Life and Acting

"Jack Garfein's book is a touching reminder of our early attempts at creating theater without artifice. It is good to know that he is still working hard at it."---Ben Gazzara Having arrived in America as a teenage Holocaust survivor, Jack Garfein would soon rise to the top of his field as a teacher and practitioner. He has worked with a who's who of twentieth-century acting, especially those associated with the Actors Studio, the West Coast branch of which he founded. Life and Acting is the product of more than sixty years in the worlds of theater and film, offering the kind of insight gained only through experience. Garfein distills his knowledge into a holistic learning technique. Beginning mostly with memoir, focusing on his own education in the theater and describing how his exposure to artists working in other media---particularly painters and writers---contributed to his understanding of acting, Garfein goes on to offer thirty-seven detailed lessons teaching acting techniques for the stage and applying his principles to acting in front of a camera. Life and Acting is an invaluable resource that belongs on the bookshelf of every actor and acting teacher.