My copies of these books are dog-eared but well-loved. I have read them over and over again. Much of my own book was inspired by the wisdom held inside these volumes. Read these books.
As wonderful as books are, they can never take the place of instruction. I have been fortunate enough to have had a number of incredible acting teachers; the teachers who influenced me and my process the most are Nikos Psacharopoulos, Michael Kahn, Michael Howard and Caymichael Patten.
Adler, Stella, The Technique of Acting. Bantam, 1990.
Ball, William, A Sense of Direction: Some Observations on the Art of Directing. Drama Publishers, 1984.
Barton, John, Playing Shakespeare, 2nd ed. Methuen Drama, 2009.
Brook, Peter, The Empty Space. Touchstone, 1995.
— The Open Door: Thoughts on Acting and Theatre. Theater Communications Group, 1995.
Caldarone, Maria and Maggie Lloyd-Williams, The Actors’ Thesaurus. Drama Publishers, 2004.
Callow, Simon, Being an Actor, rev. ed. Picador, 2003.
Campbell, Joseph, The Hero with a Thousand Faces, 3rd ed. New World Library, 2008.
— A Joseph Campbell Companion: Reflections on the Art of Living. HarperCollins, 1991.
— Pathways to Bliss: Mythology and Personal Transformation, edited by David Kudler. New World Library, 2004.
Chaikin, Joseph, The Presence of the Actor. Theater Communications Group, 1993.
Chekhov, Michael, On the Technique of Acting, rev. ed, edited by Mel Gordon. HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 1991.
Johnstone, Keith, Impro: Improvisation and the Theatre. Theatre Arts Books, 1987.
Hagen, Uta, with Haskel Frankel, Respect for Acting. Macmillan Publishing Co., Inc., 1975.
— A Challenge for the Actor. Scribner, 1991.
Meisner, Sanford, and Dennis Longwell, Sanford Meisner On Acting. Vintage, 1987.
Sher, Anthony, Year of the King: An Actor’s Diary and Sketchbook. Limelight Editions, 2004.
Spolin, Viola, Improvisation for the Theater, 3rd ed. Northwestern University Press, 1999.
Stanislavski, Constantin, An Actor Prepares, translated by Elizabeth Reynolds Hapgood. Routledge/Theatre Arts Books, 1989.
— Building a Character, translated by Elizabeth Reynolds. Routledge/Theatre Arts Books, 1989.
— Creating a Role, translated by Elizabeth Reynolds Hapgood. Routledge/Theatre Arts Books, 1989.
— My Life in Art, translated by J. J. Robbins. Routledge/Theatre Arts Books, 1996.
Shurtleff, Michael, Audition: Everything an Actor Needs to Know to Get the Part. Walker and Company, 2003.
Williams, Tennessee, A Streecar Named Desire. Signet, 1986.
— A Streetcar Named Desire, directed by Elia Kazan. Warner Brothers, 1951.