FIVE PLAYS TO PLAY WITH
So You Want to be a Physical Theatre Performer? © Pilar Orti 2005
Up the Hill Backwards © Richard Mann 2003
Cairo 1948 © Phillip Johnson and Pilar Orti, 2004
Legacy of Blood © Mark Reid, 2007
Softly, Softly © Pilar Orti, 2008
Cover Photograph © James Mann
ISBN 978-1-4659-7503-4
Phillip Johnson, Richard Mann, Pilar Orti and Mark Reid are hereby identified as the author of this text in accordance with section 77 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
No part of this work covered by the copyright heron may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means – graphic, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping, web distribution or information storage and retrieval systems – without the written permission of the author.
However, if you are a student or teacher and wish to use this material in class, please feel free to do so.
Published by Smashwords.
CONTENTS
So You Want to be a Physical Theatre Performer?
These five pieces were created by a group of theatre practitioners to experiment with different ideas and styles, as part of their continuous professional development. I have put them together so that they can be used by others who wish to explore different theatre styles. Whether you are in love with theatre, or you just want to get together and “play” with some friends or whether you are a teacher in need for material to help your students see that theatre can go beyond the spoken word, these plays are for you.
Five Plays to Play With will be published in print in September 2011 and will be included in the book Your Handy Companion to Devising and Physical Theatre to be published as an e-book at the same time.
This compilation is dedicated to all at Forbidden Theatre Company, especially to Linda Baker, who constantly offered her unconditional support.
Pilar Orti
July 2011
SO YOU WANT TO BE A PHYSICAL THEATRE PERFORMER?
by Pilar Orti
Introduction
Professor Phillipe Hoffmanonsky, from
the LeyCoke Institute of Bodily Mimed Expressive Arts takes us
through the characteristics of physical theatre and the qualities of
the physical theatre performer. This brief "lecture" takes
a comic look at Physical Theatre - the need for slow motion,
non-linear structure and much, much repetition...
This is an
Ensemble play which will require the performers to act as a chorus.
It can therefore be used as an introduction of how the Chorus can be
used in modern performance, as well as a brief insight into physical
theatre. Brief notes are included to explain some of the concepts in
this “lecture”.
SO YOU WANT TO BE A PHYSICAL
THEATRE PERFORMER?
by Pilar Orti
A lecture in seven freeze frames by Professor Phillipe Hoffmanonsky, from the LeyCoke Institute of Bodily Mimed Expressive Arts.
PROFESSOR
Good evening, and
welcome to the first series of lectures delivered by Forbidden
Theatre Company. Here to help me, are my visual aids, students of the
LeyCoke Institute of Bodily Mimed Expressive Arts.
(The students remain motionless, expressionless, the extraordinary representation of NEUTRAL.)
PROFESSOR
This programme of BODILY
lectures has been DEVISED in order to further our Education
Programme. Tonight’s PIECE addresses the question: why do so many
young people in our current society want to be physical theatre
performers?
It is important, first of all, to look at the origins of British physical theatre. How this complicated yet emotive art form came to be. Being an horticultural society, it was only a matter of time before this branch of theatre prominent in Europe planted its first seeds in our country.
(Of course during this, the students “become” a tree growing.)
PROFESSOR
And now it is time to
ask: what qualities should one look for in the physical theatre
performer? The most important thing to remember is: that although
there IS an “I” in Physical Theatre, (one in its written form,
two in its spoken form, I being the “EE” in PHY and the “I”
in SICAL, and of course there is another EE in THEatre, although this
one is only spoken, not written) although there is an “I” in
physical theatre, there is no “I” in ensemble, if not, it would
be insimbil, or eenseembeel.
The physical theatre performer has no ego, he, or she, must give themselves entirely to his or her craft. Black rehearsal clothes are imperative, to form a true ensemble, where the whole is larger than the sum of its parts. Which neatly leads us to the Chorus.
(The students clump together, like a Greek chorus.)
PROFESSOR
Ah, the Chorus. It
reacts, (the students act surprised) it moves as one (the
students move forward together, as one) and yet, if you watch
carefully, you can still see the individual characters coming through
(the students take on individual characters, waving to the
audience.)
PROFESSOR
The physical theatre
performer uses his body as his tool to create Character. The physical
theatre performer does not waste his time thinking of the emotional
makeup for their new persona. What’s more important is how they
move: how they walk, how they look, how they scratch their nose. All
this allows for instant communication with the audience about the
character’s state of mind. There is no need therefore to find your
character’s “motivation” as long as you know its
“movilization”.
This question of a character’s movement leads us neatly, (unusual for a physical theatre piece for there is very rarely a linear narrative and nothing leads neatly from one thing to another) to Running.
(The students run, on the spot of course, in true physical theatre style. They change their actions as the Professor mentions them.)
PROFESSOR
The physical theatre
performer must be Oh-so-fit! They need to run, and jump, walk in
different manners, run, and run and run, fall on the floor, bash
themselves against the wall, hit themselves…..
And they need to be able to do this at varying speeds.
(The students move in slow motion.)
PROFESSOR
Slow motion is a very
important part of physical theatre. It serves to highlight those
important moments which you want the audience to remember. It is a
very useful device used by those who are, indeed, devising –
unfortunately in this day and age, audiences expect a theatre event
to be a certain length. Slow motion can be very handy when a company
runs out of creative juices and needs to, as it were, flesh up the
show.
Then there is The Clown. But of course, Clowns are not part of proper physical theatre.
It is very important, in order to attract a young audience, that at some point in a physical theatre piece, the performers do, “a little dance”, to a well-known contemporary track. In order to do this at your own will, and for no apparent reason, the description of your show has to have the word “surreal” in it. Or, should you want to explain to your audience the reason for it happening (which, I would like to reiterate is not always compulsory when working within this genre) I suggest, you say, it was “A DREAM”( mouthed)…
ENSEMBLE
A dream… a dream… a
dream…. (whispering and echoing, while moving around the space,
in darkness.)
PROFESSOR
Thank you. Repetition,
Stylised language, especially delivered in a violent manner, is an
integral part of physical theatre. To illustrate this, my students
have prepared their own adaptation of Federico Garcia Lorca’s
Bloody Wedding.
GROOM
Mother
(Ensemble as Echo: Mother mother mother.)
MOTHER (obviously symbolising
death):
Yes?
GROOM
I’m going.
(Echo: Where? Where? Where?)
GROOM
To the vineyard.
(Shock from chorus.)
MOTHER
(under her breath, to
the chorus) Not yet….
GROOM
Give me the knife.
(Shock from Chorus. Chorus break out into “The Knife” (different poses).)
(They all freeze and a slow motion sequence follows where people kill each other and love each other in many different ways.)
BRIDE
There was no moon the night
the poet died.
CHORUS
The moon….. DEATH!
(One of the students comes in, holding a lit lamp.)
GROOM
Mother.
I’m going.
To
the vineyard.
Give me the knife.
(GASP from the Chorus and THE END.)
PROFESSOR
As you can see, the
economy of language means that the author’s ideas are conveyed in
the most pungent manner, hitting the audience in their gut, before
they have time to process what they are watching or hearing.
So, not to lose the purpose of this lecture. Why do so many young actors want to go into Physical Theatre? It is not a medium to further a showbiz career. Indeed I always ask my students to leave their ego outside the rehearsal room. The ego lingers around, tries to creep in, but never manages to make it back into the performer’s body. Every time you work with a new ensemble, there is a need to develop a new physical language – company members must make sure they are talking the same talk, walking the same walk, miming the same wall. Or indeed, becoming the same wall.