LIMELIGHT FILM & THEATRE BOOKSTORE in San Francisco also has a new owner, Joel Enos. For the next few weeks, the store will be re-organizing and restocking and will be open by appointment only. You can contact Joel by phone (415-864-2265) or e-mail (joel@limelightbooks.com).There will be a grand re-opening mid-November.

JEAN SCHIFFMAN, an immensely talented writer and former actress, has written a book that I want to recommend it to you. "The Working Actor's Toolkit" (Heinemann, 2003, $17.95) is chock full of good advice and perspectives for actors. She has interviewed various acting teachers (yup, I'm in there) on topics like, "how to play mentally challenged characters" or "how to play fear" or how to deal with stage violence. She talks about the advantages and disadvantages of acting with children, what is involved in script analysis and on and on and on. Check it out Good stuff.! http://www.jeanschiffman.com/

TERRY LICHTMAN, My former Los Angeles theatrical agent has closed her agency after twenty-seven years and is available for private career consulting. Terry is a top notch pro who knows exactly how the biz works in LA. If you're in LA and looking to get your career on track, a session with Terry could be well worth your time.
Contact her at terrylichtman@aol.com

New Berkeley Weekend Format Certificate Program in Laban/Bartenieff Movement Studies begins January 16, 2004. This graduate level training happens one weekend per month for two years (with vacation in July and August), finishing in December 2005. The Laban/Bartenieff training is good stuff for both Actors and Directors. For more information contact: Peggy Hackney at 707-944-8473 or PJHackney@aol.com

ED'S UPCOMING SCHEDULE
Most of these dates are in connection with my Acting for Animators workshops. If I am in your area, however, and you would like to arrange a private coaching session, I frequently have time to do it. And of course, if I am teaching an Acting for Animators a workshop that is open to the public, you are welcome to join us.

November 19-21 Projector Animation Festival, Dundee Scotland
November 26-29 - Swansea Animation Days, South Wales, UK - http://www.sand2003.org.uk/
Jan 26-30 Animex 2004, Teesside England

HOOKS ACTORS WORKING
CASSIE POWELL (s.stdy '03) appears in "Nirvana" at the Canvas Cafe, corner of 9th and Lincoln in San Francisco, through Nov. 8th. Admission is FREE!
DANA LEWENTHAL (comml '01) directed "Boil the Rice" in The Cafe Project. .
JEAN MAZZEI (s.stdy '98) has released a new CD entitled "Wild Heart Girl". Check it out at:
http://www.cdbaby.com/ .
ERIC SWARTZ (s.stdy '99) has been cast in an indie, "Masque at the Aftermath".
GENE GORE (all classes '99-present) appears in "Rose in Winter" at The Dominican College one-act play festival in San Rafael, CA.
MARK NEELY (comml - '99) landed a starring role in an episode of "America's Most Wanted", airing Nov. 15th on Fox-TV.
DEENA DI MARCO (comml '01) has been cast in an indie film entitled "Developer".

CHICAGO CLASS SCHEDULE

SCENE STUDY -- On-going, Thursday nights, 7-10:30 at The Audition Studio, 20 West Hubbard Street, #2W. Free audit, start any time. $135 per month, sixteen-week commitment. Here's a Yahoo map to the
The Audition Studio

It is easy to reach The Audition Studio on the CTA red line. Exit at Grand Street and State. Walk two blocks south on State to Hubbard. The #36 Broadway bus also stops very near the school.

PRIVATE COACHING
I'm always available for private coaching. My rate is $75 per hour. We can work on cold reading, career strategies or whatever you want. Call 773-929-1667, or send an e-mail to edhooks@edhooks.com.

CRAFT NOTES
"ACTING WITH AUTHORITY"
I was recently reading a 1966 Life Magazine interview with Charlie Chaplin when something he said resonated deeply with me: "What differentiates the professional actor, the good actor, from the amateur is the fact that he knows what he is doing - the mechanics every minute. And does it with authority. If you're an authority, the audience will listen to you; if you are not, they won't." (Interviewed by Richard Meryman)

What exactly does it mean to act with authority? How can this attribute be developed by a new actor? The answer goes once again to the roots of acting - shamanism. If you draw a circle in the dirt, the tribe will gather to hear what you have to say. They do that because they expect you to know more than they do about certain things. It is the same as when you go to church, synagogue or mosque. You expect the priest or whoever to know something about life. You are there for a renewal, a fresh perspective, a point of reflection, and a sense of your own humanity. Religion and the arts are joined at the hip and deal with what it means to survive successfully in the world.

Over the years I have seen many new actors training in a variety of techniques and methods that foster honesty but not authority. They work hard on repetition exercises and relaxation exercises and they tap into deep and personal psychological places. They strive to be intuitive and "in the moment", all of which is a definite part of the actor's art, but it does not speak to the thing that Chaplin was talking about. Acting with authority implies a communication with an audience.

Acting with authority means accepting your mantle as a leader. When you act, you are saying to the audience, "I understand this about how this character is surviving in the world." When the audience cries, laughs and applauds, they are saying, "I see what you mean." This is not to suggest that you make your characters Pollyanna. You may be portraying a character that is making lousy choices in life. Your point would be, "Do this and you will die."

An actor that acts with authority accepts the responsibility of considering the bookends of life. Most humans spend their entire lives trying not to think about their mortality. Actors get paid to think about it.

Acting with authority means that an actor has clarity of purpose. This does not imply that you must toot your horn or strut around like a jerk. And of course acting with authority has nothing at all to do with being a movie star. We are talking about art here, not celebrity.

There is a centered-ness, a peacefulness that comes from accepting ones lot in life. It is not always easy to consider our fragility as humans. It is not always easy to look into the dark heart of a character you may not personally like. But that is what actors do. It can be difficult and it can cause an artist pain, but it also generates great joy and satisfaction.

Let me close these notes with more insight from the master, Charlie Chaplin. His words could have been inspired by today's headlines and go to the heart of the artist's mission: "There is a lot of sorrow to life, there's plenty of trouble in the world and I think to make a picture showing the possibility that there is another aspect to life
is very charming. It's not the question of what life is; it's the question of what the possibilities are." (same interview, 1966)

Return to Top