The Persuasive Actor

The Persuasive Actor is a must-have for all actors who encounter speeches that are longer than three sentences. On the surface, that would include classic works from Sophocles through Shakespeare, along with the 17th and 18th centuries. However, delve deeper and the book's value to actors of modern and contemporary drama becomes inescapable.

Playwrights like Ibsen, Shaw, Williams, Miller, Shepard, Wilson, Kushner, and Suzan-Lori Parks have all crafted plays filled with powerful rhetorical devices that demand lively, thorough, and specific consideration. This book provides a guide that unveils the mysteries of classical rhetoric in a clear, concise, and effective manner.

Designed as a book for speakers who aspire to move their audiences, The Persuasive Actor is primarily aimed at actors, but it also belongs on the shelf of lawyers, advertising copywriters, and public officials. It is a resource that I will use in my classes and workshops, and I enthusiastically recommend it to all actors and actor trainers.

- Leslie Reidel, Department of Theatre, University of Delaware