In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

  • Preparing to Devise
  • Susanna Morrow (bio), Gleason Bauer (bio), and Joan Herrington (bio)

In his 2004 Theatre Topics article on devising in college programs, John Schmor extolled the riches of ensemble-based devising, noting: "I believe there are unique educational and artistic advantages to departmentally supported new works devised by students and faculty in intensive collaboration" (259). In the last several years, colleges and universities across the country have evidenced their agreement as more and more production rosters include new works that have been collaboratively created by teams of creative theatre artists.

In few of these programs, however, does the established curriculum include training in the skills that inform the devising process. Thus faculty who wish to lead their students in devising work are struggling as they attempt to teach skills that are foundational to ensemble creation, while simultaneously are under pressure to deliver a "finished" performance. The authors of this article hope to provide some pedagogical tools that can be used in devising both in the classroom and in preparation for production—tools that train the participants and facilitate the creative process. The article is divided into three sections. The first two parts include preparatory devising techniques examined first in the context of the classroom. They are inspired by the work of Ruth Zaporah's Action Theater and Moisés Kaufman's Moment Work, respectively. The third section, derived primarily from Anne Bogart's Nine Viewpoints, provides an examination of devising that moves beyond curricular exploration and into the context of production.

It is an ongoing challenge to identify the skills a student artist requires in order to devise. The list is necessarily ever-changing as individual projects are defined. Thus we have ventured here to explore a variety of methodologies that share some common goals in terms of developing specific qualities beneficial in collectively creating original work. Individually, many of them are applicable to traditional theatre rehearsal, but they are contextualized here in their roles as tools toward effective devising. The authors of this article agree that the exercises we create must enable the actor to respond physically and instinctively and to listen and reply with fluidity. This work must encourage a willingness to embrace change and juxtaposition among the elements of the stage. These skills must be carefully countered by an ability to commit fully, to explore deeply, and then to realize, modify, or abandon an artistic pursuit. A critical perspective must be developed to counter the internal reverence that can accompany devising. We must learn to work effectively in a nonhierarchical model, referring both to artistic personnel and production elements. Our students must learn to think and work as an ensemble, and they must also learn to be specific in their ability to identify viable creations-moments/frames-effective units of performance that can be collaboratively cohered to form fresh, original theatre.

Susanna Morrow: Physical Theatre and the Application of Action Theater to Devising

Seven years ago, when I first assigned an original project in my vocal and physical preparation course, I was shocked by my students' initial response. My primary objective as a teacher was to provide my students—who, for the most part, were highly cerebral and unaware of their physical [End Page 125] and vocal use—with practices and exploratory exercises to place them "in their bodies." I wanted my students to connect viscerally to their words, to become physically and vocally available to emotion, and to listen/respond with their bodies and breath rather than just their minds. To this end, over the course of the semester, we developed in-depth warm-ups addressing the breath, body, and voice, and explored numerous exercises to expand their range of physical and vocal possibilities. So, in the final weeks of the semester, when I introduced an original project, I was shocked that my students sat down, crossed their arms in guarded gestures, and almost apologetically began to offer ideas in hushed, cramped voices such as "Well, this might be stupid, but maybe we can. . . ." I saw my students go from embodied actors willing to take risks to physically shutdown thinkers who needed to be sure of what they were doing before taking action; the...

pdf

Share