Betsy Polatin Releases THE ACTOR'S SECRET

For the first time, Betsy Polatin is teaching the same lessons she has taught Rashida Jones of Parks and Recreation/The Office and Ginnifer Goodwin of Once Upon A Time/ He's Just Not That Into You, and countless other performers.

In her book, "The Actor's Secret", Betsy reveals her distinctive techniques actors can use to improve performances. Actors often receive unique training to enhance their performance, improve stage presence and restore well-being. The secret to choosing to change poor acting habits is to identify and change the physical patterns that correspond with these habits. With Betsy's four decades of experience in body-mind education and performance training, her book is designed to help with the following for actors:

Using the body effectively:

Actors perform optimally when they use their bodies effectively. How they hold themselves, their posture and efficient distribution of weight and energy tend to make a performance more believable.

Anger -using only what you need:

Actors playing angry in a scene can often go too far and over act. In this case, they become less believable and hinder their performance.

Relaxing neck muscles to decrease blood pressure:

The neck is a passageway between the head and torso, allowing messages to pass from brain to body and vice versa. When there is tightening in the neck, blood pressure increases and can limit the passing of those messages. Actors tend to miss valuable information that the body is sensing which can hinder an emotional performance. Additionally, vocal chords in the neck tighten causing sore throats, loss of voice and in rare cases, lock jaw.

Optimal breathing:

As an actor, or performer, when you hold your breath or take shallow breaths, you limit emotional availability and capacity. If an actor does not appear to have genuine emotions, they tend to be less believable.

BETSY POLATIN is a movement specialist with four decades of experience in body-mind education and performance training. She has worked with many performing artists in theater, film, and music, including such luminaries as Rashida Jones, Ginnifer Goodwin, Andre Gregory, and John Denver. As a highly respected senior Alexander Technique educator, she pioneered a four-year Alexander curriculum for the acting conservatory program at Boston University's College of Fine Arts, where she is a Master Lecturer. A certified Breathing Coordination instructor and a Somatic Experiencing practitioner, she holds a BA in dance and an MFA in theater education. She continues to teach her work extensively, both privately and in master classes in the United States and abroad.