Nikolai Demidov

Nikolai Demidov (1884-1953) began his career as a practising psychiatrist and athletic trainer, before becoming assistant to Konstantin Stanislavski at the Moscow Art Theatre. He went on to be co-founder of the Moscow Art Theatre School, and one of the original teachers of Stanislavski's system. Following his mentor's death, Demidov's radical, innovative approaches saw him ostracised from Moscow and his role in Russian actor training largely wiped from the history books. The efforts of his celebrated pupils - including Maria Knebel, Boris Livanov and Margarita Laskina - have seen his work gradually return to recognition following the demise of the Soviet Union. Andrei Malaev-Babel is an actor, director and scholar, a graduate of the Vakhtangov Theatre Institute in Moscow. He serves as an Associate Professor of Theatre at the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training, and on the board of the Michael Chekhov Association. He is the editor of The Vakhtangov Sourcebook and author of Yevgeny Vakhtangov: A critical portrait.

NIKOLAI DEMIDOV – A CREATIVE BIOGRAPHY (From the Editors)

BOOK ONE: THE ART OF THE ACTOR - ITS PRESENT AND FUTURE

Introduction

1. Reasons For The Fall Of The Art Of The Actor

2. Truth

3. Truth, As It Is Normally Understood (Pseudoexperiencing)

4. The Intangibility Of Truth

5. On Artistry And The Artist

6. The Artist - His Chief Qualities

7. The Path Of The Artist

8. The Path To Becoming An Artist

BOOK TWO: ACTOR TYPES

Actor Types

The Imitator

The Emotional Actor

The Affective Actor

Rationality And The Stage

Emotional Attributes: Their "Structure" And Development. Perception and Reaction.

Emotionality And Its Various Forms

Rationality (Reasoning) - A Lack Of Emotional Development

Process And Result

How Depictors Are Made (A Necessary Elaboration)

Those Who Depict And Those Who Live

Distinct Qualities Of The Four Actor Types

The Imitator

The Emotional Actor

The Affective Actor

The Rationalist

"Ailments" And Weaknesses (Shortcomings) Of The Four Actor Types

The Imitator

The Emotional Actor

The Affective Actor

The Rationalist

Complex Types

The "Types" In Directing

"Types" Of Theatres

Rationality And Imperativity In The Actor’s Technique

Will And Imperativity

BOOK THREE: THE ART OF LIVING ONSTAGE

Preliminary Notes (From The Author)

Part One: The Significance Of The Actor’s Creative Experiencing.

Paths Leading Toward It

1. Initial Steps Toward Mastering The Art Of The Actor’s Experiencing

2. New Paths

3. On Freedom And Involuntariness In The Process Of Creative Experiencing

Part Two: The Path Of Spontaneous Reaction

1. Mistakes Of The Past And Glimpses Of The New

2. Freedom And Involuntariness

3. Actor’s Fantasy

4. Student’s First Steps "Onstage"

5. Some Thoughts On The Pedagogy

6. Weakness Of The Actors’ Creative Ties

7. On The Beginning

8. On The Theatrical And Non-Theatrical

9. On The Text

10. Incoherence

11. What Do We Gain From These Etudes?

Part Three: Some Basic Principles And Techniques

1. The Threshold Of Creative Experiencing

2. Solidifying An Actor In The Creative State ("Support")

3. The Role Of Automatic Movements In The Cultivating Freedom And Spontaneity

4. Don’t Interfere With Living

5. Carelessness

6. Take Your Time!

7. Play-Acting

8. Perception

9. Free Reaction ("Green-Lighting")

10. Braking

11. Stepping On It

12. Physiology

13. Assignment

Part Four: Guiding Freedom And Involuntariness

1. Circumstances

2. Forgetting

3. Concreteness As A Path To Authentic Perception

4. The Ambiguities Of The Given Circumstances As A Motivating, Driving Force In The Actor’s Art

5. The Character

6. Types Of Characters

7. The Appearance, Strengthening And Development Of A Character

Part Five: Conclusion

1. Practical Advice For Teachers

2. On The Way Forward

Additional Materials

Various Notes

Fantasy And Imagination

Additions To The Chapter On Circumstances

Crude Reactions

On Work At Home

On Evaluated Showings and Other Topics

The Necessity Of An "Etude Technique" For The Actor’s Stage Work

Can You And Should You Combine The "Stanislavsky System" With My Principles And Methods?

The Ideal

BOOK FOUR: THE ARTIST’S CREATIVE PROCESS ONSTAGE

Introduction

1. On The Difference Of Acting Techniques

2. Calling And Abilities

3. The Actor And Life

4. The Actor And The Author

5. The Actor And The Director

6. The Actor And Form

7. A Few Critical Thoughts On Some Methods And Terms Of Ruling Theatre Schools

8. The Embryo

9. Synthesis And Grasp

10. Character. Transformation

11. Transformation

12. On Several Principles Of The Psycho-Technique

13. On The Few Principles Of Theatre Pedagogy

14. On Preparing Yourself For Rehearsals And Performance

15. Repetition

Addendum

Energy

The Future Book On The Actor’s "Ailments" And Errors – Those Provoked By The Audience, Bad Schooling, Or Poor Examples (Outline)

BOOK FIVE: PSYCHO-TECHNIQUE OF THE AFFECTIVE ACTOR

1. Creativity

2. Emotionally-Synthesizing Thinking

3. Primitive Sensations And Biologism

4. Doubled Consciousness

5. Unity

6. The Subconscious Nature Of Creativity

7. Automatisms

8. Will

9. "Activity" Or "Passivity"?

10. Culture Of "Calm"

11. The Threshold And After-The-Threshold

12. On Breathing

13. The Actor And The Audience

14. Advice For Future Researchers Of The Actor’s Creative Technique

Conclusion