#148 - Method Acting: The Most Misunderstood System of Acting: A Dialogue with Isaac Butler

Converging Dialogues

In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with Isaac Butler about the history of method acting in the 20th century. They discuss who was Stanislavski and how he started his theater studio and system. They discuss the impact of Tolstoy and Chekhov on Stanislavksi. They explain the expansion of the method globally and how Lee Strasberg and Stella Adler became involved with the method. They talk about the differences between the system and the method and what is composed of the Method. They discuss how Marlon Brando was a genius and legend, origins of the actors legend, and some of the current modern actors that use the actors studio. They talk about current-day method acting and many more topics.

Isaac Butler is a cultural critic, historian, theater director, and podcaster. He is the co-author of The World Only Spins Forward (with Dan Kois) and of his most recent book, The Method: How the Twentieth Century Learned to Act. He is the host of the Slate's podcast, Working. Twitter: @parabasis

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