Phase 1 starts off with the fundamental Meisner exercise called, "The Repetition Exercise." The "Reality of Doing" is the foundation principle in the Meisner approach and this fundamental exercise trains actors in the habit of really listening, getting the attention off themselves, leaving themselves vulnerable, and really responding truthfully to their partners' behavior.
Next we introduce "The Independent Activity" - a physically difficult task that the actors must really try to complete for a meaningful, imaginary reason, within a specific time limit. In the Meisner approach, great emphasis is placed upon strengthening the actors' imagination. The actor is learning a technique that will allow him or her to "live (and do -really do!) truthfully under imaginary circumstances." The actor is not required to become a neurotic, nor is the actor required to dredge up horrible, real events from the past. Whether your character is experiencing the height of joy, or the depths of despair, the bottom line is: acting should be fun! Use of the imagination ensures this. The repetition exercise, coupled with the independent activity and a few other elements, eventually leads to a complex, structured improvisation in which actors work off each other's behavior in a truthful, unanticipated moment-to-moment way. The habits that are being developed through the exercises are applied periodically to actual scene work.
Occasionally, scene work is presented in a theater environment to an invited audience of Studio Members and supportive friends and family. These informal theater presentations, in front of an unfamiliar audience, are designed to accustom the actor to the demands of the real world and make sure the habits and skills being learned in class are actually being applied. Phase 1 ends with the introduction of "emotional preparation" by way of "the alone exercise".