Alona Lakhmaniuk

Course: Acting Fundamentals, THTR 200
Professor: Jane Frazier
Assignment Title: Mastering Acting Techniques: Voice, Body, and Physical Connection

Assignment Details

For my Honors Project, I explored how different techniques can shape an actor’s voice, movement, and emotional expression in performance. I focused on the teachings of Konstantin Stanislavsky, Michael Chekhov, Kristin Linklater, and Frederick Matthias Alexander—each of whom influenced the way actors train and perform in unique ways.

Stanislavsky and Chekhov developed acting methods that help performers create real, emotionally deep characters. Linklater focused on freeing the actor’s natural voice, while Alexander’s technique helped improve posture, movement, and body awareness.

To bring these ideas to life, I created an interactive workshop where students could experience these techniques firsthand. We explored breath and voice exercises from Linklater, movement and posture awareness from Alexander, emotional and psychological tools from Stanislavsky, and imagination-based exercises from Chekhov. At the end, I performed a monologue using all these methods in action.

This project was not just about learning—I wanted to share these discoveries with others, helping students find what works best for them as performers.

Application

This project connected deeply with my passion for acting. Understanding different acting techniques allows performers to become more flexible, confident, and expressive on stage and beyond.

Beyond acting, this project also helped me develop teaching, leadership, and communication skills, which will benefit me in any future creative or professional setting.

Results/Conclusions

This project showed me that acting is much more than just talent—it’s about understanding the tools that bring a performance to life. Each technique I studied provides a different way to connect with a character, control movement, and use the voice effectively.

One of the most interesting things I discovered is that many actors naturally develop their own unique style through trial and error, often without even realizing they are using the same methods that masters like Stanislavsky, Chekhov, or Linklater taught. I believe that studying different styles and techniques helps actors understand themselves better and find what works best for them. Moreover, once an actor masters several techniques, they can mix them, experiment, and create something truly unique. Acting is an ever-evolving art form, and to succeed, actors must always be learning, growing, and refining their craft.

While preparing for my workshop, I realized another important lesson: if you teach something, you learn it even better. Researching, structuring my presentation, and guiding students through exercises gave me a new perspective on many techniques I had previously only practiced. Seeing how others engaged with these methods also helped me refine my own understanding.

Additionally, teaching these techniques to others strengthened my own grasp of them. The interactive nature of my workshop allowed students to experience and compare different methods firsthand, making the learning process more dynamic and memorable. It also made me realize that combining techniques—not relying on just one—can make performances more versatile, engaging, and truthful.

One of the biggest discoveries for me was Michael Chekhov’s approach to facial expressions and their impact on performance. Unlike Stanislavsky, who encouraged actors to immerse themselves in the character’s internal world, Chekhov believed that external physical expression—especially facial movements—can shape and influence inner emotions. I found it fascinating that uncontrolled facial expressions can sometimes reveal an actor’s inexperience—a strong actor must be aware of what their face is communicating at all times. This made me much more conscious of how important it is to train and control facial expressions as a tool, just like voice and movement.

Overall, this project was more than just research—it was a hands-on exploration that changed the way I view acting. It reinforced the idea that every role, every scene, and every performance is unique, and knowing multiple techniques gives actors the tools to adapt and bring authenticity to any character. More than anything, this experience showed me that acting is not about memorizing lines—it’s about what happens between the lines. It’s about presence, energy, and connection—both with scene partners and with the audience.

Challenges and Successes

The part I am most proud of is my final monologue performance—but it wasn’t just any monologue. Originally, I planned to perform in English, but just a few days before the workshop, I decided to experiment. I chose a monologue in Ukrainian, knowing that none of the students in the audience spoke the language. My challenge was: Could I communicate the meaning of the scene without them understanding the words?

I was both nervous and excited to see their reactions. After the performance, I asked the audience what they thought the monologue was about—and to my surprise, they understood. This experiment taught me that acting is not just about the words an actor says, but about what happens between the lines—it’s body language, facial expressions, energy, and the invisible connection between the performer and the audience.

This moment reinforced everything I had learned during my project and showed me the true power of acting as a universal language.