Theater Games

The first day of almost any introduction to acting class will inevitably begin with a game; and, clearly labeled as “games”, these activities are often subject to a large amount of disrespect in the thespian world. Many professors of acting believe they are a waste of valuable time, while many students feel they are pointless and belittling. However, theater games are actually an incredibly useful tool for exploring different experiences that can occur on the stage, and are beneficial for eventual scene work and character development.

Some theater games are used as warm up exercises. One game in particular, usually called “walking the gird”, is an excellent way to allow a class of new students, or a recently formed ensemble cast to bond. This game simply has participants walk around the room and attempt to freeze, and subsequently start walking again, at the exact same moment. The objective is for actors to be able to sense a group pulse (very useful for actors that will be doing a scene together on stage), or be able to anticipate the inherent impulses of other actors (excellent for learning how to play off of another actor’s movements and emotions in a one-on-one scene). Being able to master these techniques will help make a scene seem effortless to an audience while also feeling completely natural to those on stage.

Another theater game that often goes underappreciated is a game called “human machine”. In this game, one participant will jump into the middle of the circle and create a shape with their body accompanied by some sort of vocalization. Next, the other actors will run into the middle of the circle as well, trying to make their shape work with what's already there, joining in with the group to make a huge human machine. The goal is to have all the parts working together, all the sounds coinciding, and all the movement attached to someone else in some way, This game is not only a lot of fun (all of the eccentric sounds together sometimes end up creating a catchy beat) but it teaches participants how to work with the choices of their fellow actors, no matter how obscure, and also how to create low or high status for a character based on movement and vocalizations. For example, if you walk into the middle of the circle and create the tallest and loudest aspect of the machine during the exercise, you would be able to take that feeling of dominance and use it to walk into the middle of a scene and create a tall and proud aura for a particular character.

A great piece concerning the significance of theater games is a play currently running in New York City. Annie Baker’s Circle Mirror Transformation is a play set in a creative drama class, and it explores the power and influence of these unusual games. Many of the play’s characters wonder aloud when they will be doing “real acting” in the class, others get to know themselves and their peers on a deeper level than ever expected. Perhaps the most significant factor however, is the fact that this play achieves what the preceding detailed explanation of these games strives to, it shows the masses how seemingly insignificant, wacky and often underappreciated “games” are actually exercises of the upmost importance in teaching students and actors some of the most fundamental and indispensable techniques that compose the foundation of the art of acting. The NYTimes review of Circle Mirror Transformation can be read at the following link: http://theater.nytimes.com/2009/10/16/theater/reviews/16circle.html

Science through Theater Arts

The physical and life sciences, and the performing arts are two areas of study that are not often grouped in the same sentence, let alone in the same project. However, several projects around the world have been created with the intent of bridging the theoretical gap between left and right brain, and teaching scientific material through theatrical means.

“Mind the Gap”, a theater piece developed and produced by Y-Touring Theatre Company explores the complicated world of memory and brain research. The description from the British Science Association’s website is as follows: “Three disparate people find themselves stranded on a deserted platform of an underground station…together on platform 2B these four minds are compelled to confront the devastating nature of Alzheimer's disease, the agony that is post traumatic stress and just what it is that could drive someone to kill at random”

An intriguing topic for theater buffs and medical school students alike, the play brings together two deviating disciplines and showcases the importance of both. The novelty and significance of conveying science through performance art is put exquisitely by Nigel Townsend, Artistic Director of Y-Touring: “’We always believed that strong drama could not only affect people emotionally but help them to understand new ideas and think about complex issues.” This statement, while short and simple, truly captures what science through theater can accomplish. Theater has always been a means of affecting people on various levels of psyche and emotional state, and the sciences are an essential part of learning and life; using theater as a teaching tool to convey important information in a way that not only lectures and informs, but has the power to deeply affect and intrigue minds from various backgrounds and disciplines, is a brilliant and exciting idea that should be continued through future projects.

Science through theater has been around for quite some time and will indeed continue into the future. While not all of the projects appear to be as thought provoking as “Mind the Gap”, several projects such as Carpenter Science Theatre Company (http://www.smv.org/livetheater.html) and “Science Live”, Minnesota (http://www.smm.org/sciencelive/) take advantage of theatrical science education as well. By using live demonstration, colorful characters and fanciful plotlines, children are able to equate essential scientific concepts and methods with excitement and fun. Whether through edifying performance , whimsical children’s show, or some combination of the two, science through theater arts has proven to be, and will remain, a beneficial and exciting use of performance arts for successful didactic endeavors.

Theater Etiquette

It is difficult to decipher who exhibits worse etiquette in the current theatrical climate; the audience members, or the supposedly “Professional” actors on stage. Several instances in recent months have brought about some very interesting cases, presenting absolutely atrocious behavior from both audience members and stage actors alike.

Many people who attend theater, be it at the community, national, or Broadway level do indeed demonstrate proper etiquette. They show up early, do not eat or drink at their seat, remain quiet during the performance, and obey what has come to be known as the golden rule of theater etiquette: they silence all cell phones. However, many theatergoers are left without a general knowledge of typical theater conventions, and behave as though they are at sporting event or rock concert. While the rules are often unspoken (except for a NYC law requiring cell phone silencing), they have become societal norms and to break these norms is seen as the epitome of selfish and rude. Some websites dedicated to the arts have actually taken the time to compose lists of how one should behave at a theatrical performance and an example of such a list can be seen here: http://www.fineliving.com/fine/rejuvenation_essentials/article/0,,fine_1422_1327738,00.html

In late January 2009, during one of the last performances of the Broadway revival of Gypsy, Patti LuPone, two time tony winner and renowned stage “diva” literally stopped the show. Ms. LuPone, after the first few chords of what is perhaps the show’s most climatic and pivotal moment, completely broke character, turned to audience, and began to scream at an audience member who had taken a photograph during the show. A few favorite excerpts from her three minute rant are as follows: “Stop, stop, stop taking pictures right now! You heard the announcement. Who do you think you are?...Three times you took a picture! Who do you think you are? I won't continue with them taking pictures. Get them out!"

The outburst was received first with nervous laughter and shaky applause, followed by a thunderous uproar of cheers and whistles. However, it is not fully clear who is at fault of breaking theater etiquette rules. While the majority of the audience thought Ms. LuPone’s outburst was a wonderful and exciting display of putting a rude audience member in his place, many were left with the feeling that for $100+ per ticket, Ms. LuPone, however rude the audience member was being, should have continued on with the show in a professional manner and dealt with the rule-breaker after the performance.

A similar case occurred in September of this year when Australian actor Hugh Jackman stopped a preview performance of the Broadway play A Steady Rain to tell an audience member to silence a ringing phone. "You want to get that?" Jackman said (with an attempt to remain in character, although as the moment progressed he continued to lose his temper) "Grab your phone, it doesn't matter…come on, just turn it off ... we can wait. Just get the phone, don't be embarrassed. Just grab it."

Once again, it is unclear who is at greater fault. While the majority of reporters cast the audience member as the evil wrongdoer, it would seem again that however rude the audience was, that the actors should be able to continue on in a professional manner and leave such issues for house ushers and staff to deal with.

The issue of professionalism versus expected audience behavior is a longstanding conflict that never seems to result in a clear conclusion. An obvious solution would be to better enforce theater rules, and threaten any troublesome attendees with expulsion from the show, which would prevent further disruption for their fellow audience members as well as the actors on stage.

*Ironically, both LuPone and Jackman singled out an offending audience member while profusely thanking the remaining audience members for being wonderful, rule-abiding community members. However, both of their mid-performance outbursts were caught on tape and can be seen or heard at the following links:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WruzPfJ9Rys

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iE6OpSdtvz8
It appears that although one audience member was singled out, several others were waiting with recording equipment (cell phones and blackberries equipped with cameras) to take their place, which only helps to argue the etiquette case in favor of the actors*

The Significance of Masks in Theater Arts

Terrifying vampires, demons, and the forces of darkness suddenly materialize in countries around the world, while familiar faces of current celebrities, historical figures, and questionable politicians mingle among them. Halloween, the once Celtic festival turned commercialized costumed event (http://www.history.com/content/halloween), is now a pleasurable and celebratory tradition …and a form of theater at its finest. For one night, millions of people around the world embrace an alter ego, donning costumes and disguises that allow the opportunity to become one with a character, often choosing one quite unlike themselves. Many people immerse themselves fully in the experience by taking on a role for the duration of the evening, seldom breaking character, and using their costumes as an excuse to act in ways that on any other night could seem not only uncharacteristic, but even rude or alarming. The fun is in the fact that actions on this night can be considered consequence free, true selves are hidden behind an exterior that has supposedly has a personality of its own.

Costumes, and specifically facial masks, have an immeasurable power. Wearing something as seemingly insignificant as a mask has the power to change actions and behaviors. In the “real world”, a prime example being Halloween, masks allow the individual to hide behind a face that is not their own. While use of masks have been an essential characteristic of theater arts since antiquity, the use of masks in ancient Japanese theater presents some of the most interesting uses of this artistic tool.

The ancient Japanese art form known as Noh Theater requires masks for performance (Greenwald, Schultz, & Pomo, 2001). Actors of this genre will spend hours in the “mirror room” before a performance, apply their mask, sit completely still and stare at their reflection in order to wholly induce their psyche into believing they are physically the character whose mask they wear. The use of masks in Japanese theater is especially intriguing because it encourages an intense focus on aspects of acting that are not always viewed as salient in today’s theatrical endeavors. For example, many productions today can be large, flashy, and at times ostentatious, and we often end up focused on dialogue, character interactions, and elaborate stage surroundings. In Japanese Noh Theater however, audiences don’t have such opportunities as the stage is bare, the dialogue is minimal, and any movement is a slow, diligently prepared process (Greenwald, Schultz, & Pomo, 2001).

Noh Theater essentially forces audiences to pay close attention to actor body language and overall presence. In addition, while in the more unassuming mainstream theater (such as many of the plays on Broadway stages this season) we look forward to analyzing the deep emotional expressions on an actor’s face, in Noh Theater, all actors wear a mask. Their mask remains completely unchanged for the duration of the play, but nevertheless must be able to convey a vast array of emotions. The use of these masks draws our attention to body language and the actor’s overall stage presence. The actors of Noh Theater are forced to physically embody a character in an all encompassing way, so that their body language expresses the intense emotions that usually emanate from the face. While they wear a mask that displays one expression for the duration of a play, Noh actors must help audiences see different expressions within the mask, wholly by utilizing their bodies and surrounding stage lighting to encompass an entire world of emotion within the mask they wear. Whether used as a tool to deceive friends and neighbors on all hallows eve, or used as part of an ancient and ritualistic artistic endeavor, masks serve the purpose of aiding one to mentally and physically become anything other than themselves.

Traditional Noh Masks: http://liveness.org/plasticfutures/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/noh-masks.jpg


“Rotation of the head out of the visual plane changes the two dimensional image characteristics of the mask which viewers may misinterpret as non-rigid changes due facial muscle action. The figure below shows the same Edo-period Noh mask, Magojiro, at three inclinations.”
Changeability of the Noh mask: http://www.kasrl.org/noh-mask-effect.gif)