An Action Research on the Application of a Somatic-oriented Actor's Training Approach to Dance Performance

• Main Authors: Lin, Shiou Jie, 林秀潔
• Other Authors: Wu, Yi-jung
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2016
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/90541157977342088671

碩士 === 臺北市立大學 === 舞蹈學系 === 104 === The study aims to explore the effects of application of a somatic-oriented actor’s training approach to dance performance. By reviewing previous results on application of acting methods in the research area of dance performance in recent years and addressing the formation, development, and theory of a somatic-oriented actor’s training approach, the study illustrates how the approach bridges the gap between dance performance and acting methods, which has been actively researched in prior studies. Taking the researcher’s self-complied material Dance of n as an example, the approach was applied to two dancers who have accepted professional training for over ten years in a rehearsal program containing 8 classes. Through the use of action research, the study conducts a comprehensive analysis of teaching records, teaching journals and working sheets for dancers etc., to examine the process of conducting the rehearsal program—from implementation, reflections to corrections, and to evaluate the effects and the limits in it. The finding shows that via using Uta Hagen’s methods of text and character analysis, the text of “Swan Lake” provides the psychophysical seeds which the dancers’ bodymind germinates as it engages them directly, which allows them to explore ki and qualities every character possesses. By exploring breathing and qualities in each movement, dancers can dig out the contours of each inner state of being/ doing, and then the transitions from one action to another are joined. Once breathing and actions are connected, they are gradually weaved into a psychophysical score, constituting a stage figure. As dancers’ sensory engagement accumulates, the temperament and desire of the character emerge, shaping the overall aesthetics of the performance score. Therefore, the somatic-oriented actor’s training approach starts from breathing, attaching great importance to the integration and coordination between body and mind. It guides dancers to explore performance in a healthy way and enhances role interpretation. In addition, the findings also suggest that factors in breath and Somatics are worth studying in dance performance.