UON

This is a research blog on actor training, specifically on the Hungarian dance theorist Rudolf Laban, asking the question "What place do Laban's eight movements have in modern theatre?" It concerns modern theatre makers and how they use Laban's theory today, as well as my own experience as a performer and using these techniques.

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Blog Post #8

And here we are at the end,  with all of this done and dusted, I do hope i’ve been able to make clear my points. Laban’s efforts created an almost fool proof system for interpreting and creating characters with all manner of different natures. As Vanessa Ewan says, “It can describe the full range of human condition.” She even goes as far to say it is perfect for the actor, a statement with which I am inclined to agree. That they can be used in modern theatre is in no doubt, as you have seen through the examples of the National Theatre. They can be used to develop character with a physical approach in mind and they can be translated to text work, including dynamics between characters and their developing arcs. It seems that there is no end to the pathways that the works of Laban can set us on, as they are used even now to develop characters, build ensembles, merit productions. The efforts are a chief example of a simple idea (albeit complex once delved into) that withstands the test of time and inspires theatre makers to this day. once more,  I’m Conagh Punch, signing-off-perhaps-for-good

[danny-kaye]

In the musical-comedy “The Inspector General” (1949), Danny Kaye played a traveling gypsy who inadvertently steps into the shoes of a petty official. The film was based (loosely) on a play by Nikolai Gogol. With Barbara Bates (left).

[danny-kaye]

In the musical-comedy “The Inspector General” (1949), Danny Kaye played a traveling gypsy who inadvertently steps into the shoes of a petty official. The film was based (loosely) on a play by Nikolai Gogol. With Barbara Bates (left).

[aegeanebasin]

“It is no use to blame the looking glass if your face is awry.”

Nikolai Gogol, The Inspector General (via demonicarchives)

[baldespendus]

Samuel Beckett rehearses Endgame at Riverside Studios, London. May 1980. By Charles Harris.

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Favourite play

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10th August 1965: New York City Ballet at the Habima Theatre in Tel Aviv.

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Blog Post #7

So you’ve heard from me, you’ve heard from a local theatre professional, and even some industry heavy hitters who are still using Laban’s work. Take the National Theatre. In the video i’ve linked, Vanessa Ewan, Movement Director at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama takes us through how Laban’s work can be applied in the rehearsal period of a professional production to “physically transform the actor into the character”, in preparation for their show “A Doll’s House” by Henrik Ibsen. 

“A Doll’s House” is a play with a scathing commentary on gender roles in the 19th century, telling the story of Nora, a woman who seeks to discover herself, despite the efforts of the patriarchy around her. During the course of the play, a running theme emerges, that of Nora being seen as a doll, a plaything, dependant on the men in her life, without individuality. 

Vanessa Ewan’s direction of the movement seeks to illustrate a certain subjugation, a control over Nora from which she longs to be free. This is performed perfectly by the actor, who uses Laban’s efforts to suggest all of this.

The efforts float and flick are used, primarily because they are both within the spectrum of light movements, giving the idea of a light, fragile temperament of a character.

It represents the view that men had of women in the 19th century, and indeed the view that Nora’s husband holds of her during the play. The float further demonstrates this, as its sustained, graceful feeling evokes a ballet, fragile and graceful. The flick on the other hand, serves to demonstrate the control that is exercised over Nora.

The actor’s sharp, flicking movements create an uneasy feeling, very much like a puppet, as she is later compared to in the video, concerning the tarantella.

Laban’s efforts create an almost fool proof system for interpreting and creating characters with all manner of different natures. As Vanessa Ewan says, “It can describe the full range of human condition.” She even goes as far to say it is perfect for the actor. That they can be used in modern theatre is in no doubt. They can be used to develop character with a physical approach in mind and they can be translated to text work, including dynamics between characters and their developing arcs.

This is one of the last big text posts I’ll be doing, but it may keep running in a minor capacity. Stay tuned for the wind-down and conclusion of the blog, but until then, 

-I’m Conagh Punch, and i’m logging-out-now

[punninglyswift]

2016 Tony Best Musical Nominees

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“All the best shows have movement choirs” 

- Rudolf Laban, at some point, probably

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Buster Keaton’s car stunt Silent film was very much influenced by the works of Meyerhold. With a primary focus on movement and physicality, as well as creating a physical score, stark characters are presented to the audience, purely using movement. 

[quoted-books]

You have never loved me. You have only thought it pleasant to be in love with me.

Henrik Ibsen, A Doll’s House (via quoted-books)

Foreshadowing for the next blog post

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Blog Post #6

Time for Part 2 on “Conagh Talks at length about himself” and the “process”Last time I posted, I was talking about act 2, in which the character of Jamie was 14, a cruel but talented boy who is the product of inattentive parents,In act 3 however, Jamie is a changed character. He is 35, living in his father’s house, and now, as of act 2′s climax, a child of divorce. His childhood neglect has caught up with him. His brushes with elicit substances like cigarettes and alcohol, made comical in act 2 have become a soberingly (pun) bleak coping strategy and It is implied that he has progressed to harder substances. He has developed a nervous, paranoid disposition and fears being questioned or judged for his life’s failures. 

In choosing efforts to build the character around, I looked to people with drug dependencies in my life and found that dabbing and slashing were common characteristics. Jamie, as a result, developed into two extremes, dabbing and slashing. Slashing was chosen for its indirect nature, as Jamie’s movements become indirect and light,

meandering about the stage without a real idea of where he’s going, and his gestures during his occasional outbursts become strong and sudden. I used dabbing to evoke the other side of his character, the nervous, paranoid side. Dabbing became part of Jamie’s physicality, in the form of a shaking twitch, but also a part of his dialogue. Every question directed at him is met with a direct, sudden answer, often one word. 

Dabbing even reached far as the voice Jamie adopted, stuttering and halting in an auditory impression of a dabbing gesture. 

Dabbing lent a timid element to the character, as he becomes afraid of confrontation, whereas slashing evoked the paranoid, random lashing out of an addict. I kept the flick, as a residual character trait from Jamie’s younger carelessness, but in act 3, the carefree attitude becomes a careless one, lethargy, uninterested in anything.

The flick is then used to discourage any engagement with others. It works as a central character trait to define him, but is subject to the effects of both the dab and the flick.

It was in this way that I used Laban’s Eight Efforts to develop a character and advance them through the years, showing how a clear character arc.

And that’s the end of that! now that i’ve finished talking about myself, i’m going to go into detail about how other modern theatre practitioners use Laban’s techniques, but that’s the next entry. See you next time, until then, 

I’m Conagh Punch and-I-talk-about-myself-a-whole-lot

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Take a look at the Roundabout Theatre’s production of “Love, Love, Love” by Mike Bartlett, and you’ll find out a lot about the kind of characters that develop over the course of the play. It may also provide some nice context, or you can just look at Richard Armitage’s face, cos he’s really good looking. 

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Blog Post #5

Time for me to talk about myself, making this a proper blog. This one will come in two parts, because it details the transformation of a character over the course of an entire play. I personally have used Laban’s eight efforts when developing characters, In Newcastle Theatre Company’s production of “Love, Love, Love” by Mike Bartlett, a play rife with commentary on the disparities between generations, the freedom and the toxicity of the summer of love’s baby boomers and the entitlement felt by their children. It follows the lives of two such baby boomers and their children detailing their family life across three separate eras, the 60′s, the 90′s and today.

I played the character “Jamie”, child of parents from the “summer of love” generation, whose personal growth becomes stunted because of his parents inattentiveness and carelessness.

I appeared in act 2, portraying Jamie at 14 years old, then again in act 3, at age 35. Our cast held a Laban workshop during the rehearsal period, to get a physical articulation of who our characters were; in short, using the movement of a character to suggest their personality and emotions.

Jamie in act 2 required lots of gliding, punching and flicking. I chose these particular efforts for their sudden timing, as teenage boys are prone to energetic natures,

as well as careless connotations that glide and flick gave off, because Jamie is very much a cocky, careless character who swaggers about not caring about the impact his words have on others.The punch was chosen, not for its strength, but for it’s directness, as Jamie has a knack for choosing just the right angle to attack someone from, undermining him or her completely. I’ve included a production shot of Jamie in act 2. Part 2 coming soon, but for now, Conagh Punch, actor-in-the-local-sphere-and-hopefully-beyond

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Aight, so if you’re coming to my blog for an education in theatre, you’re not too lost, but there are many many many resources you can go to, if you’re interested in Laban’s efforts, his techniques etcetera, or just (again) the industry in general, you can go here

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Alexander Grinberg :: The Theater of Vsevold Meyerhold, Biomechanics Workshop, 1920’s

[deathlight7]

Remember this practical piece of advice: Never come into the theatre with mud on your feet. Leave your dust and dirt outside. Check your little worries, squabbles, petty difficulties with your outside clothing – all the things that ruin your life and draw your attention away from your art – at the door.

Konstantin Stanislavsky - Building a Character (via deathlight7)