The Penning Method for the Panicked Actor: The Anxious Actor's Guide to Easily Creating Memorable, Confident, and Specific Performances in Last-Minute Auditions

Description

From award-winning actress, audiobook narrator, and performance coach Marni Penning comes a powerful new tool for calming anxiety and nerves for actors and presenters! The Penning Method for the Panicked Actor ™ introduces performers of all disciplines - whether stage, television, film, public speaking, or musical - to 10 simple markings that can help you analyze your script in record time so you can relax and play in your auditions. Once upon a time, as a young actor in New York, Marni walked into an audition and was handed a monologue that she had never seen before. The director told her, "Look that over, and we'll see you in five minutes." The piece was thick with wild imagery and non-sequiturs, and repetition at the beginning of almost every sentence. Marni looked at it and thought, "FIVE MINUTES?!?" But then she pulled out her pencil and got to work. And five minutes later, Marni was able to wow the director with a unique, memorable, confident performance... and she got the job. And in this easy-to-read practical handbook, Marni lays out the techniques she used in that long-ago audition, then honed with her students over several decades as a performance coach, so that you can do it, too! If you freeze with overwhelm in your auditions or public speaking, and are looking for anxiety relief and coping strategies so you can release your fear of panic attacks in the audition room, you need this book! Marni has taught this popular method from New York City to Chicago to Hollywood, and the simple, infinitely repeatable and adaptable techniques in The Penning Method™ have her students singing her praises: “After the workshop, I went home and tried out The Penning Method™ on my auditions the next day. It was the easiest audition I've ever done." Alexander Ragona, NJ - Voice Actor & Narrator “It is amazing; I'm a convert. You have to learn this method. And the only person to learn it from is Marni." William Slammon, NH - Audiobook Narrator “Marni is such a supportive, astute, stellar actress; she has been doing this for decades and really knows how to hone in on what is essential in a piece.” Eve Passeltiner, MT - Audiobook Narrator & Actress "I've been working with Marni for years, and her method is what I use to tackle ANY material! Marni's method and one-on-one coaching has brought me a lot of success in theatre, television, and commercials. Most recently, I booked my first guest star role on a network tv show! I highly recommend Marni and her method to anyone looking for a dependable technique to break down scripts and get to the truth of the text. She is truly the best!" Princess Jacob, NY - TV, Film, & Stage Actress “In my two decades of analyzing scripts, I have never found a more efficient and effective way to mark my script than this one. Using The Penning Method™ , I recently found new choices in a monologue I've been using for over a decade." John Detty, OH - Actor/Director Marni teaches you the proven techniques she's been using with her students for 30+ years now. The Penning Method™ works . Now you have the chance to learn the strategies her students have relied on to book themselves work in theatre, film, and television; to be cast in audiobooks or audition for Broadway; and to get them into college and grad school. This tiny reference guide is a quick and easy read, and one that will change your outlook on last-minute auditions forever. Review: Immediately useful - This book seems written with one goal - to help actors. It isn't for money, it isn't for clout, it is to give actors a lift. I know Marni, so you might think this is bias. It is. However, I know her because I met her when as a grad student I got to understudy two shows she was working on - her 49th and 50th Shakespeare productions. I learned as much from watching her as I did any Shakespeare class I took. So, of course I bought her book the day it came out. This book is affordable - both time and financially. It won't take you that long to read through - though you might find yourself going over it again and again, because you find something new each time you read it. It uses a Shakespeare example throughout from Midsummer, giving clear step by step guidelines to mark up the text, understand it better, and utilize what is there for acting choices. All of this can be applied to contemporary text as well. So many books are about theory. This one is practical. Buy it now and start using it. Maybe you'll get to do your 49th and 50th Shakespeare - or whatever your favorite playwright is - production! Review: Great for novices and professionals. - Very clear, very helpful advice to dig in and dissect text quickly. Effective lessons that can be used on contemporary and classical monologues. Or for anyone who has to get up and give a speech or performance without a lot of rehearsal time.