PLAYBACK THEATRE LEADERSHIP 2017

ESSAY

How to let Citizen Actors Glow

Ng Yee Ki, Kiki

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 How to let Citizen Actors Glow
Ng Yee Ki, Kiki

How to let Citizen Actors Glow

Ng Yee Ki

Introduction

The actor comes on stage and brings her whole world: her biography, memories, passion,
needs and impulses. These are the hidden resources from which she crafts the story on
stage. The inspiration comes from these inner materials that are stimulated by the story and
spontaneously take the form of a stage action or image.(Apel-Rosenthal, p.2)

The quote above by Aviva Apel-Rosenthal is both appealing and puzzling to me as a

playbacker. I am amazed by the beautiful vision, and at the same time find it difficult to obtain. It
feels even more challenging when one wish to achieve it in the level of a team—how could a team
leader enable the “hidden resources” of the citizen actors shine on stage and illuminate the heart of
the audiences?

The writing of this essay is literally a “re-search” for me— the process of reading,
speculating and writing have somehow restructured my perception and belief in “artistic training” in
playback theatre. I would like to share little about this interesting journey.

As a theatre practitioner, I believe in the power of theatre in catharsis, which is defined as

“purging of the spirit of morbid and base ideas or emotions by witnessing the playing out of such
emotions or ideas on stage" by Aristotle. 1(Powell, n.d) Ideally, with the support of exquisite ritual
setting and the guide of a containing conductor, Playback Theatre can be much more impactful
then conventional theatre in terms of transformation. Yet, in execution, the power of ritual usually
surpass the power of artistry in Hong Kong situation. I believed that, by equipping actors’ with more
theatrical skills (i.e working on the “beautiful physical expressions and postures, effective use of

1According to Esta Powell, most of the definitions emphasize two essential components of
catharsis: the emotional aspect (strong emotional expression and processing) and the cognitive
aspect of catharsis (insight, new realization, and the unconscious becoming consciousness) and
as a result - positive change.

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space, sophisticated use of language, with words and narrative directed towards the teller and
audiences, the ingenuous use of cloth and chairs, music played with rich emotion” (Munakata, 37),
together with the deep listening and ritual that we always emphasized, the impact of playback
theatre would be magnified.

However, the writing falls into a very different track while I reconsider the notion of citizen
actor and making reference with different training approaches. I recall different playbackers I met in
training context—my teammates and my students with different background. They might not be
brilliant theatrically, but they could still bring forth impressive enactments. Would teaching them
some staging skills be helpful in enhancing their expressiveness and thus the artistry of playback
theatre? Or, would it somehow create certain blocks for them to glow in their own way? Then Jerzy
Grotowski and his works came into my mind. I had been writing on his life-long pursuit in self-
revealing investigation (in and beyond theatre) in my Mphli. dissertation in 2011. In 2016, I
encountered Stephen Wangh, who worked with Jerzy Grotowski in 1967 and greatly influenced by
him. Attending his workshops as well as teaching his methods under his guidance and supervision,
I was able to experience the Grotowski-based physical acting training (which I had already read
from the book An Acrobat of the Heart: A Physical Approach to Acting Inspired by the Work of Jerzy
Grotowski long ago) in different levels, and have a refreshed understanding in his method,
especially the notion of “via negativa”. I believe the advocacies and methodologies of this
seemingly “elitist” figure would shed light on the training of a citizen actor, without falling into the
tendency of professionalism. And this is what I have been exploring in my teaching as a core
training facilitator.

There are two parts in this essay. In the first part, I argue the importance for artistic training
for citizen actors. With reference to Jerzy Grotowski’s notion of via negativa i.e. eradication of

blocks), my contention is that a theatre training doesn’t necessarily lead to professionalism (which
violate the essence of “citizen actor” ), but would probably give rise to the improved openness and
enhanced capacity of a citizen actor.

In the second part, based on the discussion in part one, I would go further to examine
cultural-specific blocks that commonly found in Hong Kong playbackers (as I observe) and propose
some exercises that might be probably helpful in enhancing actors’s capacity in enactment
(especially transgressive stories) .

This essay focuses on the artistic training of the citizen actors. It should be noted that the
importance of other elements (e.g. the management of ritual) and the training of other roles (i.e. the
preparation of conductor and the musicians) should not undermined in containing stories, though

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they are not covered in this essay. On the other hand, the training need of a playback actor is
actually multi-dimensional. Just like what Veronica Need suggests, “Playback Theatre challenges
the actors to listen, allow intuition and inspiration to arise, trust and support each other, and to call
upon their innate personal wisdom and experience. So in Playback Theatre training, in addition to
theatre skills, there is a need to develop greater personal awareness, and self-
understanding.” (Needa, n.d.) In this essay, however, I would not able to cover all of above.

Part I Do Citizen Actors need theatre training?

Citizen Actor is one of the key notion in Playback Theatre. In Acts of Service, Fox describes
it as a person who “performs as needed by the community, then melts back into the social fabric –
a modern answer to the aboriginals of ‘high degree’ who live as ordinary tribespeople except when
they are needed.”(214) In Acting in Playback Theatre: Walking on Stage with a Teller’s Heart,
Penny defines it as “a performer, a non professional, a volunteer, from and of the community, not
necessarily fully equipped, but an individual prepared to step forward and act.”(7) These definition
based on an assumption that, everyone possess a natural capacity to embody other’s stories in
satisfying way (as Veronica Needa suggests). Munakata, in her book The Way of Playback
Theatre, even suggests that “(citizen actors), rather than the professional actors, who often
impress the audience most”:

In the world of playback theatre, ordinary people with insight, life experience and
heightened sensitivity can develop into citizen across who can impress an audience deeply.
The belief that only special people have the talent to become professional actors, and that
only professional actors can deliver good theatre, is very different from the views of art
activists and pole connected to community and social theatre, and it is very different from
the views of playback theatre. (Munakata, 31)

Apart from the insight, life experience and sensitivity of the citizen actor, Penny suggests
that the courage exhibited by a citizen actor, who “step(s) into the unknown as an
improviser/creator with the vulnerability” made him/her more appreciated, “because the
actor is not a specialist”.(7)

However, the statements above do not deny the need of training for a citizen actor. On the
contrary, that is believed that a multi-dimensional training is necessary in preparing the citizen
actor “to step forward and act”. This is especially true for what Fox described as “deep stories”.
A deep story is a story that is first and foremost of vial importance to the teller. It is the kind of story
that create a hush in the hall because everyone is listening so intently. A deep story is

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fundamentally a story where the sense of risk is palpable , the teller’s risk of daring to ell or getting
it clear; the actors’ risk in trying to get it right; and the risk that certain members of the audience will
not be able to bear it. (Fox, Epilogue: The Journey to Deep Stories, 195)

One of the defining features, as described in the quote above, is that “palpable sense of
risk for the teller, actors and as well as the audience. This risk actors might encounter is further
elaborated by Apel-Rosenthal:

The light that illuminates inner currents of inspiration can bring the actor to a darker corner
within himself. In this vulnerable or sensitive place, an actor may be confronted with painful
themes, This leads some actor to shy away form their authentic expressions replacing them
by false or superficial ones. Other actors may become so wrapped up in emotional
outpouring that they no longer address the teller’s story. The same flow of creative energy
that nourishes aesthetic expression can destroy it like a flood or drought. (3)

Both the “false or superficial” expression and the emotional outpouring are the symptoms
showing that the actors are not strong enough psychologically and physically in containing the
weight of the stories. And this delicate dynamic would make audiences hesitate to go deeper, as
Fox suggests:

…if any of the actors should worry why in their regular performances they are not getting
deeper stories from their audiences, it is simply because the audiences sense that the
actors are not yet ready to hold them. (Fox, Epilogue: The Journey to Deep Stories, 195)

The containment and enactment of the deep story would “shake our own world view”, and
give rise to transformation through the “perceptual, direct, live communion”(in Grotowski’s
expression) between performer and audience. In order to invite these stories, some some
preparation work (or training) to strengthen citizen actors’ capacity in embodiment is essential.

Spontaneity

Before exploring the approaches to strength a citizen actor’s capacity in embodiment, we

may consider the notion of spontaneity, which is believed to be condition that give rise to “hidden
resources” (in Apel-Rosenthal’s expression) or “the natural capacity to embody other’s stories” (in
Needa’s expression). In Act of Service, Fox described this as following:

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 In Spontaneity is a kind of ecstasy, an attunement which encapsulates thought. The artist
becomes “like a medium—you try to cross over into the part of you that’s always there but
is only alive when you’re playing. It is related to “the power of creating beyond oneself
without losing oneself. ( Fox, Act of Services, 81)

The passage above describes the ideal conduction in which an actor (or musician) could
listen and receive the sharing and channel the it into action (or music) organically in playback
theatre. Yet, it is not easy to obtain, as actors would constantly held back by blocks:

What frequently block the senses from receiving even the most basic input or the brain from
giving the body the most simple instructions, are self-conscious thoughts…We fear to stand
out, to make a mistake to fail, even to succeed. Each of us has our own collection of
“should” and “nay” sayers (Fox, Act of Services, 82)

Fox observes that self-consciousness is often masked by conscious thinking, i.e. the desire
to know often acts as an impediment to spontaneity. To remove the blocks, one should stop asking
questions, planning and analyzing in certain extend. Practically it is difficult to ask the actors to not
to think, plan and analyze, as it might become another injunctions that kill the spontaneity. Instead,
Fox and his company do a lot of physical and nonverbal work so as to loosen the grip of rationality.
They also expand their movement and vocal capacity with different exercises. Indeed, they would
praise acting in a wide variety of roles, particularly in this where we block. Furthermore, they would
"share about and even deal therapeutically at times with the background of personal experience
which prevent us form acting with spontaneity” within the team. (Fox, Act of Services, 83)

This direction suggested by Fox echoes to Grotowski’s notion of via negativa, i.e. the
eradication of block (I would discuss more in the following sections). With reference to Grotowski’s
methodologies in actor training and later researches, we would have deepened understanding
towards the blocks and more inspiration in eliminating them.

Playback Theatre and Jerzy Grotowski

Jerzy Grotowski is well-acknowledged as one of the most insightful and influential theatre
director and reformer since 1960s. Besides being famous as the director of a number of
astonishingly outstanding works, his initiation of “poor theatre” and his intense acting training
(which give rise to “holy actor”) is highly exalted and influential in theatrical sphere. Interestingly,
though he is generally regarded as an elitist (in contrast to citizen actor), his notions are often
discussed in relation to Playback Theatre:

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 While it conforms to the ideals of “poor theatre” advocated by Grotowski (1968)—in fact, all
that is needed for playback is a teller, a conductor, actors—playback nevertheless
welcomes a certain level of theatricality. (Fox, Gathering Voices, 37)

…by foregoing the use of any large props and by only using props sparingly, the audience
is engaged in making full use of their imagination, and they can freely navigate within their
own frame of space and time.. Munakata, 37

The quotes above discuss Playback Theatre in relation to the notion of Poor Theatre. In
both of the cases, the personal and scenic technique of actor as the core of theatrical art. In order
to motivate audiences’ imagination on a minimal stage (in both Poor Theatre and Playback
Theatre), an actor is required to contain “a certain level of theatricality”. According to Grotowski,
this could not be acquired by “kind of recipe” or "box of tricks”, but the total act of an holy actor,
which is the indispensable component of Poor Theatre:

…a poor theatre not only implies a simple and minimal exterior theatrical form, but also the
humble quest and exploration for human essence. It is the ground for provocation and
transgression— “to cross our frontiers,exceed our limitations, fill our emptiness—fulfill
ourselves;” thus, a form of encounter in which both the actors and spectators confront and
transgress their cliché so as to reveal the wholeness within themselves (Grotowski,
“Towards a Poor Theatre” 21).

This act of the total unveiling of one’s being becomes a gift of the self which borders on the
transgression of the barriers and love. I call this a total act. If the actor performs in such
way, he becomes a kind of provocation for the spectator. (Grotowski, “Methodical
Exploration” 99)

In the sixties, Grotowski and his Laboratory Theatre rediscovered the holy actor. By
highlighting the actor’s capacity to expose profound emotions and create symbols and
archetypal images with his voice and body, Grotowski theatre helped us reconnect to our
deep and lost humanity. In the seventies, Johnathan Fox and Jo Salas created Playback
Theatre whose essence is to contribute the actors’s work to illuminate personal stories as
actors of service to society. ( Apel-Rosenthal, 2)

The actor’s capacity to “expose profound emotions and create symbols and archetypal
images with his voice and body” is not achieved by the "box of tricks”, but the “humble quest and
exploration for human essence, and the courage to transgress the barriers in the witness of

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audiences. And this courage is comparable to what Penny suggests— a playback actor also “need
a performance courage that matched special the courage the teller summons to tell”:

They have to step into the unknown as an improviser/creator with the vulnerability that this
necessarily requires…when they summon the courage to risk revealing themselves like
this, the are making something truly new in the world- alongside, and with, the teller… The
audience sense this daring. They appreciate it all the more because the actor is not a
specialist.They recognize its inherent generosity, its rue spirit of meeting…This takes
courage but as we all know it is deeply, deeply rewarding work. (7)

The essence of the notion of a holy actor and a citizen actor is somehow consistent. Both of
them brave enough to transgress and go beyond their comfort zone under the witness of the
audience. Both of them are generous enough to commit the act for for themselves, but as a gift to
the audience. And this is the courage and generosity behind constitute the true meeting between
actors and audiences.

The excerpts above shows there are quite a lot of resonances between the essences of
Playback Theatre and Grotowski’s advocacies. It is believed that his innovative methodology which
aims at which finding “concrete paths to secret, mysterious process” “in his theatrical and post-
theatrical works could also shed light on the training of a citizen actor.

The notion of via negativa, cliche and encounter

Underneath the Grotowski’s fascinating experiments in and beyond theatre, there is a
coherent understanding on human nature and condition. Grotowski observes that human beings
are suffering from different forms of alienation and identify clichés as the cause of the miseries. In
order to reveal the pre-differentiated original self which is covered by clichés, Grotowski started his
practical self-revealing investigation, which is by nature a disarmament through art. This vision of
Grotowski needs a platform to actualize his self-revealing investigations which are known as
encounter. It is believed that, “cliché” and “encounter” are not only the thread to access to his
wisdom and methodology, but also very usual in applicable in other works that in touch with human
nature. In playback theatre context, such a process of disarmament could release a citizen actors
from different blocks and reclaim the state of spontaneity, which is “our fundamental right, not
characteristic of a few privileged people”. (Peltoniemi, 12)

Grotowski’s notion of cliché, is comparable with what Fox named as blocks in previous
discussion. In Grotowski’s discourse, Cliché refers to the popular concept of truth which constitute
the limited and external “I”. This notion is often expressed by the terms veils, masks, lies and banal

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habits, denoting something that block us from being organic and authentic. There are different
forms of cliché, for instance—the generally accepted and stereotyped visions, concepts,
assumptions, conventions, norms, practices or habits, are internalized and inscribed into our very
existence in the process of socialization and civilization, influencing our mind and behavior
unconsciously. One of the examples is the “daily life techniques of the body” or the “habitual
techniques of the body” described by Marcel Mauss. People adapt naturally and unintentionally
within a definite cultural circle, leading to what he means by “first cultural
differentiation” (Grotowski, “Theatre of Source” 257). Grotowski believes that cliché poisons us
deeply and unconsciously, blocks us from having personal authentic feelings and experiences and
thus being an “authentic individual”. It implies the lack of courage, creativity and vitality and leads
to insincerity, hypocrisy or inauthenticity.

With reference to Grotowski’s notion of cliché and Fox’s account for “blocks”, it believed
that the “blocks” are multi-dimensional. Some of them are universal, like the conscious thinking
caused by fears. Keith Johnstone suggests actors commonly encounter the fear of being
unoriginal, fear of being crazy and fear of being obscene in enactment. (Fox, Act of Service, 86)
Floodgate claims, in playback theatre context, citizen actors would indeed face the fear of ‘getting it
wrong’, the fear that we might induce powerful emotions (or indeed trauma) within the tellers which
will not be containable, and the fear that we might release powerful emotions of our own.(16-17)
On the other hand, some of them are quite individual, like “the background of personal experience”
Fox and his company would "share about and even deal therapeutically. In addition, some of the
internal blocks are cultural-specific, that is inscribe to our very existence through socialization in
particular society. These blocks don't only appear as “conscious thinking” , but also become
“habitual techniques of the body”. Therefore, even our conscious thinking is stopped, there are still
some “blocks” which inscribed in our body, affecting us unconsciously, holding back us from being
spontaneous at the moment. Yet, unlike Grotowski who believe those “cliché poisons us deeply”, I
believe they could be part of our resources as citizen actors. By being aware, understand and
working with them though exercises, we would open up more possibilities in enactment.

“Encounter”,2 in Grotowski’s notion, refers to the concrete platforms/ events designed to

disarm human being through arts. This term covers two important attributes of Grotowski’s works.
Firstly, the term encounter emphasizes the “face to face” meeting between human beings which is
multidirectional. Secondly, encounter also indicates people’s encounter with their own clichés,
which is often a “meeting in conflict” or even a “battle”.

2 In Grotowski’s terminology, encounter is occasionally called “event”, “meeting” and “confrontation”

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 In my Mphil dissertation, i have generalized four underlying principles of encounters from
Grotowski’s works and advocacies in his theatrical and post-theatrical eras. It is believed that these
principles are useful in formulating exercises to eliminate blocks of citizen actors.

(i) corporeal approach

The encounters designed by Grotowski is mostly corporeal, thus work on the level of bodily
and physical experience. He believe that “we do not possess memory, our entire body is memory”.
Since “everything is written there [the body]”, he claims these memories can only be “recognized or
discovered by the body and by all the Rest”. Therefore, Grotowski’s encounter are fundamentally a
search within one’s body-memory and body life for the inner response to the external stimuli or
confrontation. (Ng, 84-88)

(ii) via negativa

Via-negativa, which literally means “negative way”, is the common and fundamental logic
found in Hindus philosophy. For instance, to attain Sunyata, the Perfect Wisdom, one has to be
enlightened through “via negativa” , that is “denying worldly categories and phenomenon to the
point of denying the self” (Barba, Land of Ashes 49); In Yoga Sutras, Patanjali states the “the
purpose of Yoga discipline is to eliminate the impurities caused by the process of conditioning so
that the Light of Pure Unconditioned Awareness may shine” (Metha 142); Krishnamurti, another
Indian philosopher, also claims that the method of “via negativa” is the source of freedom which
leads to liberation.
Influenced by Hindus philosophy, Grotowski’s encounters are designed to eradicate and
eliminate the blocks, obstacles and organism’s resistance which prevent the individual from
“experiencing the feeling of his own freedom, that his organism is completely free and powerful,
and that nothing is beyond his capabilities.” (Ng, 88-91)

(iii) transgression
Transgression is another important principle of encounters. The extensive physical works in
Grotowski’s training are known to be very challenging. But the physical challenges are not the
ends, but the means to break down limits imposed in our psyche. He asserts that, though the
challenging and almost impossible physical work, the division within us between conception and
the body’s ability disappears.This is a transgression of the cliché of self-imposed limits of our
discomfort. By transgressing the limits, more possibilities would be resulted. (Ng, 92-95)

(iv) conjunctio oppositorum

Literally means “the unity of the opposites”, this principle suggests that mutual illumination
and wholeness can be accomplished by bringing together oppositional forces—”to stimulate a

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process of self-revelation, going back as far as the subconsciousness, yet canalizing this stimulus
in order to obtain the required reaction” (Grotowski, “Towards a Poor Theatre” 128). This
underlying principle applied in all stages of his works implies the unity of mind and body, of thought
and emotion, of the inner life and outer reality, of discipline (technique) and spontaneity, and finally,
the unity of the “Self” with the Whole (truth) through self-sacrifice. (Delkhah 20) (Ng 95-98)

Part II Eliminating the cultural-specific blocks of Hong Kong playbackers

As discussed in previous sections, the blocks or cliches inscribed in our fundamental

existence and unconsciously affecting us. In the following session, I would focus in examining two
cultural-specific blocks—I would call them “psychological short circuit” and “physical shot circuit”,
that are commonly found in Hong Kong citizen actors based on my observation. These could also
be understood as our limitations in enactment.
Psychological short circuit refers the unfamiliarity in getting in touch with drastic emotion.
These emotion is supposed to be universal and fundamental to human beings, but become
alienated to us due to limited exposure. Hong Kong is a highly capitalized society which free from
wars and major disasters. Political Apathy, which generally claimed to be the result of capitalism
and colonial rule divert our focus in private sector. Mainstream ideology urges us to take care our
own issues (e.g. to buy a flat, get married…etc), rather concerning things that beyond our sight.
The sense of security and stability somehow become a block for us to comprehend and embody
the extreme emotions of those who suffers from tremendous trauma.

The physical short circuit refers to the difficulties in expressing our inner life through our
body. This is not only the result of the general cultural environment that “devalue initiation and
physical experience” as Fox described.( Act of Service, 83) The inadequacy in body
expressiveness as observed in Hong Kong citizen actors is somehow related to the bondage of
Chinese culture, the local education system and the distorted body image created by the mass
culture. Culturally, despite of the colonial history, the mindset and behavior of Hong Kong People
are significantly influenced by the value of Confucianism. The famous quote from Confucius—
“look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what
is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary to propriety” are an accurate
description about how our body is being controlled in our culture, at least in public sector. One
one hand, our expressions are tamed and quite minimal. On the other hand, the judgement of
propriety is very much inscribed in behavior. So the “volume” of the conscious thinking is louder
then that of other culture.
In terms of education, physical experience is greatly undermined. Physical education, the
only subject that related to physicality, is target-orientated rather then process-oriented. We are
instructed to move and act rightly and effectively, but not to really enjoy and explore with our body.

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Drama course is not regular subject in school. Even there is some drama interest group in school,
many of them become a tool to achieve other purposes (e.g. teaching English or civil education).
Indeed, body is very much objectified in mass culture. Body is always subject to be
commented and criticized, but not the subject to experience. This leads to low body image, and
sometime makes one very conscious about “how he/she look” in front of audiences.

“Short circuit” is close to what Grotowski described as “alienation”. I trust human beings’
capacity in expressing our inner life through our body organically and getting in touch and primitive
and extreme emotions. They are resembles to the degenerated muscles which stop us from
moving (both physically and emotionally) freely. We need to have certain kind of “work out” that
strengthen the “muscles” and “channeling the uncultivated path, so that we could reconnect to
those natural capacity. In the following sections, I would share two sets of exercises. They are very
much consistent to Grotowski’s principles of encounter. They are quite helpful in helping citizen
actors to work with the blocks mentioned above in my own experience.

Exercise to eliminate physical short circuit

The workshop conducted by Stephen Wangh is inspiring in helping individual to be aware
of and to work with their blocks. It is believed that, each participants had their own discoveries in
the process. Here, I would like to record some of the exercises in brief , and share my discoveries
in relation to our previous discussion.

1. “Say whatever you feel and think”

At the very beginning, participants are asked to speak out whatever they feel and think at
the moment. Through articulation, this exercise enables me to be concretely aware of my thoughts,
feelings and associations at moment, which usually flow away easily. It helps me to listen to myself
consciously. Those feelings and associations, according of Wangh, are our direct responses to the
different stimulus, and are something that we can work on in improvisation. It is also applicable in
playback enactment. Sometimes our body “listen” more deeply then our mind. If we could
recognize and work with it, we may probably reach the unspoken essences of the stories. On the
other hand, the very act of admitting the conscious thoughts that come up in my mind brings some
delicate changes. By recognizing it, I was able to accept and let go the thoughts. In that case, that
particular piece of thought would no longer blocking my flow.
In brief, this simple exercise helps one to be aware of the “inner response to the external
stimuli or confrontation”. This awareness help us to be “in the moment”, and wake up our body as a
subject of experience.

2. The Cat, les exercises corporal.

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 The facilitator demonstrated a movement sequence called The Cat3 , which is physically
challenging. In fact he didn't tell us the name of the exercise at the beginning. Participants were
just asked to observe and copy it afterwards. We are asked to be aware of the feelings, thoughts
and associations induced throughout the process, then share in circle at the end. Each participant
shared what they encountered in the process—e.g. a man became very angry and questioned
himself why he is doing such a thing; another man was keep thinking rather the position is accurate
or not; a girl associated the movement with an animal image through the action. After we shared,
facilitator embraced the unique discoveries of the participants, and further illustrate the design of
the exercise.
The gymnastic element of exercises corporals provides actors challenges that seem
impossible to accomplish. By confronting this external stimuli, each individual got to face his/her
own limitation. The emotion, the thought and the association induced from the sequence become
something that workable, i.e. they can become a new stimuli, for us to continue the exploration.
What is being induced, according to Wangh’s metaphor, are the doorknob for us go further in the
creative process. They serves as the starting point of discover, help us to open to a world of
unknown. Afterwards, we could let go of it, and receive things behind the door. One the other hand,
the sequence of movement is derived from Hatha Yoga, which related to the primal body
conditioning. It also contain the archetypical images. Once we are engaged in the sequence, our
spins are activated and associations would flows.
It should be noted that, les exercises corporal is consistent to the “conjunctio oppositorum”,
thus it work with unity of spontaneity (the flow of the emotions and images) and structure (the fixed
sequence). For instance, the man who has induced angry throughout the process should not jump
around the room. Instead, he should put this element into the upcoming movement. Then the
quality of the sequence would change, and keep inducing new stimulus for us to work on.

3. River, les exercise plastiques

Exercises plastiques is originated from well-known systems such as Delsarte, Dalcroze and
European pantomime, in which actor’s ability in creating different forms and gestures are trained.
In the workshop, instead of learning how to present different gesture, we were asked to be aware
of the images and emotion that induced by doing.
To start with, the facilitator asked us to do some movements (e.g. running on spot very fast
and keep looking back), and asked us what is the images induced. Afterwards, he demonstrate to
us a “river”, which means a sequence of movement improvisation based on the vocabularies we
had learnt before. The river allows more freedom, and at the same time requires one to make

3 The sequence is illustrated in An Acrobat of the Heart: A Physical Approach to Acting Inspired by the Work
of Jerzy Grotowski (57-60)

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choices constantly (to follow or to let go). The key of the “river” is keep listening and receiving
different stimulus and response to them. The response then become another stimulus that evolves
the creative stream.
I believe the exercise above could open up an actor’s capacity in receiving and doing
simultaneously. The ability of receiving stimulus enable us have more inspirations to work with,
while the ability of making choices and forgoing train us to be more flexible. Besides, the river
could be done with other partner and under the witness of audiences. That brings more
complicated dynamics and it is train us how to remain organic and flexible in playback context.

Exercise for psychological short circuit

I would like to share an exercise that I once led in our team rehearsal. This exercise is
designed to deal with psychological short circuit. Transgressive movies which contains extreme
emotion are act as springboard for is us to jump into the world that is distant to us. The doers are
confronted with some taboos, and invited to devise upon them as stimulus. The rationale behind is
that, emotions are resembles to muscle. By stretching then, we would widen our capacity. The key
of the exercise is to let one immerse into the imagination and embody the emotions with his/her
body.

I used a movie called Help Me Eros as the entrance point, and gradually helped the
teammates to slide into the character’s internal world. The acting and cinematic language of the
movie are delicate, and favorable for observation. After playing the beginning 20 mins of the movie
(which allow empathy to take place), I asked the teammates to lie down on a spot that they felt
comfortable with. With the light dimmed, we started from simple breathing, then added the image
of the character. In their own pacing, they were asked to find five gestures that belong to the
character, and make it into a sequence. They were asked to aware the emotion and association
induced, while they’re trying the sequence with different rhythm and tension. Afterwards, they were
invited to add sound into the sequence.
Moving into the next step, the teammates were asked to walk and live as the characters.
The light remained to be dimmed, so that they could focus on the exploration rather then show and
tell their thoughts. Then, whenever I touched their shoulder, they had to voice out their inner voice
at the moment. In the last stage of the exercise, they were asked to divert their focus from their
inner world to also the external world. They were invited to sense the space as well as the
existence of other parties in the room. Instead of jumping into the scenic and interactive actions
directly, they were asked to sense and react to the dynamics correspondingly.
The exercise above wishes to bridge one from a passive receiver into a container of
emotions. The emphasis it to not create a character with presentable skills, but somehow

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culminate some bodily experience in those alienated emotions. It also aims at channeling the
emotion-body path, so that our capacity in containment could be enhanced.

Conclusion

Sometimes people argue that, we should embrace whatever citizen actors do, and claim
this is a means to celebrate the creativity of individuals. In my opinion, “proper” actor training is
essential to all playbackers. Instead of offering citizen actors “box of tricks” (in Grotowski’s
expression), I believe that a via negativa training approach would be helpful to remove the blocks
that hold back citizen actors, and allows their natural capacities to glow spontaneously. By offering
delicate actor training, I am not intended to undermine citizen actors’ internal resources and efforts.
In contrast this is based on a faith that each individual has great potential to act and embody
others’ story. Our duty as trainer is to facilitate them to uncover and acknowledge those resources,
and encourage them to trust what they already have. Therefore, instead of shaping them into
particular form, we create some “encounter” (or “traps” in Wangh’s term) that allow them to
discover their own way. As a result, the beauty of the citizen actos could be truly be seen and
honored.

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