It's little bit dense but it’s so rich, so it’s a good one. [source]

Bryan Callen portrait
Bryan Callen

Joseph Campbell was the first person to really open my eyes to the compassionate side of life, or of thought... Campbell was the guy who really kind of put it all together for me, and not in a way I could put my finger on... It made you just glad to be alive, realizing how vast this world is, and how similar and how different we are. [source]

Catherine Plano portrait
Catherine Plano

Was mind blowing, it really helped me put into perspective, that there are cycles and rhythms, and I now call them initiations, when you are faced with fear we are never too sure of our potential unless we know how to fail, what did we learn from it and what are we going to do differently the next time. There is a lesson in everything we experience, as long as we slow down enough to reflect. The other thing in the hero's journey is that even when you say 'yes' to a project, it really doesn't mean that you are going to succeed at it, but if you go into a project with an open mind and embrace that you are here to learn, the journey itself is rewarding, not always the outcome and when we really look at our failures, they weren't real failures after all, but a stepping stone onto something greater. [source]

A Life in Parts book cover32

A Life in Parts

Bryan Cranston

4.3
“Nothing short of riveting...an engrossing first-person account by one of our finest actors” (Huffington Post)—both a coming-of-age story and a meditation on creativity, devotion, and craft—Bryan Cranston, beloved and acclaimed star of one of history’s most successful TV shows, Breaking Bad.

Bryan Cranston began his acting career at the age of seven, when his father, a struggling actor and sometime
A Dream of Passion: The Development of the Method book cover33

A Dream of Passion: The Development of the Method

Lee Strasberg

4.3
"The definitive source book on acting."-- Los Angeles Times

Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, Paul Newman, Dustin Hoffman, Dennis Hopper, Robert DeNiro, Marilyn Monroe, and Joanne Woodward--these are only a few of the many actors training in "Method" acting by the great and legendary Lee Strasberg. This revolutionary theory of acting--developed by Stanislavski and continued by Strasberg--has been a major
Truth in Comedy: The Manual for Improvisation book cover34

Truth in Comedy: The Manual for Improvisation

Charna Halpern

4.3
Want to learn the improv techniques that helped Mike Myers, Chris Farley, John Belushi, and many others along the road to TV and film stardom? Then let two esteemed founders of long-form improvisational theatre, Del Close and Charna Halpern, teach you the "Harold." This groundbreaking acting exercise emphasizes pattern recognition and subversion of the audience's expectations, which are important
35

Playing Shakespeare: An Actor's Guide

John Barton

4.3
Now in its first American edition, Playing Shakespeare is the premier guide to understanding and appreciating the mastery of the world’s greatest playwright.

Together with Royal Shakespeare Company actors–among them Patrick Stewart, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Ben Kingsley, and David Suchet–John Barton demonstrates how to adapt Elizabethan theater for the modern stage. The director begins by explicat
Hamilton: The Revolution book cover36

Hamilton: The Revolution

Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeremy McCarter

4.2
Lin-Manuel Miranda's groundbreaking musical Hamilton is as revolutionary as its subject, the poor kid from the Caribbean who fought the British, defended the Constitution, and helped to found the United States. Fusing hip-hop, pop, R&B, and the best traditions of theater, this once-in-a-generation show broadens the sound of Broadway, reveals the storytelling power of rap, and claims our country's
André Rupp portrait Recommended by André Rupp.
37

My Life in Art

Konstantin Stanislavsky

4.2
Stanislavsky recalls his theatrical career, from his early experiences in Rubinstein's Russian Musical Society to his final triumphs with Chekhov at the Moscow Art Theatre. This account of his own famous productions is interspersed with anecdotes.
Michael Billington portrait Recommended by Michael Billington.
Making Movies book cover38

Making Movies

Sidney Lumet

4.2
From one of America's most acclaimed directors comes a book that is both a professional memoir and a definitive guide to the art, craft, and business of the motion picture. Drawing on 40 years of experience on movies ranging from Long Day's Journey Into Night to The Verdict, Lumet explains the painstaking labor that results in two hours of screen magic.
Darren Aronofsky portrait Recommended by Darren Aronofsky.
The Viewpoints Book: A Practical Guide to Viewpoints and Composition book cover39

The Viewpoints Book: A Practical Guide to Viewpoints and Composition

Anne Bogart

4.2
The Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the postmodern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with—space and time—into six categories. Since that time, directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors to function together spontaneously and intuitiv
The Actor's Guide to Creating a Character: William Esper Teaches the Meisner Technique book cover40

The Actor's Guide to Creating a Character: William Esper Teaches the Meisner Technique

William Esper, Damon Dimarco, et al

4.2
William Esper, one of the most celebrated acting teachers of our time, takes us through his step-by-step approach to the central challenge of advanced acting work: creating and playing a character.

Esper’s first book, The Actor’s Art and Craft, earned praise for describing the basics taught in his famous first-year acting class. The Actor’s Guide to Creating a Character continues the journey. In t
Bossypants book cover41

Bossypants

Tina Fey

4.2
Tina Fey is one of of the world's greatest comic writers and performers. Here she reveals all, and proves what we've all suspected - you're no one until someone calls you bossy.
Sheryl Sandberg portrait Recommended by Sheryl Sandberg.
42

No Acting Please: A Revolutionary Approach to Acting and Living

Eric Morris, Joan Hotchkis, Jack Nicholson

4.2
A collection of 125 acting exercises that are based on journal excerpts and dialogues from Mr. Morris' classes.

Foreword by Jack Nicholson.
43

The Importance of Being Earnest & Other Plays

Oscar Wilde

4.2
Designed to appeal to the book lover, the Macmillan Collector's Library is a series of beautifully bound pocket-sized gift editions of much loved classic titles. Bound in real cloth, printed on high quality paper, and featuring ribbon markers and gilt edges, Macmillan Collector's Library are books to love and treasure.

The four great comedies of Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of No Imp
Sos Eltis portrait Recommended by Sos Eltis.
Station Eleven book cover44

Station Eleven

Emily St. John Mandel, Vincent Chong

4.2
Set in the days of civilization's collapse, Station Eleven tells the story of a Hollywood star, his would-be savior, and a nomadic group of actors roaming the scattered outposts of the Great Lakes region, risking everything for art and humanity.

One snowy night a famous Hollywood actor slumps over and dies onstage during a production of King Lear. Hours later, the world as we know it begins to diss
Alfred A. Knopf portraitHolly Brockwell portrait Recommended by Alfred A. Knopf and Holly Brockwell.
Alfred A. Knopf portrait
Alfred A. Knopf

“What sets Station Eleven apart from so many other recent dystopian novels is the warmness of @EmilyMandel's writing, the lived-in details of each of these characters’ lives… It’s the kind of book that stays with you.” —@TomiObaro https://t.co/tWakW2L6Tq [source]

Holly Brockwell portrait
Holly Brockwell

@nmsonline @katebevan Great book though 🤷‍♀️ [source]

Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting book cover45

Story: Substance, Structure, Style, and the Principles of Screenwriting

Robert McKee

4.2
Preview Summary
Robert McKee's screenwriting workshops have earned him an international reputation for inspiring novices, refining works in progress and putting major screenwriting careers back on track. Quincy Jones, Diane Keaton, Gloria Steinem, Julia Roberts, John Cleese and David Bowie are just a few of his celebrity alumni. Writers, producers, development executives and agents all flock to his lecture series
Bill Liao portrait Recommended by Bill Liao.
Bill Liao portrait
Bill Liao

The human world occurs in language so best get good at it! [source]

Hamlet book cover46

Hamlet

William Shakespeare

4.2
No Fear Shakespeare gives you the complete text of Hamlet on the left-hand page, side-by-side with an easy-to-understand translation on the right.

"Hamlet" is the story of the Prince of Denmark who learns of the death of his father at the hands of his uncle, Claudius. Claudius murders Hamlet's father, his own brother, to take the throne of Denmark and to marry Hamlet's widowed mother. Hamlet is su
Ryan Holiday portraitTim Lott portrait Recommended by Ryan Holiday and Tim Lott.
Ryan Holiday portrait
Ryan Holiday

Author

Philosophy runs through this play–all sorts of great lines. There are gems like “..for there is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so” which I used in my last book and “Beware of entrance to a quarrel; but, being in, bear it, that the opposed may beware of thee.” was a favorite of Sherman. [source]

Tim Lott portrait
Tim Lott

I love the speech when Hamlet’s uncle Claudius admits to being inflicted with the primal eldest curse for killing his brother, and begs on his knees for forgiveness for this ultimate violation of the law of nature. [source]

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy book cover47

The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy

William D. Danko

4.2
Preview Summary
-Why aren't I as wealthy as I should be?- Many people ask this question of themselves all the time. Often they are hard-working, well educated middle- to high-income people. Why, then, are so few affluent. For nearly two decades the answer has been found in the bestselling The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America's Wealthy, reissued with a new foreword for the twenty-first cent
Dave Collum portrait Recommended by Dave Collum.
48

Voice and the Actor

Cicely Berry, Peter Brook

4.2
The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual book cover49

The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual

Matt Walsh

4.2
The Upright Citizens Brigade Comedy Improvisation Manual is a comprehensive guide to the UCB style of long form comedy improvisation. Written by UCB founding members Matt Besser, Ian Roberts, and Matt Walsh, the manual covers everything from the basics of two person scene work (with a heavy emphasis on finding "the game" of the scene), to the complexities of working within an ensemble to perform l
50

Towards a Poor Theatre

Jerzy Grotowski, Eugenio Barba

4.2
Originally published in 1968, Jerzy Grotowski's groundbreaking book is available once again. As a record of Grotowski's theatrical experiments, this book is an invaluable resource to students and theater practioners alike.
51

An Actor's Work

Konstantin Stanislavski

4.2
Stanislavski s system has dominated actor-training in the West since his writings were first translated into English in the 1920s and 30s. His systematic attempt to outline a psycho-physical technique for acting single-handedly revolutionized standards of acting in the theatre.

Until now, readers and students have had to contend with inaccurate, misleading and difficult-to-read English-language ver
52

Games for Actors and Non-Actors

Augusto Boal, Adrian Jackson

4.2
Games for Actors and Non-Actors is the classic and best selling book by the founder of Theatre of the Oppressed, Augusto Boal. It sets out the principles and practice of Boal's revolutionary Method, showing how theatre can be used to transform and liberate everyone - actors and non-actors alike!

This thoroughly updated and substantially revised second edition includes:

two new essays by Boal on majo
53

Confessions of a Casting Director: Help Actors Land Any Role with Secrets from Inside the Audition Room

Jen Rudin

4.2
A must-have for any aspiring actor, this definitive guide to breaking into film, television, and theater from a former Disney casting executive will demystify the often intimidating, opaque, and constantly-changing audition process

Longtime casting director and studio executive Jen Rudin decided to write this book to answer the questions she is constantly hearing from aspiring actors: Do I need an
Secrets of Screen Acting book cover54

Secrets of Screen Acting

Patrick Tucker

4.2
In this new edition, Patrick Tucker retains the engaging style and useful structure of the first edition while addressing significant changes in current technology, ensuring that this volume will remain an indispensable resource for contemporary students of screen acting.

Updated for a new decade of screen performance possibilities, Secrets of Screen Acting is a magician's box of acting tricks for
A Midsummer Night's Dream book cover55

A Midsummer Night's Dream

William Shakespeare, John Gilbert, Ned Halley

4.1
A Midsummer Night's Dream is perhaps the best loved of Shakespeare's plays. It brings together aristocrats, workers, and fairies in a wood outside Athens, and from there the magic begins. A young woman flees Athens with her lover, only to be pursued by her would-be husband and by her best friend. Unwittingly, all four find themselves in an enchanted forest where fairies and sprites soon take an in
56

Stories I Only Tell My Friends: An Autobiography

Rob Lowe

4.1
A wryly funny and surprisingly moving account of an extraordinary life lived almost entirely in the public eye

A teen idol at fifteen, an international icon and founder of the Brat Pack at twenty, and one of Hollywood's top stars to this day, Rob Lowe chronicles his experiences as a painfully misunderstood child actor in Ohio uprooted to the wild counterculture of mid-seventies Malibu, where he emb
Romeo and Juliet book cover57

Romeo and Juliet

William Shakespeare, Dr. Barbara A. Mowat, Paul Werstine Ph.D.

4.1
In Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare creates a violent world, in which two young people fall in love. It is not simply that their families disapprove; the Montagues and the Capulets are engaged in a blood feud.

In this death-filled setting, the movement from love at first sight to the lovers’ final union in death seems almost inevitable. And yet, this play set in an extraordinary world has become the q
58

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride

Cary Elwes, Joe Layden, Rob Reiner

4.1
From actor Cary Elwes, who played the iconic role of Westley in The Princess Bride, comes a first-person account and behind-the-scenes look at the making of the cult classic film filled with never-before-told stories, exclusive photographs, and interviews with costars Robin Wright, Wallace Shawn, Billy Crystal, Christopher Guest, and Mandy Patinkin, as well as author and screenwriter William Goldm
59

How to Get the Part...Without Falling Apart!: Featuring the Haber Phrase Technique for Actors

Margie Haber

4.1
Haber encourages and leads the reader through the audition process with helpful, humorous examples. Includes script excerpts, celebrity pictures and personal testimonies from today's hottest stars.
Backwards and Forwards: A Technical Manual for Reading Plays book cover60

Backwards and Forwards: A Technical Manual for Reading Plays

David Ball

4.1
This guide to playreading for students and practitioners of both theater and literature complements, rather then contradicts or repeats, traditional methods of literary analysis of scripts.

Ball developed his method during his work as Literary Director at the Guthrie Theater, building his guide on the crafts playwrights of every period and style use to make their plays stageworthy. The text is full
61

In-Depth Acting

Dee Cannon

4.1
Leading acting coach Dee Cannon offers a methodical and systematic approach to tackling the Stanislavski technique. This essential handbook guides the reader through the various stages of auditioning, advises actors on how to approach a part once they've landed it, and steers them toward making strong, imaginative choices.
62

Death of a Salesman

Arthur Miller

4.1
In the spring of 1948 Arthur Miller retreated to a log cabin in Connecticut with the first two lines of a new play already fixed in his mind. He emerged six weeks later with the final script of Death of a Salesman - a painful examination of American life and consumerism. Opening on Broadway the following year, Miller's extraordinary masterpiece changed the course of modern theatre. In creating Wil
Daniel Pink portraitTim Lott portrait Recommended by Daniel Pink, Tim Lott, and 1 others.
63

The Actor Speaks: Voice and the Performer

Patsy Rodenburg, Judi Dench

4.1
In The Actor Speaks, Patsy Rodenburg takes actors and actresses, both professional and beginners, through a complete voice workshop. She touches on every aspect of performance work that involves the voice and sorts through the kinds of vexing problems every performer faces onstage: breath and relaxation; vocal range and power; communication with other actors; singing and acting simultaneously; wor
Yes Please book cover64

Yes Please

Amy Poehler

4.1
In Amy Poehler’s highly anticipated first book, Yes Please, she offers up a big juicy stew of personal stories, funny bits on sex and love and friendship and parenthood and real life advice (some useful, some not so much), like when to be funny and when to be serious. Powered by Amy’s charming and hilarious, biting yet wise voice, Yes Please is a book full of words to live by.
A Streetcar Named Desire book cover65

A Streetcar Named Desire

Tennessee Williams

4.1
The Pulitzer Prize and Drama Critics Circle Award winning play—reissued with an introduction by Arthur Miller (Death of a Salesman and The Crucible), and Williams’ essay “The World I Live In.”

It is a very short list of 20th-century American plays that continue to have the same power and impact as when they first appeared—57 years after its Broadway premiere, Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named D
66

Speaking Shakespeare

Patsy Rodenburg

4.1
In Speaking Shakespeare, Patsy Rodenburg tackles one of the most difficult acting jobs: speaking Shakespeare's words both as they were meant to be spoken and in an understandable and dramatic way. Rodenburg calls this "a simple manual to start the journey into the heart of Shakespeare," and that is what she gives us. With the same insight she displayed in The Actor Speaks, Rodenburg tackles the pl
67

Auditioning: An Actor-Friendly Guide

Joanna Merlin, Harold Prince

4.1
Theater veteran and acting teacher Joanna Merlin has written the definitive guide to auditioning for stage and screen, bringing to it a valuable dual perspective. She has spent her career on both sides of the auditioning process, both as an award-winning casting director who has worked with Harold Prince, Bernard Bertolucci, and James Ivory, and as an accomplished actor herself.

In this highly inf
68

An Actor's Companion: Tools for the Working Actor

Seth Barrish, Anne Hathaway

4.1
"I was totally unprepared for the transformation that Seth's technique created in me. . . . I realized that what I thought I knew about acting up to that point was largely misguided . . . but I now had a great, talented, dedicated teacher who generously wanted to share his tools with everyone. There is muscularity, not to mention wisdom and truth to Seth's techniques. He is a wonderful teacher, an
Mike Birbiglia portrait Recommended by Mike Birbiglia.
69

The Right to Speak: Working with the Voice

Patsy Rodenburg

4.1
In The Right to Speak, renowned voice teacher Patsy Rodenburg teaches you how to meet any speaking challenge with total self-assurance. Rodenburg has trained thousands of actors, singers, media personalities, lawyers, politicians, business people, teachers and students in the art of using their voice fully and expressively without fear. She has taught them how to breathe, how to support their bre
King Lear book cover70

King Lear

William Shakespeare

4.1
In King Lear, one of Shakespeare's greatest and most enduring plays, an aging father's demand that his daughters publicly declare their love for him triggers a reaction that involves nations and brings suffering and death to his entire family. The play takes ordinary jealousies, demands for love, sibling rivalries, desires for money and power, and petty cruelties to the extreme. In this play, we s
Steve Jobs portraitKathleen Taylor portrait Recommended by Steve Jobs and Kathleen Taylor.
Steve Jobs portrait
Steve Jobs

Founder/Apple

Jobs told Walter Isaacson, the author of his biography, that he “loved King Lear”, which isn’t surprising. [source]

Kathleen Taylor portrait
Kathleen Taylor

Lear is about all sorts of things but one of the things it’s about is people getting old and not ceding what their kids think they should to them and the kids trying to bully them. [source]

71

You're Never Weird on the Internet (Almost)

Felicia Day, Joss Whedon

4.1
From online entertainment mogul, actress, and “queen of the geeks” Felicia Day, a funny, quirky, and inspiring memoir about her unusual upbringing, her rise to Internet-stardom, and embracing her individuality to find success in Hollywood.

The Internet isn’t all cat videos. There’s also Felicia Day—violinist, filmmaker, Internet entrepreneur, compulsive gamer, hoagie specialist, and former lonely h
Simon Cocking portrait Recommended by Simon Cocking.
72

Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? (And Other Concerns)

Mindy Kaling

4.1
Mindy Kaling has lived many lives: the obedient child of immigrant professionals, a timid chubster afraid of her own bike, a Ben Affleck–impersonating Off-Broadway performer and playwright, and, finally, a comedy writer and actress prone to starting fights with her friends and coworkers with the sentence “Can I just say one last thing about this, and then I swear I’ll shut up about it?”

Perhaps yo
Angela Kinsey portraitYashar Ali portrait Recommended by Angela Kinsey and Yashar Ali.
Angela Kinsey portrait
Angela Kinsey

.@mindykaling I am rereading your book and cracking up. I appreciate your chapter on The Office so much more now. But all of it is fantastic. Thanks for starting my day with laughter. You know I loves ya. ❤️ https://t.co/EB99xnyt0p [source]

Yashar Ali portrait
Yashar Ali

Reminds me of one of my favorite lines from @mindykaling's book (even though I'm an early riser): “There is no sunrise so beautiful that it is worth waking me up to see it.” https://t.co/pS56bmyYjS [source]

73

Acting Without Agony: An Alternative to the Method

Don Richardson

4.1
This practical, step-by-step guide is organized into 18 lessons for achieving outstanding performance in acting and directing. This text offers an alternative to the Stanislavsky "method" and teaches another way of arriving at emotions, which is described in detail throughout the text. MARKETS: Undergraduate and graduate courses in acting and directing.
Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between) book cover74

Talking as Fast as I Can: From Gilmore Girls to Gilmore Girls (and Everything in Between)

Lauren Graham and Random House Audi

4.1
In this collection of personal essays, the beloved star of Gilmore Girls and Parenthood reveals stories about life, love, and working as a woman in Hollywood—along with behind-the-scenes dispatches from the set of the new Gilmore Girls, where she plays the fast-talking Lorelai Gilmore once again.

In Talking as Fast as I Can, Lauren Graham hits pause for a moment and looks back on her life, sharing
75

The Complete Stanislavsky Toolkit

Bella Merlin

4.1
This is a hands-on, step-by-step guide to Stanislavsky's famous 'System' illustrating, with exercises, each of his famous acting techniques.
76

The Hollywood Survival Guide For Actors

Kym Jackson, Hannah Cowley, et al.

4.1
This text shares all of the current information an actor needs to have a successful career in film and television today.

Proofed and edited by over forty top Hollywood professionals, the book covers basics like headshots and resumes, but flows quickly into hundreds of more intricate and rarely revealed topics like audition protocols, how films are financed, how TV shows are created, how and where t
77

The Actor and the Text

Cicely Berry

4.1
These words of Cicely Berry, the voice director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, speak to anyone who needs to speak his or her piece - in any arena, at sales meetings or religious revivals. Berry's book will insure that the speaker and the text gets heard - accurately and with true emotional range. Never again will one be accused of simply "reading a prepared statement." Berry's exercises to deve
Waiting for Godot book cover78

Waiting for Godot

Samuel Becket

4.0
The story revolves around two seemingly homeless men simply waiting for someone—or something—named Godot. Vladimir and Estragon wait near a tree, inhabiting a drama spun of their own consciousness. The result is a comical wordplay of poetry, dreamscapes, and nonsense, which has been interpreted as mankind’s inexhaustible search for meaning. Beckett’s language pioneered an expressionistic minimalis
Elon Musk portrait Recommended by Elon Musk.
79

Someday, Someday, Maybe

Lauren Graham

4.0
A charming and laugh-out-loud novel by Lauren Graham, beloved star of Parenthood and Gilmore Girls, about an aspiring actress trying to make it in mid-nineties New York City.

Franny Banks is a struggling actress in New York City, with just six months left of the three-year deadline she gave herself to succeed. But so far, all she has to show for her efforts is a single line in an ad for ugly Christ
80

Acting as a Business: Strategies for Success

Brian ONeil

4.0
With "Acting as a Business," Brian O'Neil changed the way actors viewed their field and their careers by providing them with clear-cut guidelines on how to approach acting as a business. Any number of books preached persistence, but O'Neil was the first writer who actually told actors how to be persistent. The book is such a vital resource that it won a spot on "Entertainment Weekly"'s exclusive l
81

An Acrobat of the Heart: A Physical Approach to Acting Inspired by the Work of Jerzy Grotowski

Stephen Wangh

4.0
A Vintage Original

"The actor will do, in public, what is considered impossible." When the renowned Polish director Jerzy Grotowski began his 1967 American workshop with these words, his students were stunned. But within four weeks they themselves had experienced the "impossible."

In An Acrobat of the Heart, teacher-director-playwright Stephen Wangh reveals how Jerzy Grotowski's physical exercises c
82

Theater Games for the Lone Actor

Viola Spolin, Paul Sills

4.0
This handbook presents theatre games and side coaching for the solo player. It contains over 40 exercises which allow actors to side coach themselves, at home, in rehearsal, or in performance. The author asks the actor to develop the ability to enter present time, a moment of full consciousness and awareness with all the responses awake and alert, ready to guide you.... allowing you, the real you,
83

And Then, You Act: Making Art in an Unpredictable World

Anne Bogart

4.0
From well-known auteur of the American theatre scene, Anne Bogart, And Then, You Act is a fascinating and accessible book about directing theatre, acting and the collaborative creative process.



Writing clearly and passionately, Bogart speaks to a wide audience, from undergraduates to practitioners, and makes an invaluable contribution to the field tackling themes such as:



intentionality inspiration
84

Skip Beat!, Vol. 01

Yoshiki Nakamura

4.0
Kyoko always thought that Sho, whose family took her in when she was small, was her prince charming. However, when Sho heads for Tokyo to make it big as a musician, Kyoko goes with him and has to quit high school to support his dream. But soon, being in the big city makes Kyoko realize that she has show business ambitions of her own!
Macbeth book cover85

Macbeth

William Shakespeare, Dr. Barbara A. Mowat, Paul Werstine Ph.D.

4.0
One night on the heath, the brave and respected general Macbeth encounters three witches who foretell that he will become king of Scotland. At first sceptical, he’s urged on by the ruthless, single-minded ambitions of Lady Macbeth, who suffers none of her husband’s doubt. But seeing the prophecy through to the bloody end leads them both spiralling into paranoia, tyranny, madness, and murder.

This s
86

If Chins Could Kill: Confessions of a B Movie Actor

Bruce Campbell

4.0
Okay, so at least you're interested enough to pick up this book and look inside. I think you and I are going to get along just fine.

Life is full of choices. Right now, yours is whether or not to buy the autobiography of a mid-grade, kind of hammy actor.

Am I supposed to know this guy? you think to yourself.

No, and that's exactly the point. Bookstores are chock full of household name actors and thei
87

Improvise.: Scene from the Inside Out

Mick Napier

4.0
For more than 20 years of directing, teaching, and participating in improvisation, Mick Napier has watched thousands of scenes. His experience as founder of the acclaimed Annoyance Theatre/Annoyance Productions, as well as Resident Director and Artistic Consultant for The Second City, has led him to continually question why and how scenes work or don't work and what one must do in order for a scen
88

The Lee Strasberg Notes

Lola Cohen

4.0
The Lee Strasberg Notes reproduces the original teachings of a unique voice in actor training, for the very first time. It is a stunning document in the history and ongoing practice of Strasberg's Method.



Compiled and edited by Lola Cohen, the book is based on unpublished transcripts of Strasberg's own classes on acting, directing and Shakespeare. It recreates his theoretical approach, as well as t
89

How To Audition On Camera: A Hollywood Insider's Guide for Actors

Sharon Bialy and Bryan Cranston

4.0
In How to Audition On Camera, Casting Director Sharon Bialy answers the twenty-five questions actors ask most frequently about how to nail an audition. What is the casting director looking for? If you mess up, can you start over? What is the most common mistake experienced actors make? Should you audition off book or can you look at the page? Should you dress in character? How much can you improvi
90

Audition for Your Career, Not the Job

Tim Phillips

4.0
91

Acting -- Make It Your Business: How to Avoid Mistakes and Achieve Success As a Working Actor

Paul Russell

4.0
Acting: Make It Your Business, written by an award-winning, veteran casting director, puts the power to land jobs and thrive in any medium - stage, film, TV, or the Internet - directly into the hands of the actor. This blunt, wise, and often hilarious guide overflows with cutting-edge audition, marketing, and networking strategies, combining traditional techniques with those best suited for the di
92

Beautiful Ruins

Jess Walter

4.0
The story begins in 1962. On a rocky patch of the sun-drenched Italian coastline, a young innkeeper, chest-deep in daydreams, looks out over the incandescent waters of the Ligurian Sea and spies an apparition: a tall, thin woman, a vision in white, approaching him on a boat. She is an actress, he soon learns, an American starlet, and she is dying.

And the story begins again today, half a world away
93

Harpo Speaks!

Harpo Marx

4.0

"This is a riotous story which is reasonably mad and as accurate as a Marx brother can make it. Despite only a year and a half of schooling, Harpo, or perhaps his collaborator, is the best writer of the Marx Brother. Highly recommended." -Library Journal

"A funny, affectionate and unpretentious autobiography done with a sharply professional assist from Rowland Barber." -New York Times Book Review

Craig Brown portrait Recommended by Craig Brown.
94

The Stanislavski System: The Professional Training of an Actor; Second Revised Edition (Penguin Handbooks)

Sonia Moore

4.0
95

Fine on Acting: A Vision of the Craft

Howard Fine, Chris Freeman

4.0
Heralded as "Best Acting Teacher in LA" by Back Stage magazine, Hollywood s most sought after acting teacher Howard Fine reveals the winning technique that has garnered his students international acclaim and the industry s highest honors in his astonishing book FINE ON ACTING. During his twenty-five years as a teacher and director, Fine has developed a technique that is both useful and exciting. E
96

Impro for Storytellers (Theatre Arts)

Keith Johnstone

4.0
Impro for Storytellers is the follow-up to Keith Johnstone's classic Impro, one of the best-selling books ever published on improvisation. Impro for Storytellers aims to take jealous and self-obsessed beginners and teach them to play games with good nature and to fail gracefully.
97

Acting Class: Take a Seat

Milton Katselas

4.0
Previously only available to Katselas' students at the prestigious Beverly Hills Playhouse, Acting Class presents the concepts and methods that have helped lead a generation of actors to success on stage, in cinema, and on television. Now for the first time, this all-encompassing book is available to the general public, taking readers and sitting them in the legendary acting class of Milton Katsel
98

Stella Adler on Ibsen, Strindberg, and Chekhov

Stella Adler, Barry Paris

4.0
An original member of the famed Group Theater, Stella Adler was one of the most influential artists to come out of the American theater. As a Stanislavsky disciple and founder of her own highly esteemed acting conservatory, the extravagant actress was also an eminent acting teacher, training her students--among them Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, and Robert DeNiro--in the art of script interpretation.
As You Like It book cover99

As You Like It

William Shakespeare, Paul Werstine Ph.D., et al.

4.0
Readers and audiences have long greeted As You Like It with delight. Its characters are brilliant conversationalists, including the princesses Rosalind and Celia and their Fool, Touchstone. Soon after Rosalind and Orlando meet and fall in love, the princesses and Touchstone go into exile in the Forest of Arden, where they find new conversational partners. Duke Frederick, younger brother to Duke Se
100

On Method Acting: The Classic Actor's Guide to the Stanislavsky Technique as Practiced at the Actors Studio

Edward Dwight Easty

4.0