The Lee Strasberg Notes

I'm a seasoned veteran actor. I've been acting for 25 years and after having studied all the other methods for years each one (Meisner (William Esper in NY), Adler (Stella Adler LA), Improvisation (Groundlings and Second City), Straberg (Strasberg Institute LA), Micheal Chehkov) I have very happily renewed my vows to the Strasberg Method.My reasoning is as follows:1. Strasberg Method is all about working from your past. You first experience something, ex. shooting with a gun, and then re-create it through the senses on-stage. Other techniques, such as the Adler technique, will make you go to the imagination and imagine what a gun would feel like and then go on-stage. The fact is, YOUR MEMORY WILL ALWAYS BE STRONGER THAN YOUR IMAGINATION, giving it an additional layer of reality.2. The most amount of Oscar winners in history have been Strasberg trained or believe in Affective Memory. This is a clear fact and should speak for itself.a. Jack Nicholson 3b. Al Pacino 2c. Ellen Burstyn 1d. Anne Bancroft 1e. Daniel Day-Lewis 3f. Tom Hanks 2g. Meryl Streep 3 (She studied at Yale when Bobby Lewis was there and in his book "Advice to the Players" he wrote about Sense Memory and Affective Memory)etc. etc.3. To me personally, there is nothing better than to watch a Strasberg person on Film/TV. This is of course an opinion, however it is clearly true to me. Every time I see someone that I really like, I will go on imdb and/or Wikipedia and find out that they are Strasberg trained.This book was refreshing in many ways. I know Lorrie and Diane Hull from LA and Lorrie's book (Strasberg's Method) is considered by many to be "the bible" on Strasberg. Lorrie is not only a PhD in Education but served as Lee Strasberg's right hand assistant and teacher for 20 years. Her book is invaluable. It is almost a manual stating every step of the Strasberg Method.However, Lola Cohen's book, to me, completes the circle. She closes many of the gaps that are present in Hull's book. For example, there is no real mention (in Hull's book) on how to actually speak your lines. She will give you tips on memorizing, etc. but not on how to deliver your lines.All in all, I highly recommend Lola's book to anyone interested in Strasberg's Method or acting for that matter. And, by the way, I have never met her nor am I affiliated with her in any way (unfortunately for me since I would love to not only meet her but to study with her).Good Luck!

Don’t you just love those books that you buy for a single niche purpose, but instead literally take over your life for a time? This is one of those books. I am a stage actor in Charleston, looking for work and practicing the techniques I already know, when I stumble upon this. Now, hands down, the best book for acting you could ever look for would be Stella Adler: The Art of Acting, but I choose to read books with heathen techniques in them just to see what a good teacher sees as a good actor. Anyways, I picked up this book to better my work ethic and see things a little more clearly as an actor. Lo and behold, I found myself with many sleepless nights WRITING. I hadn’t written anything for leisure since I moved to Charleston, but now, my God, I wake up and wonder what can I do? I read poetry for the first time in my life and try, time and time again to do better work than the work I did before. I recommend this book to any and everyone. It’s a book that working a creative office should own.

Towards the end of the book strasberg wrote some interesting observations about talent and how most actors do not get to mature their talents due to commercial reasons. It’s interesting to note his observations are about many different art forms other than acting - directing - playwriting and film were enriching. Overall I have to agree an artist is cultivated like wine.

I've been reading a lot of the technique books recently and this one obviously gives a lot of insight into the birth of "The Method." I think it accomplishes that to a fair degree. I wish there was more detail concerning the exercises though.

highly recommend for anyone looking to learn more about the method. Well thought out and written. Very clear!

This is an essencial piece of study for actors, directors, acting students and anyone who wants to learn how the acting professional can achieve the inner capabilities to do true art.

It was like he himself was speaking directly to me i cant believe what a great book this was! a must buy

Interesting, just wasn’t for me. I couldn’t even finish the book.