John Howard Swain has coached a myriad of clients ranging from first-time performers to Emmy Award-winning actors, Supreme Court Justices, and Fortune 500 executives. In addition to his New York stage credits he has also guest-starred in dozens of television's most iconic shows, including such classics as Hill Street Blues to Law & Order: SVU. As a director he has staged over twenty plays, including such hits as That Championship Season, Veronica's Room, and The Owl and the Pussycat. He has also directed four films: Whose Life, Uncommon, Stand-by,andthe multi-award winning short, A Younger Man. Students from his program continue to work across the globe, and can be seen starring on Broadway, in television, and on film.

Shout Outs

Introduction

Chapter One: Things Every Actor Should Know

Chapter Two: The Basics

Chapter Three: The Bones

Chapter Four: Ten Positive Attributes

Chapter Five: Relationships

Chapter Six: Main Objective

Chapter Seven: Opposites

Chapter Eight: Moment Before

Chapter Nine: Discoveries/Emotions

Chapter Ten: Beats, Tactics and Actions

Chapter Eleven: Humor

Chapter Twelve: Place, Transitions and Sense Memory

Chapter Thirteen: Status, Power and Secrets

Chapter Fourteen: Summary

Chapter Fifteen: The Technique-Condensed

Chapter Sixteen: Self-Taping

And A Few Words About Commercials

Introduction to Commercial Acting

Chapter Seventeen: The Slate

Chapter Eighteen: From Slate to Copy

Chapter Nineteen: Relationships

Chapter Twenty: Line-to-Line Objectives

Chapter Twenty-One: Moment Before and The Tag

Chapter Twenty-Two: Banter

Chapter Twenty-Three: Environment

Chapter Twenty-Four: Embracing the Cliché

Chapter Twenty-Five: Double Copy

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Dreaded Interview

Chapter Twenty-Seven: A Few Last Things

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Your Greatest Asset-You

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Commercial Practice Copy

Appendix

Index