Acting Magic is a professional acting course designed to acquaint students with the beauty and magic of theater—to take them from beginning voice, stage movement, and role-playing exercises to a level of performance excellence and repertory disciplines. The majority of acting books are not written as texts for teachers to use in a classroom setting with children. Acting Magic is a complete teaching text while providing many self-help tips to nurture self-esteem, develop self-confidence, reinforce both oral language and reading skills, and inspire a real enthusiasm for literature—and the students have fun.

Based on Mrs. McClellan’s thirty three years of teaching drama to children and adults, Acting Magic breaks down the “meat” of acting into small, simple, and engaging chunks that capture the interest and imagination of aspiring actors. Every component of the art of acting is laid out clearly and in a fun way so that the teacher can teach this material to all ages. Simplified explanations are provided where necessary so that even the youngest child can digest and successfully apply these “golden keys” to acting on the stage. Through games, stories, and extensive exercises, the student is carefully guided to discover the magic of theater and the acting experience.

In each of the individual unit studies, the fundamental skills build on one another and become increasingly more difficult. In the end all the complex nuances of the art of acting are conveyed in a disarmingly easy manner which never intimidates the student. Acting Magic proves that there is never a reason for a teacher to take a dry and too-serious approach to acting because it is an artistic discipline that is alive with joy.

The arts should be an expression of the noblest and purest of human sentiments, and a tribute to lives beautifully lived and fully given. As Constantin Stanislavski himself stated, art should lend beauty and nobility to life, and “whatever is beautiful and noble has the power to attract.” That is the true magic of theater.

What people are saying about Acting Magic:

"This book is a truly magnificent achievement: it would be difficult to conceive of a more comprehensive, imaginative or rich source for the teacher and student of acting. The growth of theatre schools for young people throughout the world has created a demand for a constant supply of stimulating material and this book supplies a structured and engaging programme of work for all aspiring actors and their teachers. Those of us involved with the development of teacher education in this field at Trinity College, London, warmly commend this brand of magic to teachers everywhere."
—Ken Pickering, Professor of Arts Education at the Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education and former Chief Examiner for Drama and Speech at Trinity College, London.

“Acting Magic is extremely interesting and easy to read. It is clearly fully comprehensive whilst being user friendly and providing fantastic resource material for students everywhere....A must-have ‘bible’ for theater students and teachers alike. This book is different, special and magical.”
—Dramatic Line Publishing, London

“Acting Magic is professional, creative, fun, engaging, yet thorough in its training of the young and older actors alike…one of the most popular classes I ever taught—all because of the wonderful material! It was an honor to teach your curriculum and perform your productions. How the children loved them!”
—Viv Lynn, Community Theater Director

“Your transparency and fresh outlook on theater has deeply enriched my life. Watching you draw children and adults out from ‘hidden places’ in their lives has been a joy to behold. Your acting curriculum is awesome and inspiring. Thank you for touching my childrens’ lives with your ‘magic’.”
—Melanie Owens, Homeschooler and Mother of Four

“Mrs. McClellan: I salute you for the vital work you’re doing with the children’s theater...My gratitude for your kindness and best wishes to you in whatever you do.”
—Charlton Heston

Our book also contains beautiful illustrations that complement the material being presented, an in-depth analysis of the art of characterization as taught by the great classically-trained actors of the past, as well as extensive lesson handouts.

The curriculum describes each lesson in detail and provides teachers "keys" throughout that summarize and track the concept taught in the lesson. They are printed in bold in their own box for easy location.

Each unit study also includes notes that describe what materials you should prepare before class, clear and simple instructions to help you guide the student through the interactive classroom exercises, stories that illustrate key points in the lesson, and special guidelines for various age groups.

The cost of Acting Magic is $18.95. Acting Magic can be ordered directly through Paypal by clicking the Buy Now link below. The shipping cost is set at $7.50 for media shipping to anywhere in the United States. We ship worldwide. For overseas buyers, contact us at familyplayhouse@rcn.com for shipping costs and we will send you a personalized paypal invoice.

Acting Magic is now available as a download for Mac users via the iTunes bookstore. Click here: https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/book/acting-magic/id971583814?mt=11&uo=6

If you have any questions, please email us at familyplayhouse@rcn.com

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