Acting Professionally is a necessity to anyone who wants to be in theatre and anyone who wants, or needs, to understand what a commitment the industry takes (i.e. parents, significant others). It is hard to get a realistic and objective opinion of life as an actor- you tend to hear sugar coated stories from those with stars in their eyes or cynical tales from those who haven’t risen to the challenge- but Cohen does it wonderfully. His goal isn’t to shock, but prepare. While it is not a tell all- end all, or a “how-to-guide,” it is a fundamental start. Cohen expertly intertwines what you don’t want to admit to yourself (the statistics), what you need to know to be prepared(“What You Need”), and how to be prepared. In that manner, a book that could be intimidating becomes inspiring in the best way possible- not with false praise or promises of glory, but by presenting you with practical ways to obtain tools to overcome the challenge of a lifetime.

The book opens with some brutal statistics about the industry. For the unprepared person, learning that “the number of self supporting career actors- those who can be said to make their living as actors for at least ten years in a row- is no more than 2,00 or 3,00 people,” can be quite lurid (Cohen 3). While I couldn’t have repeated the statistics verbatim, I have been told numerous times about the minimal amount of those who “make it.” My performing arts high school was no semblance to the “real industry,” but it did provide me with an early glimpse of the politics and competition, and I was told of the fact that “at any given time, fewer than 10% to 15% of the country’s professional actors are in fact employed” (3). Despite the fact that I heard them before, Cohen’s words did not fall on deaf ears nor did they roll of my back without giving me chills first, but I have been told these figures before and

Some topics in this essay:
Robert Cohen, Acting Professionally, York City, , ANNIE GUN, business business, cohen wonderful, cause reevaluate decision, attend school, acting professionally, professional world, told marriage, people people, reevaluate decision, cause reevaluate,