Acting Class - Nick Drnaso

Acting Class - Nick Drnaso – (248 pages, Engelstalig, hardcover, published by Drawn & Quarterly)

Acting Class

A group of 10 random people take part in an acting course led by the mysterious and somewhat remarkable drama teacher John Smith. What the participants have in common is that they are all social outsiders looking for change. The group consists of a burnt-out couple, a drawing model, a mother with a mentally unstable son, a young woman with no friends, a worried grandmother and her granddaughter, a physical therapist, and an ex-convict.

With growing unease, the class sinks deeper and deeper into the teaching method while the teacher demands ever more dedication. When the line between real life and imagination begins to blur, the group's deepest fears and desires are laid bare…

American comic artist Nick Drnaso is a master at capturing socially awkward situations and exposing our whims, fears, and insecurities. As in his earlier graphic novels ‘Beverly’ (2016) and ‘Sabrina’ (2018), we are introduced to a group of people who, for whatever reason, seem to lack connection with the rest of the world. The (internal) dialogues in ‘Acting Class’ are as relatable as they are unsettling. A simmering sense grows that something is not right, but exactly what that is remains unclear. The graphic novel is therefore an exploration into the deepest recesses of the human mind and the masks we wear to conceal them.

"An incisive exploration of alienation that is increasingly unsettling as it builds to a shocking conclusion." - Tom Batten, Library Journal