What is Performance? @whittyperfarts-blog - Tumblr Blog

A moveable Barrier

A small thing about my life with the 'barrier'.

A moveable barrier

Dream of a wall that protects

 But also contains yourself 

One that you can't come out of until your safe

 Your body reacts, shields itself even from the wielder

For most of my life, I didn't speak unless I wanted to

This is the barrier inside and around me

It shields me from people but holds me back

I didn't even realize it till now

The world won't understand until it's told

The greatest challenge for me and others is to speak

We have to gather the courage to voice our thoughts

Even in the face of doubt and fear

This barrier is a part of me

I would never leave it behind

Otherwise I would collapse under shackles of stress

And lose who I am to madness

The courage to stand and speak is the most enlightening

Worthy of any living being in life

It is a small but simple thing

And it made a big difference to me.

Man in the Arena

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming...”

This is a quote from the speech of Theodore Roosevelt, who talks about how an individual is able to try and succeed in what ever way of life, despite what the critics would say.

I think this is crucial for performers as they will be faced with critics who may discredit them. But in the end it shouldn’t matter because the performer(s) atleast tried to do the very best and will continue to polish and perfect their work later on in life.

#theodore roosevelt #man in the area

Bibliography

Machon, J (2013) Immersive Theatres: Intimacy and Immediacy in Contemporary Performance. Baingstoke : Palgrave Macmillan

Merlin, B (2016) The Complete Stanislavsky Toolkit Revised Edition. London: Nick Hern Books

Schechner, R (2013) Performance studies: an introduction. Routledge

http://differencengine.co.uk/ - DifferencEngine

https://www.dv8.co.uk/ - DV8

http://www.hetainpatel.com/ - Hetain Patel

https://irregulararts.com/ - An Odd Occasion

Discipline

This is a term that would seem oppressive. However, in the arts performers require that self-control so they can reflect their character, training their body, provide a backdrop as well as being responsible to fellow actors.

Bella Merlin made a list of four types of discipline that actors require:

“Psychological discipline- needed to distinguish between what’s useful for the character and ‘what’s your baggage’

Physical discipline - rigorous training of the body

Imaginative discipline - invest in the technical training with a colourful, playful backdrop

Collective responsibility - being responsible towards other actors can be done by knowing lines properly” (Merlin 2016: 25-29

I found this interesting as it describes what an actor-in-training should acquire to be successful in his/her work. Without discipline, we wouldn’t be able to have a potential influence on society and reflect on it.

The Lure

In a sense, the ‘lure’ is important to every performer when we are given or picked a character in which you feel their emotions, feelings and it grabs your attention.

“The ‘lure’ into your character - i.e. something in the character which naturally draws your attention - will be your initial trigger into the role” (Merlin 2016:40)

The performer would be excited for the role as well as the setting they perform in.

The Merger

After performers have identified the ‘lure’ they would have to turn it into an objective as suggested by Stanislavsky so they can merge with their intended role. Actors uses the attention to train their own imagination to achieve their objective.

“To merger even more closely with the character, the next task for our classical actor would be to road-test his initial objective. This involves giving his imagination a bit of a work-out...” (Merlin 2016: 41)

Restored Behaviour

A restored behaviour is a similar phrase to the word ‘rehearse’. We practice these motions be it: verbal, physical or virtual. These actions are repeated until they are done to the precise and correct manner. For example, a performer is playing a character as well as using a script. He/she will be practicing or repeating lines, movements or timing of cues until their part is done correctly.

It is usually termed as if the person you are is playing as someone else like an imitation of a character by learning.

The following quote refers to the paragraph above: “restored behavior: physical,verbal or virtual actions that are not-for-the-first time; that are prepared or rehearsed. A person may not be aware that she is performing a strip of restored behavior. Also referred to as twice-behaved behavior” (Schechner 2013: 29)

#richardschechner

(via https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaAVByGaON0) - accessed 15/1/17 - 16:34pm

Read All About It Pt.III by Emili Sand

Songs performed by artists can be used to entertain people as well as a way to expressing a message on how they feel. In this song, the artist highlights the difficulties of expressing one’s true feelings and yet by doing so it can be very liberating if they can truly express themselves.

#emili sande

Performance is when one person communicates either by their actions, words and another person listens as well as responds back to the speaker. Depending on how the receiver responds, the initiator may either be pleased or disappointed. This can then influence how the speaker reacts in future in a conversation.

Everyday life

Picture of a baby after birth.

When babies are born, how they perform is unique and uninfluenced by anyone. It is also then when we are at our first most vulnerable point in life. Babies, as well as performing, tend to respond to the actions of their parents as they grow.

Ritual

Picture of the Archbishop of Canterbury delivering a sermon

Rituals are performed in religious ceremonies, school assemblies as well as in every day life. This is quite common in churches. It is a means of teaching, relaying a message, dealing with what is considered ‘sacred’ and ‘demonic’ in their mind, it can heal as a person may be looking for a bit of faith in life.

At another level, the content and the act of the ritual can be very consistent. And consistency can reduce anxiety.

Performing Arts

Picture of own performance ‘The Sound of Heavy Rain’ 2016

In the arts, performers can do a range of things including: dancing, acting, singing etc. They use any means to express a message within a performance to the audience. For some, it can be seen as a good form of physical exercise, others would see it as a means of relieving stress. Performers rehearse and practice continually until their act is considered perfect.

When we then involve the audience it becomes a performance as the artists perform, the audience receives and responds with the intention to create a connection with each other.

#demonfort #performingarts

Plays

A play of Midsummer Night’s Dream

This can be considered in the same way as ‘Performing Arts’. With the artists performing, audience receiving and responding to build that interaction with each other. In this case, it is done with families and children.

Technology

Camera Technology in sport.

Technology can be used to mark and record the event similar to a person who bears witness to a crime, special occasion etc. This can be used in sport, filming, art and daily life. For example, recording a graduation from university.

Sex

Picture of a couple cuddling each other - illustrating intimacy to each other.

For Sex, men may see it as a means of ‘how well have I performed’. Whereas, for women it might be more about the intimacy of the act instead of the actual performance.

Business

Picture of me performing a task in front of a client. The work being done is hydrotherapy

In business, people perform tasks given to them for a range of reasons. Including, money benefits and to excel in what they’re doing and to achieve personal aims and goals.

In this case, when the therapist interacts with the client and/or the dog, this becomes a performance due to the interaction between the two parties.

Sport

Image showing footballers performing on the pitch. (accessed 14/1/17 17:21pm) - http://www.bucs.org.uk/sport.asp?section=459§ionTitle=Football

Sport is considered as a type of performance. The footballers are performing in front of the crowd who represent the audience. They will react to what ever the players do on the field - either in a positive or negative manner. This sport is mostly done to entertain people but it can be used to express the players feelings to the crowd

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