The Origins of the Stanislavski System

The origins of the Stanislavski System are in naturalism, positivism, Marxism, photography, Darwin, electricity, and realism. There is no one technique of acting and before Stanislavski there was no system at all. He created a system of training wherein actors would research the situation created by the script, break down the text according to their character's motivations and recall their own experiences, thereby causing actions and reactions according to these motivations. The actor would ideally …

…as an amateur company. In 1897 he met the writer and director, Vladimir Nemirovich-Danchenko, and together in 1898 they formed the Moscow Art Theater, which was regarded as one of the world's outstanding theater companies. In 1938, just before World War II, Stanislavski died holding on to the ideal of a peaceful, socially responsible world. A world completely engulfed in the experiences and interchange of works of art that people of every nation would identify with and cherish.