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University of Oklahoma Graduate College The UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE THE ACTING SYSTEM OF KONSTANTIN STANISLAVSKI AS APPLIED TO PIANO PERFORMANCE A DOCUMENT SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF MUSICAL ARTS By ANDREA V. JOHNSON Norman, Oklahoma 2019 THE ACTING SYSTEM OF KONSTANTIN STANISLAVSKI AS APPLIED TO PIANO PERFORMANCE A DOCUMENT APPROVED FOR THE SCHOOL OF MUSIC BY THE COMMITTEE CONSISTING OF Dr. Barbara Fast, Chair Dr. Jane Magrath, Co-Chair Dr. Eugene Enrico Dr. Igor Lipinski Dr. Rockey Robbins Dr. Click here to enter text. © Copyright by ANDREA V. JOHNSON 2019 All Rights Reserved. AKNOWLEDGMENTS The completion of this document and degree would have been impossible without the guidance and support of my community. Foremost, I wish to express my gratitude to my academic committee including current and past members: Dr. Jane Magrath, Dr. Barbara Fast, Dr. Eugene Enrico, Dr. Igor Lipinski, Dr. Caleb Fulton, and Dr. Rockey Robbins. Dr. Magrath, thank you for your impeccable advice, vision, planning, and unwavering dedication to my development as a pianist and teacher. You left no stone unturned to ensure that I had the support necessary for success at OU and I remain forever grateful to you for your efforts, your kindness, and your commitment to excellence. My heartfelt thanks to Dr. Fast for serving as chair of this committee, for your support throughout the degree program, and for many conversations with valuable recommendations for my professional development. Dr. Enrico, thank you for your willingness to serve on my committee and for your suggestions for the improvement of this document. Thank you, Dr. Lipinski, for your enthusiastic interest in this topic and your encouragement along the way. Dr. Fulton, thank you for offering your unique perspective to this project. To Dr. Robbins, thank you for your excitement about this paper and for being willing to serve as the outside member for my defense. I wish to express my deep appreciation to my editor, Mark Worcester. Thank you for seeing the value and significance of this topic, for encouraging me when I had doubts, and for helping me to refine my voice and professional writing skills. Your coaching and collaboration were treasured assets to me in the creation of this document. iv Thank you to the friends and colleagues that became our second family in the four years that my daughter and I lived in Norman. We will always cherish the time we spent with you all and look forward to the continuation of professional and personal relationships that reach across the country. I wish to thank my parents, Marietta and Michael for their support of my goals and for believing in me without fail. To my mom, thank you for observing my desire to perform at a young age and making endless sacrifices to ensure that I received piano lessons; a skill which has fostered constant personal development, and allowed me to share my passion and creativity onstage. To my five siblings Benjamin, Tanner, Travis, Esther, and Tahlia: you all inspire me to work hard, take risks, and never give up. And finally, to my daughter Vivienne. Children do not get to choose the path that their parent decides to walk, nevertheless they must journey together. I am eternally grateful to you for your spirit, your willingness to try new things, and your positive attitude at every turn. I am so proud of the person you are becoming, sweetheart. I consider myself the luckiest woman alive because I am your mom. v TABLE OF CONTENTS AKNOWLEDGMENTS .............................................................................................. iv TABLE OF ACTIVITIES .......................................................................................... viii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................ ix CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................. 1 Overview .............................................................................................................. 1 Performance Challenges Considered in this Study ........................................... 4 Connections Between Acting and Piano Performance.................................... 15 Purpose of the Study ............................................................................................ 21 Need for the Study ............................................................................................... 22 Limitations of the Study ....................................................................................... 23 Organization of the Study .................................................................................... 24 CHAPTER 2: REVIEW OF LITERATURE ............................................................... 26 Key Writings by Stanislavski ............................................................................... 28 Identifying Publication Issues and Challenges ............................................... 29 My Life in Art ............................................................................................... 36 An Actor’s Work .......................................................................................... 37 An Actor’s Work on a Role ........................................................................... 40 Stanislavski on Opera .................................................................................... 41 Writings about Stanislavski and His System ......................................................... 42 Biographies ................................................................................................... 42 The System in Acting Textbooks, Manuals, and Guides ................................ 43 The System in Theater Arts Dissertations and Theses .................................... 47 Evolution of the Stanislavski System............................................................. 50 Exploring Musicality and Physicality in the System ...................................... 51 Key Writings on Music Performance Skills and Interpretation ............................. 55 Historical Connections Between Stanislavski and the Art of Piano Performance ........................................................................................... 56 Music Performance Skills and Interpretation ................................................. 58 Psychological Performance Strategies for Musicians ..................................... 60 Movement Strategies for Musicians .............................................................. 63 Improvisation to Address Performance Anxiety ............................................ 67 Stage Presence for Musicians ........................................................................ 70 Acting Techniques in Piano Performance and Pedagogy ............................... 71 Application of the System to Music Performance ................................................. 72 Application of the System in Fields Outside Music .............................................. 74 vi CHAPTER 3: STANISLAVSKI, A LIFE DEVOTED TO ARTISTIC DEVELOPMENT AND HIS SYSTEM ............................................................... 77 Overview ............................................................................................................ 77 Early Life and Training ........................................................................................ 81 Middle Period and the Moscow Art Theatre (MXAT) .......................................... 91 Final Years and Publications .............................................................................. 101 What is the System? ........................................................................................... 114 Analyzing the Details of the Play and the Character .................................... 117 Understanding the Inner Life of the Character ............................................. 118 Creating Emotion Memory .......................................................................... 119 Discovering the Score of Action .................................................................. 121 Sharing the Character on Stage.................................................................... 122 Conclusion ......................................................................................................... 124 CHAPTER 4: APPLICATIONS OF THE SYSTEM FOR PIANO PERFORMANCE .............................................................................................. 126 Performance Anxiety ......................................................................................... 128 Physical Tension in Performance ....................................................................... 139 Interpretation Challenges ................................................................................... 148 Stage Presence—The Visual Rhetoric of Performance ....................................... 157 CHAPTER 5: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY ............................................................................................................. 168 Performance Anxiety ......................................................................................... 174 Physical Tension in Performance ....................................................................... 176 Interpretation Challenges ................................................................................... 177 Stage Presence—The Visual
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