|
The Actors' Yearbook 2008
Edited by Simon Dunmore and Andrew Piper
Methuen Drama £14 99
414 pages
Dateline: 6th April, 2008
If you are starting out on a career in the theatre, then you do not
need to read the whole of this review. Just go out and buy the latest
edition of the Actors' Yearbook.
Primarily, this is a directory that will give actors all of the information
and contacts that they need to provide themselves with the best chance
of getting work in a business where, if rumour is to be believed, 90%
of all practitioners are unemployed at any point in time.
Every aspect of the business is covered, with contact details of everything
from colleges, agents and casting directors to theatres, broadcast media
producers, photographers and even accountants.
In addition to the listings, the book also has essays that attempt
to give practical tips to maximise not only the chances of getting work
but also earning and keeping money as well as enjoying a fulfilled life
whether working or not.
To be fair, some of these read rather like advertorials but many are
informative, witty or just plain helpful. If nothing else, they might
provide some comfort on a cold winter night when the reader wishes that
he or she was appearing on the stage at the Palladium, not huddled up
in bed trying to save on electricity.
The subjects are certainly widely spread. They include overviews of
practical aspects such as the work of agents, casting directors and
co-ops. In addition, there is help with auditions, starting your own
theatre company and finding cash; as well as advice for those starting
out, resting or interested in learning more about transferring their
skills to radio or TV.
It has to be said that, at the end of reading this book, if you still
do not have work then perhaps the advice of one of the joint editors,
Andrew Piper might be worth considering. You could just give it all
up.
However, people who are hardy enough to survive in the profession and
love it deeply will consider that madness and plough on, well aware
that their starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster is just around the
corner.
Philip Fisher
Articles from 2008
Articles from 2007
Articles from 2006
Articles from 2005
Articles from 2004
Articles from 2003
Articles from 2002
Articles from 2001
Articles from 2000
Articles from 1999
Articles from 1998
Articles from 1997
|
