True and False: Heresy and Common Sense for the Actor (Paperback)

I first became acquainted with David Mamet when I worked on the Los Angeles production of American Buffalo in 1978. I must admit I didn't like the play very much but, hey, a gig is a gig.

A couple of years later I saw the PBS production of The Water Engine and I was engaged by the performance of William H. Macy - and I liked the premise of the piece. But I still thought the play was lacking.

Then I saw A Life In The Theatre and I became a fan. To me, it was the first play about acting that really got to the heart of the actor's life and problems. It was obviously written by someone who had a great love of acting and actors. It was a revelation.

I have watched Mamet's writing and directing career ever since. His book, Writing in Restaurants was one of my own touchstones as I pursued my own love of writing. It has become obvious over the intervening years that David Mamet is a force to be reckoned with in the American theatre. In the fullness of time I have no doubt that his influence will be considered crucial to the development of modern acting and story-telling.

When he made the move into motion pictures, first as a writer and then as writer/director, he delivered some of the most startling and amazing stories and performances of the late twentieth century - right up through today. Not that every time at bat was a home run - but every effort was unique and entrancing. Anyone who wants a glance "behind the scenes" of a movie production is advised to see State and Main which I believe is the truest and funniest portrayal of what goes on in the making of a movie.

His latest book, True and False, is the finest book I've read about acting since I first started reading Stanislavsky's trilogy (a must for every actor). Mamet cuts right to the chase in this amazing book. It is not a tome, but rather a short, blunt treatise on the craft of acting that I cannot recommend too highly.

Before you run out and get a copy though, I have a caveat: This book is not for the beginning actor. Until you have spent some time on the boards, plying your craft, much of what Mamet says might be confusing and perhaps even misleading. The reason is simple - this book was written for the employed actor who is looking for a useable method to build and sustain a performance in a professional setting.

That is not to say that every actor will not gain insight and inspiration from his words, it's just that those at the start of their career will not have the experience to draw from that Mamet's credo demands.

Spencer Tracy, arguably one of the finest film actors ever, is famously quoted as saying, about acting, "Just say the gags and don't bump into the furniture." This is a bon mot that has been repeated around green rooms and holding areas since Pluto was a pup, but few actors understand the import of it. Mamet sets out to explain exactly what Tracy was talking about (although he never mentions this quote) in a well thought out, brilliantly written argument.

Laurence Olivier once said it took him twenty years to learn how to be simple. Again, this is an important bit of information for the actor who strives for believability and "realness." And again, Mamet's book goes a long way toward educating us about the exact meaning of Olivier's comment.

This is a book that can be read in one sitting but it might take quite awhile for the information to "settle in." I found myself going back and re-reading, underlining and even writing down the many gems Mamet presents. His take on how to deal with producers, casting directors, other actors and critics is worth the price of the book alone.

Not only does he cover the basics of believable acting, the correct position of the actor in the story telling process and several methods of working - he also underscores the importance of the actor's psychology to the entire process of doing well in the acting profession. I found myself nodding in agreement on practically every page. If you can absorb and put to use the skills Mamet espouses, it is inconceivable that you will not become a more employable actor.

We see many actors at the top levels of the business today who can be classified as being of the "Chicago school." Most of these stars and well known character actors are utilizing the methods that Mamet explains. In fact, I don't think it is too much to say that modern acting owes much to David Mamet and those who follow his dictums.

If you have been acting for awhile and you are ready to take the next step in developing your craft, you will be doing yourself a favor by getting, reading and using David Mamet's True and False.

It's a modern classic.

I will give Mamet credit for a few things, though. His writing is concise and to the point, and touches on a few of the basic principals of acting. He also points out some of the mistakes that some actors make. The one thing that this book does a very good job with is reminding us of the basic job of the actor, which actors tend to get away from sometimes, such as the fact that the audience is paying good money to see us perform and our first obligation is to them. He makes a few other interesting points (e.g., we learn to act on stage, not in the classroom).

Do not read this book instead of other acting books, but rather in addition to it. The book is pretty short and the writing concise - you should be able to get through it fairly quickly. This might be good to read along with Stanislavski or books on the Method, but do not read it as a the first or only acting book you read, or read it instead of others. I'm not sure that it is necessarily worth buying vs., for example, getting it from the public library - it's possibly worth reading once, prefrably after you've already been studying and acting for awhile, but probably not more than that.

Anyone who loves the magic of the theatre knows that a production is composed of two elements: the actor and the play-- not the playwright and his play. It is the actors job to create truth within himself with the part he is given. Plays written by authors like Shaw and Shaffer are crippling to actors, because they write in the lines all that is felt. This is not reality. This is not art. Acting (now, after reading this book, I feel the need to use the words "Method Acting") is the only art that uses real emotions and the human body as it's medium. This book is suggesting that actors need only be an extention of the literature, which my friends, is insane. Stanislavsky knew there was something wrong in the theatre, and composed a path for actors to follow in order to reach that "awareness". Strasburg found it. Chekov found it. Hagen found it. Meisner couldn't think abstractly, so he made revisions, but still believed strongly in the honest actor.

This book is a good example on what NOT TO BELIEVE.

Trying to say that this is a better method of acting is like trying to say that Humphrey Bogart was more believable than Marlon Brando.

If this book is taken seriously by too many, the entire world of our our theatre could be ruined.