Physicality, Awareness of Space

5. What inhibitions do you still have in using your body to express yourself? What are the strategies you can use to overcome this?

An inhibition I have is an inability to claim large empty spaces, such as those on stages. The sheer emptiness of the space intimidates me; hence I find my actions turn out restricted, small and unexpressive. Where this might come in handy should I play a meek character, this is unfortunately not applicable to a wide range of character personalities. The performance of the character comes across un-impactful and even uncertain at times. I believe the main problem lies in my confidence and in not having ‘released my inhibitions’ yet.

A solution to this problem would be to practice spatial awareness and to gradually get used to the space over time. I feel that an effective coping method is the ‘imaginary box’ that reduces the acting space from to a fraction of the stage space. With practice, and by slowly increasing the perimeter of the ‘box’, I could condition myself to the space over time, until I am comfortable with it.

In addition, I feel that where the script is lacking in stage directions, I am unable to appropriately attach actions to the dialogue that does not seem awkward, yet not doing anything may seem too inactive for the character. In a practical session with Ms Pink’s practical group once, I was required to play the role of Linda in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, only I was required to do it without dialogue at all. I found the role extremely awkward despite the guiding stage directions. Ms Pink enlighteningly pointed out that even the style of walking contributed to the character, and certain actions I did seemed like they were actions ‘for the sake of it’.

I think in this case I ought to have applied the Stanislavskian method of the ‘magic if’ and fully explored Linda’s motivations and feelings so that her actions would be purposeful and make sense in the play. Hence in this case practice is the key once again, and I hope to become adept at understanding the internalizing the character in short amount of time after reading the script.



6. Read up on the works of Rudolf Laban and Jacques Lecoq. To what extent do you think their works can help an actor to be more adept in the use of space and their own physicality as an actor?

Rudolf Laban was a dance artist and theorist; hence unsurprisingly much of his work has its grounds in dance. His most notable works include the Laban Movement Analysis and the Theory of Effort. However despite his strong dance background, his work is actually not only applicable to dance, but in fact proves to be of much value to theatre.

In his movement analysis, all forms of human movement are broken down into categories and subcategories: Body, Effort, Shape and Space. He points out the similarity in the physical action of reaching for a glass and punching something, where the effect and intention differs very much. Movement is reduced to a spiritual study that ties in with the Chinese art of Tai Chi, where controlled movements are also practiced. Laban preaches the importance of the close connection between movement and emotion, stating that dance moves may be most precise but lacking in emotion, making the performance stiff and insincere; likewise it is as easy to over-express the emotion and displaying an equal ineptitude at communication expression.

This is can easily be applied to theatre and is of much use to the actor and his physicality. Stage acting, like dance, requires a harmony between emotion and movement, and an imbalance would give the impression of an unconvincing performance. The Laban Movement Analysis breaks movement down into its most basic form, hence this makes it easy for the actor to distinguish the emotion of each different movement and employ the right ones. The actor would also pick up the skill of spatial awareness and allow him to utilize the stage space effectively and convincingly.

Where Laban’s works were concerned with the awareness of one’s movements, Jacques LeCoq focuses on how to make use of one’s movements on stage. LeCoq, an actor, mime and acting instructor, started a school that educates students on stage presence and the appropriate movements to utilize for each genre of theatre or scenario. A more holistic exploration of physical theatre is explored, where students are taught movements linked to animals, nature, sound and colours, and a variety of physical skills such as acrobatics and juggling. This seems to tie in with Meyerhold’s ‘biomechanics’ method. In equipping themselves with a wide range of physical abilities, the students acquire better understanding and control of their body as a tool of expression. On stage, the actor that has gone through rigorous training in physical theatre will be used to and hence more confident of his space, and his movements will be uninhibited and more expressive, accounting for the physical aspect of portraying a character. However, I feel that LeCoq’s methods do not directly integrate speech and emotion, hence the actor must further be able to ensure that both physical and verbal aspects of his performance complement each other.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolf_Laban
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laban_Movement_Analysis
http://www.movementpsy.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacques_Lecoq
http://www.europamagna.org/pageshtml/Pgtheatre/SCOUT/StageIUFM/jlecoqeng.htm


- Hui Yi