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Leave Yourself Alone: Zen and the Art of Acting is an examination of acting that focuses on the spiritual aspects of the actor's journey. Chris Fields combines his extensive experience as director, actor and teacher with insights gained from years of Zen practice, sharing the discoveries he's made about the uncanny and profound similarities between acting and Buddhism. Leave Yourself Alone: Zen and the Art of Acting reveals that what actors are engaged in is beyond the craft, that acting is, in fact, a spiritual pursuit.
Prospective students ask me, "What do you teach? Do you teach 'Method,' 'Studio,' 'Meisner'?" I always respond that I teach acting. I say that in fact there is no one right way to act, that just as musicians or athletes know there isn't only one way to play a note or throw a ball, it's the same for us. I tell them that there is a lot of acting you don't talk about, you actually can't talk about, that the strongest work is personal and private and simple and specific. I say that acting is about connecting, simple human connection and our responsiveness to another based on that contact and our understanding of the material as dictated by the moment. I say your job is to be of service to that moment which is to be of service to the script. I say you come to class to work; that learning is experiential based which is a fancy way of saying that you teach yourself by doing. I say be driven, be hungry, that those who do their work, get work.
IT IS OUR MISSION
In dreams come responsibilities…
-W.B. Yeats
IT IS OUR MISSION
- To provide a setting where actors can learn and grow by practice and application.
- To offer an environment where actors can develop their courage and stamina.
- To maintain a community where actors can relentlessly pursue the acting that is within them.
- To create a place where actors can hopefully learn that which isn't teachable.
In dreams come responsibilities…
-W.B. Yeats