Looking at putting physical theatre into our piece, I took it upon myself to research more into Physical Theatre!
Physical Theatre covers different forms of circus theatre: clown, mask, mime, commedia dell’arte and dance. It is a form of theatre that builds up dramatic action and expression through physical movement instead of spoken. Along with movement, the character, narrative and conflict are used by actors to tell or communicate a story or theme.
CONVENTIONS OF PHYSICAL THEATRE:
- Groupings
- Levels
- Emotional States
- Gestures
- Body Language
- Ensemble
- Mime
- Facial Expressions
- Eye Contact
- Gait
- Pace
- Quality of Movement
- Space
Jacques Lecoq, a French actor and movement coach, helped establish Physical Theatre. He trained in commedia dell’arte and E’cole Internationale de Theatre Jacques Lecoq was founded by him in 1956 which specialised and focus in on the practice. Anton Artaud helped to develop Physical Theatre too, by getting the performers to break the fourth wall and to create a direct relationship with the audience.
PHYSICAL THEATRE COMPANIES:
- Frantic Assembly
- DV8
- Complicite
- Double Edge
- PUSH Physical Theatre
- Theatre de l’ange fou
- SITI Company
- Synetic Theatre
- Zen Zen Zo
- Theatre Grottesco
- Out of Balanz
- Not Man Apart
5 MAIN ACTING TECHNIQUES:
- Stanislavski’s method
- The Chekhov acting technique
- Method acting
- Meisner acting technique
- Practical aesthetics acting technique
Physical Theatre shows you don’t need to use words to express different ideas. Props create an experience that is more immersive for audiences and also it can add an effect of emotions in a scene, so props add a great effect to physical theatre.
4 CHARACTER CONFLICTS:
- Conflict with self
- Conflict with others
- Conflict with environments
- Conflict with the supernatural
PHYSICAL THEATRE EXERCISES AND ACTIVITIES:
- Spacial awareness walk
- Levels exploration
- Obstacle courses
- Character walks
- Emotion through movement
- Physical monologues
- Group dynamics and energy sharing
- Mask work
FEATURES OF PHYSICAL THEATRE:
- Extra daily movement – exaggerated to make them more interesting
- Actors becoming objects
- Sensory perception
- Clowning
- Exaggerated emotions expressed in non-naturalistic ways
- Puppetry
- Ensemble – synchronised/unsynchronised movements
- The reliance on the actor and the audiences imagination
- Multi use of props
- Stylised movements
- Highly disciplined movement
- Dance drama – lifts, grips, chair duets, leans
- Actor is a character rather than interpreter
- Mime
- Moving to a count
- Masks
LABAN EFFORTS: A WAY OF MOVING:
Rudolph Von Laban is a Hungarian dance theorist (1879-1958). He identified three categories of movement:
- Force
- Pace – speed
- Speed – directness
Units of speed – fast, slow, sudden, sustained.
Focus – direct – sudden, sustained, strong, light. Indirect – sudden, sustained, strong, slow.
Strong/Aggressive movements – punch (direct, sudden, strong), press (direct, sustained, strong), slash (indirect, sudden, strong), wring (indirect, sustained, strong).
Light/Dreamy movements – glide (direct, sustained, light), dab (direct, sudden, light), flick (indirect, sudden, light), float (indirect, sustained, light).
FRANTIC ASSEMBLY:
Frantic Assembly are a company that are based on devising and working as an ensemble group. The founders are Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett (they are both not trained dancers.)
LECOQ’S THEORY:
The main training technique he uses is masks to creatively ‘free’ the actor. He uses both neutral and expressive masks and he encourages three principle skills: Le Jeu (playfulness), Complicite (togetherness), disponsibilite (openness).
EXPRESSIVE MASKS:
- Larval masks
- Trestle masks
- Commdeia dell’arte
- Makeup
MASK COMPANIES:
- Trestle
- Vamos
- Strange face
Caitlin Freestone-Deeming 