Redefining the performing arts archive

This paper investigates representations of performance and the role of the archive. Notions of record and archive are critically investigated, raising questions about applying traditional archival definitions to the performing arts. Defining the nature of performances is at the root of all difficulties regarding their representation. Performances are live events, so for many people the idea of recording them for posterity is inappropriate. The challenge of creating and curating representations of an ephemeral art form are explored and performance-specific concepts of record and archive are posited. An open model of archives, encouraging multiple representations and allowing for creative reuse and reinterpretation to keep the spirit of the performance alive, is envisaged as the future of the performing arts archive

Returning to an old question: What do television actors do when they act?

This article argues for acknowledging and exploring actors’ processes in critical considerations of television drama. Theatre Studies boasts a tradition of research privileging the actor, including a century’s worth of actor-training manuals, academic works observing rehearsals and performances, and actor accounts. However, such considerations within Television Studies are relatively nascent. Drawing upon continuing drama as a fertile case study for investigating the specificities of television acting, the article concludes that the only way to understand television acting is through the analysis of insights from actors themselves, in combination with the well-established practices of analysing the textual end-products of television acting

Mapping Meisner – how Stanislavski’s system influenced Meisner’s process and why it matters to British Drama School training today

As the Meisner technique has increased in popularity in UK Drama schools over the last decade, it is important to understand its origin and where Meisner drew his own inspiration from during the development of his technique, especially when questioning its place within British conservatoire training. This article will give a brief outline of Meisner’s foundational training, such as the Repetition and Activity exercises, however the main purpose is to highlight the ideas behind the technique. This will include the training Meisner received within the Group Theatre, the inspiration he took from the Russian scholars and the areas of Stanislavsky’s system that were utilised as he developed his technique. The article also acknowledges the argument that the Meisner technique’s introduction outside the US has been subject to aform of misrepresentation as large parts of Meisner’s more analytical training have often not been adequately represented, and in some cases ignored entirely

Villain Stardom in Socialist China: Chen Qiang and the Cultural Politics of Affect

Despite playing various kinds of roles across genres from 1949 to 1965, Chen Qiang acquired stardom mainly due to his remarkable screen performance as villainous landlords in socialist China. His villain stardom is an aberrant case, compared to the majority of film stars in Chinese socialist cinema who encouraged identification and emulation and helped propagate socialist ideology to reform Chinese citizens. Paying special attention to socio-historically specific film exhibition practices and the actor's own reflections on his villain performance, this article argues that Chen's stardom functioned as an important affective technology within a wider and complex Communist propaganda enterprise in that it helped cultivate class hatred necessary for the Communist revolution and socialist land reform campaigns. Through this case study, the article suggests that close engagement with both cultural–historical specificities of cinema and recent critical theories of affect open up a space for researching the diversified star phenomena in contemporary China

Transforming Empathy to Empathetic Practice amongst Nursing and Drama Students

Nurses and actors both require the ability to demonstrate empathy in their practice. Mastering communication skills and techniques can inform an empathetic response. This skill is particularly important for nurses working in paediatric palliative and end of life care but there is lack of consensus whether empathy can be taught. The process an actor follows when getting into character incorporates drawing on personal emotive experiences and necessitates being receptive to others on stage in order to ‘journey’ from listening and empathising to actually being a character. We have translated this practice into the way we teach nursing students to communicate empathy

The reaction in counter-action: how Meisner technique and active analysis complement each other

This article is an investigation into the difference between reaction and counter-action. The question arose during my experience of Active Analysis at the Stanislavski Acting Laboratory in California Riverside University. In the Meisner technique the emphasis lies on instinctive reaction, whereas in Stanislavski’s Active Analysis the action and counter-action are emphasised. Counter-action can be seen as the force working against the main action of the scene creating conflict. Having extensive knowledge of reaction, and experience of counter-action, it became important to understand the difference between the two concepts and the importance of both in actor training and application to text. Through research into Action-Perception theory, self-regulation and motivation, I attempt to dissect the fundamental discrepancies between the two principles. My findings show that reaction stems from impulse and instinct, whereas counter-action is rooted in motivation. When motivation and instinct are in conflict, self-regulation will attempt to supress the impulse and over-ride it with an alternative counter-action more suited to the overall motivation. As self-regulation is a limited resource, prolonged use will make this harder to control. Emotion control draws on the same limited resource as self-regulation. Suggesting that emotion regulation would be affected by a conflict in instinct and motivation. These conclusions have a strong impact on how emotions are manifested and produced in actors and warrant a re-evaluation of how actors reach emotional connection to the given circumstance, as well as how emotion is viewed and engaged with in actor training in general

Losing Sight of Land: Tales of Dyslexia and Dyspraxia in Psychophysical Actor Training

This article reports on the findings of a research project into the impact of psychophysical actor training methods on neurodiverse students. It illustrates how the application of a Social Theory of Learning Difference reveals the mechanisms whereby these training methods dysconsciously discriminate against those students who are dyslexic and/or dyspraxic learners. The research findings recognise the inherent value of psychophysical methods in the training of actors but suggests that there is a need to move away from a singular Psycho-Medical Theory of Learning Difference and to adopt a framework of learning difference based on the Social Model of (dis)ability, which requires institutions to adapt their provision to better meet a diverse range of needs. A revision of psychophysical approaches is proposed, which draws on a neuroscientific theory of experiential practice and a psychological framework of actor engagement. This new approach seeks to enhance the effective communication of embodied knowledge and skills in diverse actor training contexts and to allow students who are dyslexic and/or dyspraxic learners equal access to that learning