Last week, we talked about why reading acting books is an absolutely crucial part of an actor’s personal practice and development. But how do you know where to start? Don’t worry; I’ve created the Ultimate Acting Reading List to help you out.
In this list, I’ve covered acting books, voice books, movement books, and more, all in the vein of helping you improve your acting work.
How Did I Build The Ultimate Acting Reading List
This list is reliable and in league with the current professional training and standards within the industry.
This list is made up of books from three different places. These are:
- The reading list for my own acting degree
- Books recommended to me by professional actors,
- Books that are on the current reading lists for the top drama schools in the UK.
As you can see, these aren’t simply my own opinions. These are books that are widely referred to in the professional industry and actor training.
Where Should I Start?
Yes, I know; there are almost 80 books on the list. As much as we’d like to be able to race through all of them in a year, that’s 1.5 books a week.
That’s not sustainable, stressful, overwhelming, and can lead to burnout.
So, how do we decide where to start and which books to read?
Making A Schedule
Figure out a schedule that works for you. Make this an important part of your personal practice.
For me, I read an hour a day. This is sustainable for me and stops me from getting overwhelmed.
For you, maybe you want to read an hour every day, or two hours on a Saturday, or aim for one book a month.
Figure out a goal that is practical and sustainable for you. Start small if you don’t read much now. Slow and steady truly does win the race here.
Acting Beginners
If you’re an acting beginner, I would start with Acting: The Basics by Bella Merlin and Actor Training by Alison Hodge. These books both give an overview of various acting techniques.
From there, if you feel particularly drawn to one technique, you can go and find a book from this list on it.
Otherwise, start with the books on Stanislavski – the man who essentially invented the acting system. From there, I would head to the books on Sandford Meisner, Lee Strasberg, Stella Adler, and Michael Chekhov before looking at a couple of the voice and movement books.
REMEMBER: The techniques from all of these practitioners are very different and may contradict each other or claim that other techniques are wrong. In fact, I believe all of these techniques are valid; it just depends on which ones work for you. So, give them a go, throw them away if they don’t work, and hang onto them if they do. Don’t allow their contradictions to confuse you; simply see them as different experiences and points of view which may or may not align with yours.
Drama School Applicants
If you’re a drama school applicant, I would begin with Actor Training by Alison Hodge.
Then, I would take a look at the various drama school websites, as well as my post on How To Know Which Drama School Is Right For You. Here, I break down the techniques and attitudes of each school.
Make a list of the practitioners used by your chosen drama schools and find the books by or about them on this list. This will give you a head start on your studies, allow you to work on your audition in a way that makes sense for the schools, as well as see if the techniques used by that school really are right for you?
And if you don’t get it? You can learn what you would have studied there by reading these books and practicing them in your own time!
Personal Goals And Challenges
A great way to approach this list is to think of your current goals and challenges and find the books that relate to those.
Want to get an agent? Check out the books on agents.
Feel stiff and awkward on stage? Check out some of the movement books, such as Lecoq or Laban.
Want to add accents to your CV? Check out the voice section.
Struggling to stay present on stage? Try Meisner.
There is something for everyone here, so make sure you prioritize what you need.
REMEMBER: Don’t dismiss books on this list because you feel they are too basic or you already know the technique.
Despite having studied Stanislavski for 10 years, I recently returned to An Actor’s Work. I found golden nuggets of information that helped me overcome a challenge I’ve been facing in my work.
Never think that information is beneath you or you have nothing left to learn about a certain topic.
Using What You Learn
All of this information is crucial, but it only means anything if you put it to good use. Here are some ways you can do that.
- Highlight passages that stand out to you.
- Make notes and copy down quotes that you think will be helpful in your work. Keep them in a specific notebook for just this purpose.
- Write reflective notes on what you’ve learned at the end of your reading session.
- Make one goal at the end of each reading session that relates to something you’ve learned and are going to focus on incorporating in your work during your next rehearsal or personal practice session.
With this process in mind, you will be able to incorporate your learning into your practical work and make genuine improvements as an actor.
So, without further ado, let’s explore the best books you need to read to further develop your acting practice.
Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.
The List
Acting Technique
Acting: The Basics – Bella Merlin
In this book, Bella Merlin lays out the basics of the main acting techniques. Drawing out the themes that run through all of them, and highlighting the difference, this is a great place to start to create a firm acting foundation.
Great for: Acting beginners. Those who want to explore new or different acting schools of thought.
More expansive than Merlin’s book, this book lays down a wide range of acting practitioners and dives deep into their acting philosophies and their attitudes to training.
Great for: Actors who want to broaden their toolkit, students, drama school applicants
Stanislavski: An Introduction – Jean Benedetti
This concise book is a great way to get acquainted with Stanislavski’s system on which almost every other technique is based upon. An easy read with tons of valuable gems.
Great for: Acting theory beginners, actors who feel overwhelmed and want to get back to basics.
An Actor’s Work – Konstantin Stanislavski
An accessible and contemporary translation of Stanislavski’s first two books – ‘An Actor Prepares’ and ‘Building A Character.’ A clear and accessible way to cover the inner and outer work of acting, and it is presented in an entertaining and inspiring way.
Great for: Beginners. Those ready to take their acting work more seriously. Actors struggling to solidify a clear system of working.
Creating A Role – Konstantin Stanislavski
In this addition, Stanislavski builds off his previous two books and shows practical ways in which acting theory can be applied to rehearsal techniques.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who know lots of theory but are struggling to apply it effectively.
My Life In Art – Konstantin Stanislavski
Stanislavski’s life and experiences in the theatre in his own words. Through this account we can see what gave Stanislavski his insights and inherit wisdom from the godfather of acting.
Great for: Actors who want to dig deeper into Stanislavski’s approach. Theatre lovers. Those who want to feel inspired by one of the greats.
A Dream of Passion – Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg lays out his Method, developed from the work of Stanislavski. He discusses his classes and writes in an inspiring way about commitment to art, discussing the importance of relaxation, concentration, animal work and more.
Great for: Beginners who want to know the truth about Method acting. Actors who need to find a way to get into character more deeply. Actors who want to discover specific exercises they can practice regularly.
Sandford Meisner on Acting – Meisner, Longwell and Pollack
These observations of Meisner’s classes present his technique in straightforward and clear nuggets of wisdom. Moving through 15 months of the repetition exercise, emotional preparation, and more, this sets out a simple philosophy for acting.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who struggle to stay present on stage. Actors who get distracted on stage. Actors who feel wooden. Overthinkers.
Respect For Acting – Uta Hagen
Uta Hagen’s book offers practical exercises to the actor that can help them to identify with a character, act truthfully, and how to keep a role alive over the course of a long run. Actionable tools that can be used in personal practice are the best take away from Hagen’s book.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who struggle to connect personally to their roles. Actors building a regular personal practice.
A Challenge For The Actor – Uta Hagen
Building off her previous book, Uta Hagen offers specific and detailed ways for actors to develop their technique. From vocal technique, time, and rhythm, Hagen offers tools for actors to overcome challenges they may face in their process.
Great for: Actors who are facing specific roadblocks, challenges and problems in their work. Actors who want to take their work to a higher level of specificity.
The Art of Acting – Stella Adler
The Art of Acting follows Stella Adler’s classes in New York. Here, she sets out the importance of imagination for the actor, dedication to the craft and role, and the way actors must find something important and larger than life to say.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who want to further develop and harness the power of their imagination. Actors struggling to find purpose in their work. Actors who want to live their lives in an artistic manner.
To The Actor – Michael Chekhov
Putting forward his developments on the psychophysical approach, in this book teaches the actor how to make the inner and outer life a continuous loop of feedback – letting the body affect the feelings and the feelings be expressed through the body.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who feel stiff and wooden. Actors who have trouble expressing their inner feelings physically. Actors who find it difficult to dredge up emotions up through other methods. Actors who feel stuck and uninspired.
The Path Of The Actor – Michael Chekhov
In this book, Chekhov looks back on his life and the ways it influenced his acting work. It also sets out practical, real-world examples of how the actor might put his ideas into practice.
Great for: Actors who want to dig more deeply into Chekhov’s philosophies. Those who want to see how acting is an important expression of human experience.
The Presence of the Actor – Joseph Chaikin
Chaikin’s work in the 1960s explored how acting and theatre can have an enormous effect on human connection finding meaning in life, spirituality, and society. While not a practical system, this sets forward a meaningful way of approaching the work.
Great for: Actors who want to find deeper meaning and purpose in their work. Actors who want their work to have a higher purpose or wider impact. Actors who want to their their work from good to artistic greatness.
In this book, the revolutionary Shakespearean director puts forward inspiring ideas on crafting performance, the meaning behind it, and why acting and theatre are so important. Referred to as an inspiring, creative, and even life-changing read, this explores the meaning of the theatre.
Great for: Actors who want to find deeper meaning and purpose through their work. Actors who want to be inspired. Actors who feel inadequate or like imposters.
Different Every Night – Mike Alfreds
Mike Alfreds offers a number of practical rehearsal exercises that aim to take the actor’s work from dead, stiff, or boring to alive, fresh and creative. Breathe fresh life into your work with this inspiring text.
Great for: Actors who feel stiff, dried up, or uninspired. Actors who feel like they have hit a brick wall. Theatre actors who have a long run ahead of them.
Truth – Susan Batson and Sarah Fuhrmann
In this book, popular misconceptions about method acting are debunked, and instead, the authors present three simple concepts that will lead you to a way of delivering truthful and meaningful performance.
Great for: Actors who feel overwhelmed. Actors who find themselves pushing for emotion. Actors who need a simplified, streamlined way of working.
The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals – Charles Darwin
Stanislavski taught us that truthful performances and an actor’s personal belief in their role both follow logical and believable behaviors. Learn the science behind why we react to certain emotions in certain ways with Charles Darwin.
Great for: Actors who panic when it comes to playing strong emotions. Actors who want to create more realistic performances.
Black Acting Methods -Sharrell Luckett and Tia M. Shaffer
In Black Acting Methods, Lucket and Shaffer look to Black American theatre to offer an alternative to the white and Euro-centric approaches that dominate the industry. Here, they reclaim, reaffirm and redefine the contributions of Black culture in theatre.
Great for: Black actors wanting an alternative to acting theory with roots in the white experience. Black actors who feel like imposters in the industry. Black actors who want to understand their theatrical artistic heritage. Any actor who wants to understand more about the true diversity of approaches to creating theatre.
In this deep dive into Barba’s techniques, Jane Turner explores his practices relating to his physical theatre techniques, cultural contexts of theatre, and artistic performance.
Great for: Actors who want to further base their acting in their physicality. Actors who want to find deeper meaning in their work.
Vsevolod Meyerhold – Jonathan Pitches
Learn about the life of Meyerhold, the influences on his work, and learn about the practical exercises from his biomechanical approach to acting. This analytical text digs deep into Meyerhold’s work.
Great for: Actors who want practical, physical exercises to add to their personal practice. Actors who want to learn a simple and straightforward system of movement.
Robert Wilson – Maria Shevtsova
Discover the life and work of Robert Wilson, his unique approach to theatre making, and how and why he pushes the boundaries of performance into surrealism.
Great for: Actors who want to push their boundaries. Actors who want to expand their creativity and imagination. Actors who want to create more surprising and unique work.
Why Is That So Funny? – John Wright
Comedy often gives the impression of ease whilst actually being difficult to achieve. This book explores the problems we face when working in comedy and the techniques we can use to be funny!
Great for: Actors who feel drawn to comedy. Actors who struggle with comedy.
The Actor And The Target – Declan Donnellan
In this book, Donnellan cuts out all the flab of acting to get to the core of the craft. A simplified process of making direct and specific work. With chapter titles like “I don’t know what I mean.” or “I don’t know what I’m doing”, this book directly addresses some of the actor’s biggest fears.
Great for: Actors who feel confused. Actors who feel overwhelmed. Actors who feel blocked or stuck. Actors who get in their heads.
In Stop Acting, Guskin supplies exercises that help the actor to simplify their process and be in the moment. This book aspires to help actors react to the text, their impulses, and respond to the present moment they’re in.
Great for: Actors who feel uninspired. Actors who feel like they’re going through the motions. Actors who feel overwhelmed. Actors who feel that their work is stale, boring, or flat.
The Intent To Live – Larry Moss
To take actors from performing to really living on stage, Larry Moss shares techniques to make a personal connection with your script, develop your character, and overcome your inhibitions to create lively, spontaneous, and fresh work.
Great for: Actors who don’t feel fully immersed in their characters. Actors who feel boring or uninspired. Actors who feel like they’re going through the motions.
The Elemental Actor – Mel Churcher
The elements of the natural world have long been a source of inspiration for actors. Here, Mel Churcher lays out how actors can capture them in order to enliven their work and connect with their primal drives.
Great for: Actors who want a more creative and imaginative way to explore their characters. Actors who want to connect with their instincts and subconscious. Actors who want to bring more depth to their performances.
In Impro, we learn how important improvisation can be for the actor’s craft as a whole. In this book, learn techniques to help you lean into your spontaneity and make quick and simple choices while living in the moment.
Great for: Actors who like improv. Actors who are scared of improv. Actors who want their work to be more spontaneous. Actors who overthink and get stuck in their heads.
Theatre: The Rediscovery of Style and Other Writings – Michel Saint-Denis
Turning five of Saint-Denis’ lectures into an inspiring book, learn about topics from improvisation to training schedules to mask work. This inspiring text shows how we can bring ideas from the history of theatre into the present day.
Great for: Actors looking to develop a solid theory to underpin their work. Actors looking for practical ways on how to approach their rehearsal time. Actors looking to be inspired from a new point of view.
Towards a Poor Theatre – Jerzy Grotowski
Laying out his philosophy of acting, Grotowski shares experimental and powerful ideas about the purpose of theatre, how it’s important, and how we can encapsulate this with practical acting work.
Great for: Actors looking to find deeper meaning and purpose in their work. Actors looking to become artists. Actors who feel that they aren’t artistically fulfilled in their work.
Voice
The Art of Voice Acting – James R. Alburger
Rather than voice for acting, this is a book on voice acting as it’s own craft. Filled with practical advice on being an actor, both business and creative, this is an actionable book for any aspiring voice actor.
Great for: Actors who want to work in voice-over, video games, radio plays, or other voice-acting work.
The Sounds of Language – Elizabeth C. Zsiga
This book on linguistics and phonology gives a comprehensive and theoretical underpinning to any actor’s voice work. Complete with external resources such as audio clips, this is a comprehensive book on the world of spoken language.
Great for: Actors who want to do very specific and accurate vocal work. Actors who want to dive deep into vocal theory.
English Accents and Dialects – Hughes, Trudgill and Watt
With over 20 different areas of the UK covered in this accent book, this is a comprehensive guide to vocalising characters from the UK. With exercises, audio files and up to date findings.
Great for: Actors wanting to add more accents to their CV. Actors who want to expand their casting bracket. Actors who want to work in voice acting.
The Voice Book – Michael McCallion
Although we are born with a full and expressive vocal range, this becomes suppressed with social expectations and intellect. This book teaches us practical ways to overcome poor vocal habits and be able to express ourselves fully.
Great for: Actors who want to find vocal freedom. Actors who struggle to project. Actors who struggle to properly express their feelings and meaning with their voice. Actors who feel their vocal expression is blocked.
Voice and the Actor – Cicely Berry
In this book, the world-famous voice teacher shares the basics of how to speak a text with truth and meaning. With practical exercises relating to breath and relaxation, this straightforward text reveals essential voice techniques for actors.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who struggle to connect their voice to their inner intention. Actors who feel their voice is weak.
The Actor and the Text – Cicely Berry
Many actors run into the challenge of combining speaking a text accurately whilst still sounding natural and truthful. Berry here teaches us how to work closely with text in order to guide our vocal interpretation and find truth.
Great for: Actors who struggle with script analysis. Actors who struggle to connect their ideas about the script to their voices.
The Actor Speaks – Patsy Rodenburg
This extremely practical handbook to the voice starts with the basics of vocal training all the way through to using your voice during regular professional performance. Full of exercises you can immediately build into your personal practice.
Great for: Beginners. Actors building up a personal practice. Actors looking to develop and expand their vocal technique. Actors looking for exercises to solve a specific vocal problem.
The Need For Words – Patsy Rodenburg
Back with more practical exercises, Rodenberg examines a range of texts and how to approach them. Exploring why words are so crucial to us and our society, Rodenberg teaches us how to make a personal and meaningful connection to our scripts.
Great for: Actors who struggle to translate text from stage to page. Actors who often look at a text and think, “I would never say that”, or “I don’t know how to say this line”.
The Right to Speak – Patsy Rodenburg
An inspiring and passionate read, in this book, Rodenburg explores why speech is an important part of society, how communication skills are being effected by social media, and why our voice can be our most important asset.
Great for: Actors who hate hearing their voice. Actors who feel embarrassed, ashamed, or scared of speaking or saying what they mean. Actors who aren’t sure what they have to offer in their art, or even in their life.
Speaking Shakespeare – Patsy Rodenburg
Taking the mystery out of Shakespeare, this book provides a practical, human and down-to-earth approach to working with Shakespeare and his texts.
Great for: Actors who are terrified of Shakespeare. Actors who love Shakespeare. Actors who feel like they don’t understand Shakespeare. Actors working on a Shakespeare play or monologue.
Voice and Speech in the Theatre – J. Clifford Turner and Malcolm Morrison
Simple, straightforward, and practical; this book foregoes the modern and innovative for the effective. Taking things back to basics, here we learn practical ways to improve our voice as a tool in our practice.
Great for: Beginners. Actors building a personal practice. Actors wanting to improve their overall vocal technique.
Freeing The Natural Voice – Kristen Linklater
This revolutionary book addresses the connection between the voice and the emotions. Where restriction, tension and trauma diminish vocal freedom, this book teaches us to let go of those restrictions and allow the voice to fully reflect our emotional experience.
Great for: Actors who feel blocked. Actors who struggle to connect their feelings to their voice. Actors who want to build more emotionally powerful performances.
The Vocal Arts Workbook – David Cary and Rebecca Clark Carey
The work laid out in this book addresses the practical demands acting has on the voice. It teaches the actor various exercises to allow them to be in full control of the voice whilst still giving an expressive performance.
Great for: Actors who want to do lots of theatre work. Actors who want to build vocal strength and flexibility.
Finding Your Voice – Barbara Houseman
Suitable for actors at any stage, this book breaks down vocal work into a step-by-step process. For building an entire vocal process or focusing on specific areas of the work, this book presents it simply and clearly.
Great for: Beginners. Actors building a personal practice. Actors wanting to break their approach to voice in acting down into clear and actionable steps.
Movement
Laban’s Efforts in Action – Vanessa Ewan and Kate Sagovsky
This book breaks down Laban’s theory of movement into clear, actionable steps. With these simple exercises, you can make specific and artistic decisions about your physicality and movement.
Great for: Actors who struggle to create a strong physicality. Actors who want to develop the movement section of their personal practice.
The Routledge Companion to Jacques Lecoq – Mark Evans and Rick Kemp
This book is a deep dive into the work of Jacques Lecoq, looking at his approach to play, mask, improvisation and the social contexts that influenced his work.
Great for: Actors who want to understand why play is such an important part of all acting work. Actors who want to create a comprehensive approach to movement work.
The Moving Body – Jacques Lecoq and David Bradby
Discover how to bring life, playfulness, and artistry to your work through the philosophies of Jacques Lecoq. Through the use of masks, clown, improvisation, and gesture you can breath new life and new joy into your work.
Great for: Actors who feel bored or boring. Actors who feel stiff or wooden on stage. Actors who need to breathe new life into their work.
Theatre of Movement and Gesture – Jacques Lecoq
Lecoq’s first book lays out his philosophy in depth, with historical concepts that support the importance of a physical approach to theatre.
Great for: Actors who want to understand why physicality and movement are such an important part of acting. Actors who want a deep dive into Lecoq’s philosophy.
The Viewpoint Book – Anne Bogart and Tina Landau
Combining the concepts of post-modern dance and improvisation, this revolutionary new system allows actors to find spontaneity, creativity, and freedom in their movement.
Great for: Actors who feel their movement is wooden or still. Actors who struggle to find inspiration in their movement. Actors who want to be up to date with the latest movement techniques.
Rhythm in Acting and Performance – Eilon Morris
Rhythm is a fundamental part of life and performance, however often feels mysterious and neglected. This book dives into demystifying this crucial tool for building character and connecting to emotions.
Great for: Actors who find rhythm confusing in acting practice. Actors who want to find more ways to embody emotion and character.
Feldenkrais for Actors – Victoria Worsley
The Feldenkrais Method works with topics such as posture, tension, emotion, creativity, breath and anxiety in order to help actors overcome limitations and habits and achieve physical transformation.
Great for: Actors who feel their physicality is restricted. Actors who find it hard to break their natural habits. Actors who want to bring more creativity to their movement.
At Work With Grotowski on Physical Actions – Thomas Richards
An analytic view of Grotowski’s work from the point of view of his student. Simplifies the process and confronts the problems that students may face along the way.
Great for: Actors who want to understand Grotowski’s work more deeply.
Body Voice Imagination – David Zinder
A practical addition to the Chekhovian way of working, this book lays down a course of exercises that will help the actor dive into Chekhov’s techniques to connect the body, voice, and the imagination.
Great for: Actors who struggle to connect the voice, body and mind. Actors would want to include Chekhov in their personal practice.
The Physical Actor – Annie Loui
This book addresses the difficulties that actors face when it comes to intuitive movement as part of a company. It explores contact improvisation as a concept that can help to address these issues.
Great for: Actors who struggle to physically connect with others on stage. Actors who struggle to find spontaneity in their movement.
The Body Speaks – Lorna Marshall
This book takes the approach that we pick up physical inhibitions and habits from our background and life experience. It teaches us how to remove these and replace them with that of the character.
Great for: Actors who want to get more specific with their movement. Actors who want to build a clear physical characterization that reflects the character’s life. Actors who want to make a bigger physical transformation.
The Actor and His Body – Litz Pisk
Litz Pisk combines awareness, emotion, and imagination to connect the inner impulse to physical movement. Here, she teaches us to imbue every movement with meaning and truth.
Great for: Actors who feel unsure about when or how to move onstage. Actors who don’t feel confident in their movement or physicality. Actors who want to link their inner feelings to their movement.
The Invisible Actor – Yoshi Oida and Larna Marshall
A look into the work of Yoshi Oida and his approach to physical performance. Here, we can learn how to combine creativity and character with precision and control. Learn to make hyper-specific acting choices with this helpful guide.
Great for: Actors who feel their physical performance is vague or flabby. Actors who want to have more control over their physical performance.
The Theatre Practice of Tadashi Suzuki – Paul Allain
A guide to the highly practical Suzuki method. This book presents a series of movements created by Tadashi Suzuki to develop energy, breath, and center of gravity – all crucial elements of actors’ work.
Great for: Actors who want to simplify their physical practice. Actors who want practical exercises to add to their personal practice.
Anarchic Dance – Liz Aggiss and Billy Cowie
Learn how to break the boundaries with your movement. This book looks at the work of Aggiss and Cowie and how they used movement in a creative and boundary-breaking way to communicate political, social and philosophical concepts.
Great for: Actors who feel creatively restricted. Actors who overthink their movement. Actors who want to add more creativity and individuality to their movement.
Dance Imagery for Technique and Performance
An outside-in look at movement, explore how specific movements and images in movement can communicate various ideas and impressions. A guide to perfecting images onstage to impact the audience.
Great for: Actors who want to learn how to use their movement to impact the audience. Actors who want to learn to be specific and detailed in their movement.
Pina Bausch’s Dance Theatre – Gabriele Klein
Pina Bausch worked to convey the human condition purely through the skill of physical movement. Take a look at how we can use movement as a tool in and of itself to create powerful performance.
Great for: Actors who want to make every movement they make on stage meaningful. Actors who want to deepen the artistry of their physical performance.
Unarmed Stage Combat – Philip d’Orleans
A companion to the highly physical craft of stage combat, this book equips you with knowledge and theory to carry out stage combat maneuvers with safety, skill, and precision.
Great for: Actors interested in action films. Actors who wish to train in stage combat. Actors who want to be prepared for approaching stage combat in the future.
Screen Acting
From Stage to Screen – Bill Britten
This book breaks down the differences between stage acting and screen acting. It addresses the actor’s relationship with the camera, techniques actors need to work on film, and how the entire experience is different for the actor.
Great for: Actors who want to make the leap from stage to screen.
A Screen Acting Workshop – Mel Churcher
In formulating a performance for acting for screen, the skills are broken down into five sections including; vitality on camera, preparing the role, physical work when screen acting, working with the camera, and working on a set.
Great for: Actors who want to work on a specific craft for working on screen. Actors who want to specialise in screen work.
Secrets of Screen Acting – Patrick Tucker
In this practical guide, Tucker forgoes acting theory to discuss the practicality of what actually works on screen. Learn simple skills that will help you get the most out of your on-screen performance by working with the camera rather than against it.
Great for: Actors who feel out their depth or unsure when acting for camera. Actors who want to perfect their on-screen technique.
Acting In Film – Michael Caine
Michael Caine presents anecdotes and humourous insights into film acting. Using his wealth of experience, he presents his simple, practical tools to create great film work. A great, fun read that foregoes complexity for effectiveness.
Great for: Beginners. Actors who want an insight into the film industry. Actors who want immediately actionable techniques to make their performance look better.
Acting Industry and Business
Actors’ and Performers’ Yearbook
The simple, useful directory of contacts for actors and performers. From casting directors, to agents, to theatres to drama schools and more, this is the yearly collection of contacts for the industry.
Great for: Actors wanting practical industry contacts. Actors looking to network. Actors needing to find a specific service.
Auditions are an unavoidable part of any actor’s career. Here, a casting director and former actor combine to share advice relating to auditioning, whether it’s for drama school, plays, voiceovers or film.
Great for: Drama school applicants. Actors entering the industry. Actors who find auditions intimidating. Actors who want to book more.
The Actor’s Career Bible – Rob Ostlere
The comprehensive guide to the business side of acting. With useful insights on auditioning, networking, and working within the industry, this is packed with information that will take your career to the next level.
Great for: Actors entering the industry. Actors who want to invigorate their careers. Actors who want to take the next steps in their career.
The Actor’s Business Plan – Jane Drake Brody
Setting out a process for making a five-year plan for both actors’ careers and broader lives, this book provides a genuinely practical plan for taking power back in your career and building a well-rounded and joyful life.
Great for: Actors who feel powerless in their career. Actors struggling to find balance in their lives. Actors who are struggling to figure out how to get to where they want to be in their careers. Actors who want to build well-rounded lives.
Getting, Keeping, and Working With Your Acting Agent – JBR
Getting an agent is an aspiration for many actors. This book demystifies the process of getting an agent and lays down what you need to do to make those connections. Not only that, but it shows you what you can do after signing to have a respectful and effective partnership.
Great for: Actors who are looking for an agent. Actors who don’t know how to get an agent. Actors who have signed with a new agent. Actors who are dissatisfied with their relationship with their agent.
An Agent’s Perspective; A Pocket Guide For Actors – Natalie Payne
Peek behind the office door and discover the agent’s perspective. Natalie Payne shares her personal experiences as an agent to share what agents get up to, what they want, and how you can have the dream relationship with your agent.
Great for: Actors who don’t know what agents do. Actors looking for an agent. Actors who want to leave their agent. Actors who want to improve their actor-agent relationship.
Scripts and creating theatre
Then What Happens? – Mike Alfreds
Then, What Happens looks at storytelling in theatre and how the tradition of storytelling can teach us how to tell stories on stage. With a number of practical exercises, this book can help us to take a broader view of the whole that our part fits into.
Great for: Actors who want to devise or create theatre. Actors who struggle with script work. Actors who want to create deeper meaning in their work.
Gain a deeper understanding of the scripts you work on and the plays you read with this comprehensive guide. Breaking down all elements of plays through history, this will give you the tools you need to analyse and further understand your scripts.
Great for: Actors who struggle with script analysis. Actors who want to write. Actors who want to improve their understanding of theatre.
Making A Performance – Govan, Nicholson, Normington
Making A Performance looks at the history of devised theatre throughout history. With many different approaches, methodologies, and techniques to creating work, this looks at potential influences and diversity within theatre-making.
Great for: Actors who want to create their own work. Actors who want to find their own voice. Actors who feel restricted in the work they do.
This book explores how theatre is an ultimately important part of society when it comes to social action, inclusivity, representation and social development. It reflects on theatre in the community and how it can have a real impact on the world we live in.
Great for: Actors who want their world to have a real-world impact. Actors who feel purposeless and pessimistic. Actors who want to create inclusive and meaningful work. Actors who struggle to find meaning in their work.
Impro for Storytellers – Keith Johnstone
Expanding on his work in ‘Impro’, Johnstone prevents tools for storytellers and creators of all kinds from creating work that is instinctive and meaningful. Take the stress and overthinking out of creation with this inspiring and instructive guide.
Great for: Actors, writers, and performance creators who procrastinate, overthink or try to be perfect. Creators who want to make more exciting work. Actors who want to give performance creating a go.
Collaborative Theatre – David Williams
A deep dive into Le Theatre du Soleil, a company that works with collectivism and collaboration to create meaningful stories and performances. Learn how to work well with others, offer what you have, see the value in what others have to offer, and be part of a team to achieve something bigger than yourself.
Great for: Actors who want to be in communion with their company. Actors who want to work well with others. Theatre creators who want to work in equal and collective teams.
Certain Fragments – Tim Etchells
This book presents and analyses the traditional methods of devised theater with a willingness to critique them. A reflective but ultimately forward-looking text that encourages readers to formulate their own opinions on how theatre should be made.
Great for: Theatremakers who want to see how their work fits in the context of the industry. Theatremakers and actors who want to find their own individual views and perspectives on theatre creation.
The Politics of Performance – Baz Kershaw
Asking and answering questions on theatre’s place in a political and social context, this book looks at the potential of theatre’s relationship to important issues and how we can approach them.
Great for: Actors and theatremakers who want to find greater meaning and purpose to their work. Actors who want to take a critical approach to the work they’re involved with.
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Becoming an Acting Expert
Workers at the top of their game in all industries are experts in their field. By working your way through the books on this list, you can become an expert in your field. Not only will you be able to understand the thoughts and work of experts who came before you, but you will then be able to go further and formulate your own informed opinions and points of view.
Of course, acting is a practical art form, the word itself meaning to do something. This means that reading all these books is pointless without applying their ideas to your work in a practical way.
The great thing about acting is that you don’t need to reinvent the wheel. For the past century, great minds have collected information and methodologies on acting for you to use yourself. Save yourself the trouble of trying to figure out how to act from scratch and allow the actors to instruct you instead.
By reading the books on this list, you can solve the roadblocks you come up against, make great and inspired strides in your work, and learn practical ways to make excellent acting work.
