Really interesting piece from Charles McNulty on Lee Strasberg, the Method, and the growing fortunes of the Strasberg Institute, now run by Lee's non-actor son and non-actor third wife. Give it a read. It even has a quote from Ron Van Lieu, who many consider the greatest acting teacher in America, dissing them. What's that you say? Theatre Journalism that's not just hagiography? Why yes!
One odd thing about the article is that McNulty is only able to find one actor who praises Strasberg and his particular version of the Method, and that's Estelle Parsons. And even she gives the qualification that it was useful to her because she had already developed technical chops in touring and commuity theater. Is this because McNulty couldn't find anyone younger than Parsons who is similarly recognizable and would praise Strasberg? If true, doesn't that in itself say something about the usefulness of the Method as taught by Strasberg's heirs?
(To come clean: I have pretty mixed feelings abou the Method, as I think all people do, the stuff that's outwardly-focused I find very useful and is essentially the backbone of much of American theater. The much of the stuff that's inwardly focused-- particularly the use of personal memories which as far as I can tell is widely considered passe at this point-- may be privately useful to some actors but in my experience drives them into a kind of solipsism that makes them impossible to act with or, at times, direct effectively.)
Comments