Musicality and Theatricality of Movement

Musicality of movement encompasses an organisation of time and the play of dynamics such as breathing, tension and relaxation of the body. By focusing on musical tempos such as lento, accelerando, pizzicato, vibrato, silence and states of  immobility, percussion, sustained shock and suspension, movement becomes theatrical. On the one hand the musicality of movement provokes the actor to move and on the other hand reveals the states of body, thought, soul and emotion of the actor to the spectator.

The body of the movement-actor is musical. It is a body with infinitely nuanced colors that is able to contain the burst of brilliance of theatre. 

 

Musicality of common movements

From simple physical actions involving the body's weight:

• Identification of variations of the toned/invigorated body in movement (tension, relaxation, effort, rest, momentum, breaks, acceleration, deceleration)

• Awareness of the necessities of movement in relation to gravity and its economy. How to find just the right amount of force for the right movement.

 

Musicality and theatricality 

This involves how to move from the real-body and its own musicality to the stage-body that is more or less fictitious as the holder of drama. Here focus lies on variations of the "time" component of the movement (duration, intensity, speed, rhythm)

• Exploration of fundamental speeds and dynamics, individual and collective rhythms, base tempos and causal games that involve understanding, manipulating, or demonstrating cause-and-effect relationships. 

• Listening to their dramaticity and their expressive potential for the actor and the spectator

• Experimenting with time, duration, rhythms, gestural phrasing, and its varied economies in order to experience, identify and control the levels of dramaticity present in the body by listening to the sensations they provoke

• Improvisations and putting into play musical gestural compositions.

 

This course is aimed at anyone interested in the musicality of movement and its theatricality: dancer, actor, mime, puppeteer, circus artist, musician, etc.

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