Meisner technique

The Meisner technique is a method of acting.

During the 1930s, while helping to found the Group Theater, Sanford Meisner was also developing his actor training methods. At the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theater in New York City, he refined and taught his namesake technique for more than 50 years, until he retired in 1990. Elements of his teachings appear in programs and studios throughout the United States, but complete and formal Meisner Training -- a graduated series of increasingly complex exercises -- typically requires two years of weekly meetings and a commitment to outside rehearsal.

Meisner defined acting as "living truthfully under imaginary circumstances." His training is built on the theories of Konstantin Stanislavski (grandfather of the elusive American "method"), but it also branches away from the Russian's system to prioritize a more organic, "moment-to-moment" spontaneity. This was, in part, Meisner's effort to shape a methodology more appropriate for the modern American actor.

Two main ideas ground the training. First, an actor learns to "take his attention off of himself." As he focuses instead on his partner ("listening and responding") and/or an activity ("nail down the concentration"), the actor is beginning to learn how to pay attention to "the moment," then the next and the next. By keeping his focus off of himself, he liberates his authentic impulses and life within. Second, he learns to emphasize action (the "doing" and a pursuit of "objectives"), rather than conjuring emotion or fabricating "character." By adding the first ("listen and respond") to the second ("play the action"), Meisner technique simultaneously pulls the actor's attention outward into the moment, while also filling him with concentrated, active purpose. The more these two forces can compel the actor, the more he's able to "leave himself alone" and live authentically under imaginary circumstances.

One of the earliest lessons, "listen and respond," is expressed by the basic phrase "pinch and ouch." To live truthfully means to be sensitive to another's (a "partner's") behavior. If an actor can "make her partner more important than herself," she becomes a responsive instrument, adjusting her behavior (her "ouch") to what she's "getting" from her partner ("the pinch"). The best known and most fundamental exercise in Meisner is the Repetition Exercise." Designed to encourage actors to read each others' incoming "impulses" and respond with authenticity, the exercise puts two actors face to face and asks them to repeat their observations back and forth ("you're smiling," "I'm smiling," "You're smiling" "Yes, I'm smiling"). By relieving actors of meaningful text, Repetition elevates the "subtext," and "the moment" over literal or conventional meanings of words. Actors learn to let their own behavior arise directly and immediately from that subtext, from the "pinch" of their partner. If pedestrian meanings of a phrase, or an actor's self-awareness pulls his attention from his partner, his behavior detaches -- becomes independent of what's happening -- and he will likely "miss the moment."

Even when graduating to actual text, actors continue to build upon these basic principles. The primacy of the moment over any "sense of the line" is maintained. For a Meisner actor, memorizing lines along with vocal inflections or gestures makes no sense. That merely increases the chance she'll miss the moment in service of rehearsed habits. Meisner actors learn their lines dry, "by rote," with no attached inflection. They know that the line's "quality" will ultimately arise from the moment. This clean, reactive spontaneity makes Meisner actors excellent improvisers and enables fresh, if slightly varied, performances. The "moment" is never quite the same, so the delivery from the actor is varied as well -- though obviously within limits.

The second, and equally powerful aspect of the training is "actions," or "the Doing." Coupled with listening and responding, actions are the purpose of behavior, or "objective." Whether in an "activity" (clean the floor), or dialogue (scold your son), or silence (intimidate her), the actor's "action" is vital to his being animated within a moment. Meisner actors are introduced to this "doing" by simple activities (find the keys). In Meisner Technique, the verbs rule.

Later in the training this simple action develops into more sophisticated, layered actions (trap her into confessing). In fact, one of the great strengths of Meisner Training is this cohesive, layered structure of the exercises. As another example, in early training "the moment" may be simply "subtext" coming from the partner in a Repetition exercise. But if the actor has therein learned to "pick up" an impulse by "listening and responding," she will apply that same skill in more advanced exercises containing given circumstances, a relationship, an action and obstacles. From beginning to end, from Repetition to scene work to playing a role on Broadway, the principles of "listen and respond," "stay in the moment," and "play the action," remain central to the actor's work.

This improvisatory thrust of the technique should not, however, be misconstrued as permission to "wing it" or to be unprepared. The training includes extensive work with "crafting" or "preparing" a role. As a student matures in training, he gets to know himself and will exploit this self-knowledge by choosing actions compelling to his particular instrument. Thus "bringing himself to life," through informed choices. Actors also prepare these emotional frameworks by "personalizing," "paraphrasing" and "daydreaming" around their material in highly specific ways that they've learned are provocative especially to them. If preparation is accomplished with required specificity and depth, one's attention may finally move away from it and onto what's happening "NOW." Good preparation is there, supporting the spontaneity. This faith in the sticking power of preparation is articulated by Martha Graham when she says, "I work eight hours a day, every day, so that in the evenings I can improvise." Supported by disciplined preparation, her instrument is liberated and ready to respond (live truthfully) to what's happening right now. This idea is at the heart of Meisner training.

Characteristics of Meisner-trained actors include a sparkling spontaneity, a readiness to adjust to a changing "now," truthful and sincere dedication to the "reality" of a moment and to a partner's input. Other benefits of training are improved improvisational skills and the efficient reading of others' behavior. One weakness (or inadequacy) in the training is the omission of a methodology for truly building a "character." Focusing as it does on the actor's modern, personal responses to a given circumstance, the technique is best rounded out with a character-based practice like Michael Chekhov, for example, and added work on style, language and period.

Probably the best Meisner teacher in New York City (and arguably the country) is Maggie Flanigan, followed closely by members of the William Esper studio and the instructors at The Neighborhood Playhouse (both in NYC).