CROSSROADS Language StudioÊs Newsletter, April 2011

According to Marlon Brando, born on the 3rd Although many of hisApril 1924, ‘Acting is an empty and uselessprofession’. Despite his contempt for the art (aword he would never have used to describe what
he did for a living) he was arguably the mostinfluential film actor ever.
Brando became interested in acting after his
sister joined the Actors’ Studio in New York, aschool that followed the teachings of Stanislavsky,
an early 20th century Russian pioneer ofnaturalistic acting. The Method, as it was called,called on actors to fully inhabit the character they
were portraying, to feel their emotions andunderstand their motivations. After a promising
start in theatre, Brando gravitated to films in theearly 1950s and gave a series of iconic
performances, which were applauded for theirintensity and naturalism. Particularly memorable
is A Streetcar Named Desire (1951). His sexuallycharged portrayal of Stanley Kowalski influenced
a whole generation of male actors and came todefine the inarticulate, unintellectual type of man
so out of place in the modern world. His moving
performance as a washed-up boxer in On The
Waterfront (1954) was another highlight from thisperiod.
Brando quickly became popular, particularly
among the young, and was idolised by many otheryoung actors, notably James Dean. He did notcope with fame well. He grew tired of the public
relations he had to engage in as a star actor andfound filmmaking itself increasingly boring. Not
bothering to learn his lines, he used cue cards
instead (on which the words were written in largeletters) placed in different positions around the set
depending on the direction he needed to look in at
any given moment. He claimed this fostered
spontaneity; others found him simply lazy. He
quickly came to be regarded as ‘difficult’ and hiscareer suffered.

later films are unevenin quality his own
performances
arealways worth watching.
On-Eyed Jacks (1961),
the only film Brando directed (he took over after
the original director pulled out) is an outstanding
psychological Western with strong supporting
performances from Karl Malden, Ben Johnson andhis leading lady, Pina Pellicer. Other highlightsinclude Last Tango in Paris (1973) and Apocalypse
Now (1979).
Marlon Brando won the Best Actor Oscar for The
Godfather in 1972. However, he refused the award,boycotting the Academy Award ceremony. He senta young Native American woman – in full Apache
dress – to state his reasons (his dislike of the way
Native Americans
wereportrayedin
Hollywoodandontelevision). His support for
Native Americans and otherdisadvantaged groups in theUSA were more importantto him than any of the films
he made.

Article by Jonathan

Marlon Brando in“One-Eyed Jacks”

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I enjoyed last month’s performance and party night verymuch. I was especially pleased to see a progress in the level of English in ourplays. The players seemed to have a very good “feel” for their parts, whichsuggests a better understanding of the language (English) they were using.
Congratulations to all concerned. And, again a big thanks to Yumiko for her
songs, and special thanks to Jonathan for playing for us again.

Joshua Says:Junko Says: Spring is here, and our roof-top garden is starting to lookinteresting again with plum, jasmine, wisteria and iris all about tobloom. I would love to see many of you take advantage of this space torelax, have a coffee in the sun, and, of course, brush up on yourEnglish skills! And, keep in mind our 1 + 1 campaign. This is a greattime to enjoy this free space with your friends.

Jonathan Says: I saw a children’s book called Unko recently. A dog does a poo.

The poo tries to make friends. No one is interested; quite rude, in fact.
Leaving a trail of pooey footprints, it leaves for the countryside and iswelcomed by a farmer, who spreads it on his crops. Moral: you will findacceptance somewhere, however unattractive you are. Unintended moral: thestatus of farmers and the countryside in Japan is zero.

Greg Says: The aftermath of the earthquake/tsunami brings with it storiesof heroics and tragedy. The girl whose job it was to announce over the PAsystem throughout the town that there was a tsunami approaching is just oneof many. She remained at her desk warning residents over and over until thetsunami swamped her building and took her life. In her passing, I hope thehundreds who fled to higher ground remember her voice forever.

Alex Says: My first Noh play was at Ninomaru. It was a summernight. There was a princess, aggrieved by lost love and death,interpreted by a masked woman. The interpreter danced anddanced to a heady rhythm until she became the grief. Unlike
western theatre, with its emphasis on the plot, Noh builds pureemotion. Japan’s true treasures are intangible.

In(b)1
performing“The UglyPrincess”

A couple ofsongs by
Yumiko, thenJonathan
played for us
In(a)1 with “Devil or Angel?”Some of theaudience
watching theperformances
NOTE: “Miho and Akane’s Adventures” will continue on P3 next month. Don’t miss it!

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月２回からレッスン回数自由選択
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Relaxing
after theperformances

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