Over 100 years ago Stanislavsky revolutionized the way actors find their character, approach a part, become the person they are playing and find the truth in their role. His system was taken on and evolved by others in later years as far as Lee Strasberg with his method acting in America, and still these ideas are being polished and improved today. All the leading drama schools use these methods in one form or another to teach the art of acting. Therefore it follows that all today’s professional actors have been taught these systems and base their performances on them. What effect has this had on the SSC? Well actually none at all.

You would imagine that if we were a mountain climbing club our ideal would be to stand on the summits having learnt the techniques and got hold of the most modern equipment and knowledge, rather than faff about in the foothills wearing a warm tweed suit, a strong pair of brogues and carrying a stout stick.

Why should our attitude to acting be any different?

It's high time the SSC moved into the 20th century (we can worry about the 21st after).

The committee in their wisdom, and influenced by the experience of David Richardson in Greece, have organized an evening with a drama teacher in February, when issues such as movement and speaking can be studied; and this may lead to further encounters in a similar vein. But it is up to the SSC directors to follow this lead and incorporate what is learnt into their ways of directing.

The millennium came and went and the SSC carried on in the same old way. But now surely it must time to act!! What do you all think?

Let me leave you with this quote from Charles Marowitz:

"What are rehearsals for? If all our rehearsals accomplish is setting lines and moves and fixing the progressive action of the play, all we're doing is building a house out of cardboard. The first strong wind that comes along will blow it over"