Kurt Daw is a professor of Theater Arts at San Francisco State. He has previously served as arts dean at SFSU and at SUNY-New Paltz. He was the president of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education from 2000-03. He twice participated in National Endowment for the Humanities seminars on Shakespeare and Performance at the Folger Shakespeare Library. He has directed numerous Shakespeare plays, operas and musicals for the stage. Address: San Francisco, California, United States
Finding good material for scene study, monologue work, and auditions is a constant challenge for ... more Finding good material for scene study, monologue work, and auditions is a constant challenge for actors. This volume makes that job a whole lot easier. It is a complete guide to over six hundred playable scenes and monologues from Shakespeare and his contemporaries - the most extensive offering available in one place. This guide is designed to be easy to use. The authors have grouped the plays into traditional categories: comedies, tragedies, histories, and romances. From there, categories are broken down into further groupings (in the case of tragedies, for example: revenge tragedies, major tragedies, tragedies of classical times, and Jacobean tragedies). Short overviews are provided for each grouping; individual introductions are provided for each play. At the end of each section is a list of suggested excerpts suitable for use in auditions, monologue work, and scene study. Both beginning and seasoned actors will find this a valuable resource for making intelligent decisions about the roles they choose
In the first edition of Acting, Kurt Daw paired cognitive research on the dynamic of the actor\u2... more In the first edition of Acting, Kurt Daw paired cognitive research on the dynamic of the actor\u27s mind with a keen appreciation of the craft and history of acting, expanding the creative thought processes of actors everywhere. Now with new sections on using emotion in performance, auditioning successfully, and selecting and performing monologues and scenes, this revised edition has been brought up to the minute to help actors at all levels create powerful characters. Acting offers clear, precise instruction to the veteran actor and debunks the mysticism surrounding performance for the novice. Its series of seven lessons will tap your gray matter as well as your emotional core, utilizing your innate creative abilities to tackle the craft\u27s toughest issues. With Acting\u27s help, you will increase your confidence and conquer stage fright free your creativity with proven techniques for seeing and sensing anew cultivate powerful stage relationships with acting partners spark spontaneity inside a scripted performance illuminate the mental processes underlying Method Acting, Meisner Technique and other popular American approaches to acting
Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight ... more Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight into the text that they are not likely to obtain otherwise. But it comes with its own unique challenges. This clear and helpful guide was written to assist students in the process, offering: the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance essential background material on Shakespeare acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.
Official Program of the Shakespeare Association of American 47th Annual Meeting in Washington DC,... more Official Program of the Shakespeare Association of American 47th Annual Meeting in Washington DC, 2019
Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight ... more Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight into the text that they are not likely to obtain otherwise. But it comes with its own unique challenges. This clear and helpful guide was written to assist students in the process, offering:
the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion
suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance
essential background material on Shakespeare
acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.
DEAR SAA COMMUNITY: "The Muse of scholarly meetings first generated the idea in the spring of 197... more DEAR SAA COMMUNITY: "The Muse of scholarly meetings first generated the idea in the spring of 1972," writes J. Leeds Barroll in his memoir of the SAA's foundation and early years, describing how a small group of scholars met to create a new Shakespeare-oriented organization. The SAA's first conference the following year featured talks organized around "controversies":
Reclaiming Shakespeare in the Acting Classroom, 2019
Association for Theater in Higher Education 2019 Annual Meeting (Orlando) Abbreviated Program. Co... more Association for Theater in Higher Education 2019 Annual Meeting (Orlando) Abbreviated Program. Contains front matter, August 9 sessions, and full speaker list
The official program of the Shakespeare Association of America 2020 annual meeting, which was can... more The official program of the Shakespeare Association of America 2020 annual meeting, which was canceled due to Covid-19, but which still held many seminars via teleconferencing.
Finding good material for scene study, monologue work, and auditions is a constant challenge for ... more Finding good material for scene study, monologue work, and auditions is a constant challenge for actors. This volume makes that job a whole lot easier. It is a complete guide to over six hundred playable scenes and monologues from Shakespeare and his contemporaries - the most extensive offering available in one place. This guide is designed to be easy to use. The authors have grouped the plays into traditional categories: comedies, tragedies, histories, and romances. From there, categories are broken down into further groupings (in the case of tragedies, for example: revenge tragedies, major tragedies, tragedies of classical times, and Jacobean tragedies). Short overviews are provided for each grouping; individual introductions are provided for each play. At the end of each section is a list of suggested excerpts suitable for use in auditions, monologue work, and scene study. Both beginning and seasoned actors will find this a valuable resource for making intelligent decisions about the roles they choose
In the first edition of Acting, Kurt Daw paired cognitive research on the dynamic of the actor\u2... more In the first edition of Acting, Kurt Daw paired cognitive research on the dynamic of the actor\u27s mind with a keen appreciation of the craft and history of acting, expanding the creative thought processes of actors everywhere. Now with new sections on using emotion in performance, auditioning successfully, and selecting and performing monologues and scenes, this revised edition has been brought up to the minute to help actors at all levels create powerful characters. Acting offers clear, precise instruction to the veteran actor and debunks the mysticism surrounding performance for the novice. Its series of seven lessons will tap your gray matter as well as your emotional core, utilizing your innate creative abilities to tackle the craft\u27s toughest issues. With Acting\u27s help, you will increase your confidence and conquer stage fright free your creativity with proven techniques for seeing and sensing anew cultivate powerful stage relationships with acting partners spark spontaneity inside a scripted performance illuminate the mental processes underlying Method Acting, Meisner Technique and other popular American approaches to acting
Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight ... more Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight into the text that they are not likely to obtain otherwise. But it comes with its own unique challenges. This clear and helpful guide was written to assist students in the process, offering: the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance essential background material on Shakespeare acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.
Official Program of the Shakespeare Association of American 47th Annual Meeting in Washington DC,... more Official Program of the Shakespeare Association of American 47th Annual Meeting in Washington DC, 2019
Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight ... more Acting in a play written by Shakespeare or his contemporaries can offer students special insight into the text that they are not likely to obtain otherwise. But it comes with its own unique challenges. This clear and helpful guide was written to assist students in the process, offering:
the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion
suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance
essential background material on Shakespeare
acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.
DEAR SAA COMMUNITY: "The Muse of scholarly meetings first generated the idea in the spring of 197... more DEAR SAA COMMUNITY: "The Muse of scholarly meetings first generated the idea in the spring of 1972," writes J. Leeds Barroll in his memoir of the SAA's foundation and early years, describing how a small group of scholars met to create a new Shakespeare-oriented organization. The SAA's first conference the following year featured talks organized around "controversies":
Reclaiming Shakespeare in the Acting Classroom, 2019
Association for Theater in Higher Education 2019 Annual Meeting (Orlando) Abbreviated Program. Co... more Association for Theater in Higher Education 2019 Annual Meeting (Orlando) Abbreviated Program. Contains front matter, August 9 sessions, and full speaker list
The official program of the Shakespeare Association of America 2020 annual meeting, which was can... more The official program of the Shakespeare Association of America 2020 annual meeting, which was canceled due to Covid-19, but which still held many seminars via teleconferencing.
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Papers by Kurt Daw
the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion
suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance
essential background material on Shakespeare
acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.
Conference Presentations by Kurt Daw
the fundamentals of preparing poetic texts, including a comprehensive yet easy-to-understand guide to scansion
suggestions for choosing the best, most helpful editions for study and performance
essential background material on Shakespeare
acting exercises on everything from learning to speak the verse of a sonnet to performing leading roles.