Eighteenth International Conference on the Arts in Society

Abstract

Departing from a comparative analysis of the Cognitive-behavioural therapy (CBT) model for Social Anxiety Disorder and a set of exercises Konstantin Stanislavski proposes as part of his actor training method in “An Actor Prepares” (1936), this paper researches the potential curative implication that Stanislavski’s theatrical practice might have in relation to social phobia. An interdisciplinary research, analysing how method acting and CBT are similar in the way they operate as mechanisms, often targeting the same problematics, among which are body tension and weak attentional control. By coming from different conceptual frameworks, yet having an anatomy that allows analogical thinking, this comparative analysis gives insights into new ways of thinking of the two practices beyond the boundaries of their canonised tradition, reiterating the social relevancy of theatrical research.