Acting

The Ability to Embody

My student Frank in the Tempest

Emil Jennings, Mephisto 1926 Production

At the heart of compelling acting lies the actor's capacity to truly embody a character. While character development, vocal nuance, and expressive gestures are supportive, but secondary.

Moreover my method addresses the actor's dilemma: how to retain the vital “newness” and “freshness” of a performance, even after extensive character work and line memorization, which often result in a mechanical delivery.

Learning to “be in your body” will enable you to unify thought, feeling, and action, and truly inhabit your roles.

My student Victoria as Lady Bracknell

From Ari’s approach, I learned to create a base by connecting to the ground and directing the body and the breath with clear intention. I discovered that the more I could connect using my whole body and my breath, the more authentic each moment, phrase, and character became. Ari guided me as I prepared varied roles including: Oscar Wilde’s Lady Bracknell and Shakespeare’s Rosalind and Lady Macbeth. Last summer, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, I performed the same script and music every night for a month and I found that I had gained a greater ability to infuse my performance with new energy, again and again.

Victoria Mature, Performer / Alexander Teacher

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