MA and BW

Movement for Actors

I think that stillness onstage is absolutely fascinating to watch and is also one of the hardest things to hold as an actor. When I am onstage, I typically struggle the most with moments of just 'being' without feeling a need to justify my reason for still being on stage with some type of action or response. I usually feel slightly uncomfortable in moments of utter silence and stillness because I feel like I should be doing something. However, I think that one of the major distinctions between good theatre and great theatre is the actors' ability to be present and still because it creates this beautiful, vulnerable situation and it's so wonderful to watch.  Stillness is also a great opportunity for a type of honesty because characters/actors can't hide behind habitual or nervous movement.

Posture and Alignment

I thought that Lessac made an interesting opening point about posture being related to self perception and the way we relate to the world - I forget sometimes about how posture can influence our own and others perceptions of us. I liked that he described being "upright" as seeing your body as being made up of curved lines, not straight ones and that this perspective would help you move your joints as parts of that curve and less like angular lines jutting out of the straight line of the body. I was shocked at how much the measurements could change (shoulders, chest, back, etc.) based on stance and what posture you chose - some of the measurements doubled based on the way the person was standing! The images of skeletons in the chapter creeped me out a little bit so I decided to find another one for fun. :)

http://www.dreamstime.com/stock-images-skeleton-illustration-image2897824