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Stanislavski and "The Method"
" creating a favorable condition for the appearance of inspiration."
Stanislavski created a Method or a scientific approach to acting. He formalized the Method at the Moscow Art Theater as a way of having everyone on the same page, style or technique.
The American directors, actors and teachers learned Stanislavski’s Method in the 1930’s. They brought back to America “The Method.” Stanislavski continued to grow and develop his technique toward a much more physical theater. The American schools steadfastly continued to teach “The Method” from the 1930’s.
We, at pierStudios incorporate Grotowski, Lecoq, Clown and other mask work as a more encompassing approach to acting.
Jacques Lecoq introduced the Neutral Man. In studying Lecoq one is studying the basis of movement. “Everything Moves”. In our study at pierStudios we incorporate; mime, clown, neutral, emotional, commedia and character masks to better understand our own physicality, to overcome our limitations and to embody the character and situation.
The work is physical, enlightening and personal. It moves an actor quickly through the early stages of recognizing what movements are personal and which belong to the character. It helps an actor find the elementary, physical expression; uninhibited by the personal prejudice of the actor.
As the actors move through the work they begin to recognize that they themselves become more elementary, focused and energized. The truth of the work removes the debilitating, diffusive or excessive use of energy. The actor’s breathing and perception become more precise as the body becomes more elementary.
commedia del arte
Commedia del arte, which comes from the 1500 in Italy is a wonderful technique employed by the actors at pierStudios.
Commedia characters are decidedly stereotypic. They are dealing with the Seven Deadly Sins and reality of life in 1500’s. However do not be mislead. The characters are still seen today in every sitcom, MTV, Spamalot show that is being written.
Our actors in the photo are doing an improvisation using commedia masks in a modern high school setting. The masks are adaptable, from a period perspective, but maintain their strong stereotypic personalities. It is very important for actors to be able to recognize these characters quickly as they are basic to a lot of scripts today.
Jerzy Grotowski 
Much as we study Lecoq to find the “essence” of our character through movement we use techniques of Grotowski. Certainly more concerned than Lecoq with the basics of sounds Grotowski’s techniques help us to release the “real” sound of the character in the situation.
Grotowski was interested in archetypes; movements, sounds and situations basic to the human condition and broadly understandable across human cultures. He used them as powerful tools for his actors to communicate with the audience at a very basic level.
Grotowski's reference to 'Holy Theatre' generally applies to the dedication of the actor, in giving himself as a gift, an almost saintly holiness which carries over to a performance which is transcendent in a much more subtle, human sized way.
Clown 
This is classic Clown; not Circus Clown. We teach clown, actually quite early in our actors training. Clown is considered the “smallest mask”. Clown is learning what inspires laughter. Learning about clown is discovering oneself. It is about being honest, real and very human. From a technical perspective it is about audience and eye contact and stage presence and having complicité with ones fellow actors while working on stage. We at pierStudios consider clown a very serious part of our training.
Voice
Voice, to us at pierStudios when we speak of voice we mean not just the “spoken word” or the “heightened speech” of the classic or the natural voice for film and television; we also include vocal training (singing) and auditions for singers.
We have classically trained teachers teaching voice placement as well as Cabaret teachers directing and putting up evenings of Cabaret with our students. We have Musical Theater Directors and a Jazz Class as well.
The Character Masks:
pierStudios and biz kids ny inc. have had the privilege to work in Dottie Sheppard’s original masks. Having been trained by Lecoq I continue to work with all my students in mask. Working in the original art masks is a different and very exciting opportunity. Larry Sacharow, chair of the Fordham University Theater Program came to watch a class and said, “I had never thought of using mask that way before!”
Each mask (shamanistically) with its own energy and power leads you (mask is the gateway to the spirit world) to a layer of the character’s energy.
Our actors learn a monologue or study a character and then following the animal work they choose a few lines of the monologue and do it in one mask and then the same lines in a different mask. The results are amazing!
The mask (when properly worked) leads you to discover the truth of the character. These may well represent the contra-mask of the character but of course, in investigating these truths and the passion of the character one learns how strong our “mask” must be to cover, conceal or hide the real layers discovered in working the mask.
Once one has worked two masks then you work without the mask combining what you have learned from each mask.
This is truly an exceptional opportunity to work with such ART. Because these masks are original there is no way one can USE information that is preconceived as in working with the Commedia masks.
Our actors (ages 8-68) learn quickly and viscerally from the masks. It is an experience that one carries forever into their work it is that impacting.
