txt Truth and Belief: An Actor’s Textbook

Truth and Belief: An Actor’s Textbook is more than a book about acting, it is a practical guide to discovering what makes a performance truthful, believable, and compelling.

Drawing on more than three decades of experience as a professional actor, director, and university acting professor, Bobby Funk brings together the lessons, techniques, exercises, and insights he has developed throughout his career. His goal is simple: to help actors build the skills and confidence they need to succeed, while encouraging each performer to discover an approach to acting that truly works for them.

From the classroom to the audition room, from the stage to the camera, Truth and Belief explores the many dimensions of an actor’s craft.

Inside, actors will discover practical guidance on:

• The business of acting and what it takes to pursue professional opportunities

• Audition preparation, including monologues, musical auditions, television, and film

• Headshots, resumes, reels, and professional presentation

• Stage presence, vocal quality, movement, and physical preparation

• Intimacy, trust, ensemble building, and actor exercises

• Dramatic structure and script analysis

• The history and development of actor training

• The System and practical techniques for developing believable performances

• Working effectively with scenes and monologues

• Objectives, tactics, obstacles, character choices, and given circumstances

• Exercises designed to strengthen concentration, imagination, movement, voice, and performance skills

At the heart of Funk’s approach is the search for truth. Rather than simply telling actors how they should perform, this book encourages them to understand their characters, make strong choices, pursue meaningful objectives, and remain focused on the work rather than on how they appear to others. As Funk explains, actors must learn to play actions rather than simply play moods and through that process, discover greater truth in their performances.

Whether you are a beginning actor preparing for your first audition, a college theatre student developing your craft, an experienced performer looking to refine your process, or a teacher searching for practical exercises and classroom material, Truth and Belief: An Actor’s Textbook offers lessons you can take directly into rehearsal, audition, classroom, and performance.

Your goal is not to become someone else’s actor. It is to discover the actor you can become.