Here is the first part of a short introduction/explanation I wrote to accompany the recent series of work in Actor's Gymnasium which we called "Earth, Air, Fire, Water, Space and Time, a natural and empirical approach to pre-expressive training and creative presence." It was a long fancy title that we put forth to call attention to what we think of as the ecological-biological conditions of the stage, and our simple analytical process that accompanies that, the kind of thinking that is just trying to "put two and two together." This is just the first page or so but it gives you the basic sense. I hope. Enjoy.
Stanislavsky’s Notion – Return to Life.
Stanislavsky’s first book intended specifically for actors is entitled “The Work of the Actor on Oneself.” The book is divided into two sections: Part One is “The Work on Oneself in the Process of Experiencing.” Part Two is “The Work on Oneself in the Process of Embodying.” Together, these form a suggestion of biological basis for an actor’s work on the stage.
The “Process of Experiencing” implies that under the conditions of the stage, a person (an actor) has a tendency to go into a kind of artificial behavior, perhaps something copied, or perhaps a cliché understanding of a particular kind of behavior, or perhaps mere nervousness or getting carried away begins to dominate the impulses of behavior. To remedy this, Stanislavsky suggests a kind of “return to life” within the imaginary circumstances and world of the stage – a kind of “as if” it were true reality, where the person’s (the actor’s) biological being functions as it normally would with full sense and awareness.
The “process of embodying” suggests that once an actor’s biological experiences are functioning, they then must have a particular kind of actualization, different from real life perhaps, in order to meet the specific demands required by the stage – and its accompanying group of spectators. It’s not enough for the actor to merely begin to experience, he/she must actualize the experience a way that is self motivating, inspiring and comfortable, and in such as way so as to be expressive for the spectators.
In order to help create this “return to life,” Stanislavsky suggested that the actor had to create a series of commands between the mind and body which replace the daily influences of the mind and body – thereby separating the fiction of the stage from literal reality. The created series of commands function as a substitution set which prompts the actor’s behavior on the stage. When the mind-body is reacting fully to this substitution set of commands, it is said that the actor is organic.
Stanislavsky knew there were certain qualities which could aid the actor in this quest of organicity. Among those qualities was a sense of relaxation, concentration, and imagination. To develop those qualities, Stanislavsky invented a series of exercises meant to give the actor awareness and control over their breathing, their thoughts, sensory awareness and movements.
Once an actor achieved a level where he/she could accomplish this organic experiencing–embodying process within the particular conditions of the stage, Stanislavsky moved the actor on to his next set of ideas which are contained in the book “The Work of the Actor on the Role.” Here is where the peculiar creative nature of acting kicks in fully. Stanislavsky knew that there was/is a subconscious process which fuses the fiction of a play, the unreal, with the reality of the actor, his or her total being, their talent. Stanislavsky named this creative phenomenon for the actor “Affective Memory.” His ideas contained in “The Work of the Actor on Oneself” are meant ultimately to be a conscious approach leading to the activation of the subconscious in the creative process. Or another way of saying it is “placing the subconscious under direct orders from the conscious.”
Stanislavsky’s Notion – Return to Life.
Stanislavsky’s first book intended specifically for actors is entitled “The Work of the Actor on Oneself.” The book is divided into two sections: Part One is “The Work on Oneself in the Process of Experiencing.” Part Two is “The Work on Oneself in the Process of Embodying.” Together, these form a suggestion of biological basis for an actor’s work on the stage.
The “Process of Experiencing” implies that under the conditions of the stage, a person (an actor) has a tendency to go into a kind of artificial behavior, perhaps something copied, or perhaps a cliché understanding of a particular kind of behavior, or perhaps mere nervousness or getting carried away begins to dominate the impulses of behavior. To remedy this, Stanislavsky suggests a kind of “return to life” within the imaginary circumstances and world of the stage – a kind of “as if” it were true reality, where the person’s (the actor’s) biological being functions as it normally would with full sense and awareness.
The “process of embodying” suggests that once an actor’s biological experiences are functioning, they then must have a particular kind of actualization, different from real life perhaps, in order to meet the specific demands required by the stage – and its accompanying group of spectators. It’s not enough for the actor to merely begin to experience, he/she must actualize the experience a way that is self motivating, inspiring and comfortable, and in such as way so as to be expressive for the spectators.
In order to help create this “return to life,” Stanislavsky suggested that the actor had to create a series of commands between the mind and body which replace the daily influences of the mind and body – thereby separating the fiction of the stage from literal reality. The created series of commands function as a substitution set which prompts the actor’s behavior on the stage. When the mind-body is reacting fully to this substitution set of commands, it is said that the actor is organic.
Stanislavsky knew there were certain qualities which could aid the actor in this quest of organicity. Among those qualities was a sense of relaxation, concentration, and imagination. To develop those qualities, Stanislavsky invented a series of exercises meant to give the actor awareness and control over their breathing, their thoughts, sensory awareness and movements.
Once an actor achieved a level where he/she could accomplish this organic experiencing–embodying process within the particular conditions of the stage, Stanislavsky moved the actor on to his next set of ideas which are contained in the book “The Work of the Actor on the Role.” Here is where the peculiar creative nature of acting kicks in fully. Stanislavsky knew that there was/is a subconscious process which fuses the fiction of a play, the unreal, with the reality of the actor, his or her total being, their talent. Stanislavsky named this creative phenomenon for the actor “Affective Memory.” His ideas contained in “The Work of the Actor on Oneself” are meant ultimately to be a conscious approach leading to the activation of the subconscious in the creative process. Or another way of saying it is “placing the subconscious under direct orders from the conscious.”
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