There are some books on acting on my bookshelf that I have marked with a few notes and flags so I can easily find the interesting and important passages. But there are other books that seem to have hundreds of flags, almost one on every page, and lots and lots of marginalia (notes in the margin). Being an Actor by Simon Callow is a book like that and one worth owning.
Being an Actor came out in 1984 not long after Callow originated the role of Mozart in the original production of Amadeus. The book provides great insides into the craft of acting and the business of being an actor. Callow explains “method acting” and talks about his approach to text and character analysis as a student and as a professional. He also provides clear and detailed insights into the life of the actor from unemployment to last night of a long run.
Callow’s writing is entertaining and eloquent while being easy to read. It is a book you will come back to time and time again and one that you will highlight and mark up so you can find and refer to his useful commentaries and explanations. Reviewer Leo Lerman said, “The deep significance of Callow’s book is his intimate writing about self, acting, theater, the fallow times, the horrors and the epiphanies…It belongs right up there with Stanislavsky’s My Life in Art.”
Being an Actor by Simon Callow is a wonderful book and one that you should have on your bookshelf.