Nicola Wilson, Assessment Blog 1

1. As the quote states, physical theatre is a new genre and its key features derive from many antecedent aspects of expression. One feature in particular that has been explored in our module would be how the genre is visceral in its nature. The process of making work in this genre is very organic, working on impulses to create what Ana Sanchez-Colberg coins, a ‘non-verbal idiom’. Rather than talking through the process or reading out lines from a page, Dymphna Callery states that ‘the somatic impulse is privileged over the cerebral in the making process.’ (2001, pg 4) This instinctual way of moving created work through a method we called, ‘play’ and we were taught a palette of techniques to ‘play’ with. Eugenio Barba described such techniques as ‘in reality, are stereotyped gymnastic movements’ and it was up to the performer to add the emotional layers on top to give actual meaning to them, creating the ‘theatre’ aspect that the genre demands. Whether the work was developing as a collaborative ensemble, or purely on an individual bases, it was the emotional connection with the movements that acted as a key feature in creating this new genre.

2. It would be accurate to suggest this ‘hybrid’ characteristic of the genre because physical theatre is a vast amalgamation of various performance elements such as visceral theatre, mime, dance, and avant-garde theatre. It is concomitant with mime for example through Jacques Lecoq, as he was stated as being a ‘central figure in a loose movement of practitioners, teachers and theorists who proposed that it is the actor’s body – rather than simply the spoken text which is the crucial generator of meaning in theatre.’ (2007, pg 54) This particular element of mime, turning the focus towards the body for meaning and away from spoken language has acted like a tributary to physical theatre, not influencing it in its entirety but just contributing a small part. The other aforementioned performing elements all act as tributaries as well, avant garde with its nature of transforming and discarding the body, dance with its ability to evoke emotion only through the use of movement.

3. In ‘Altered States and Subliminal Spaces’ physical theatre was described as focussing ‘on the unfolding of a narrative through physicalized events’ which is exactly what the Jasmin Vardimon Company do. Their show Yesterday had real characters, as opposed to neutral bodies that are predominantly found in the dance genre, telling a story through physical movement. However, this company do differ from some points stated previously as they are known to use verbal language, but as Alistair Spalding, Artistic Director of Sadler's Wells comments on their website ‘Jasmin’s vocabulary allows her to go down this path as her dancers speak, act, sing. But when it is not possible to go any further with any other kind of language Jasmin’s dance takes over to express the inexpressible, to utter the unutterable, to communicate in a direct way with the movement of the human body.’ Making them a perfect example of a contemporary physical theatre company, as the body is still the over-riding force that creates the meaning.

Bibliography
Barba, E., 1972. Words or Presence, s.l., s.n.
Callery, D., 2001. Through The Body: A Practical Guide To Physical Theatre, London: Nick Hern Books Limited
Keefe, J & Murray, S., 2007. Physical Theatres: A Critical Introduction, Oxon: Routledge
Sánchez-Colberg, A., 1996. Altered States And Subliminal Places: Charting The Road Towards A Physical Theatre, s.l., s.n.
Spalding, A., Testimonials For Jasmin Vardimon Company (Internet) Available at: http://www.jasminvardimon.com/testimonials.html