n our work as actors we strive to work from our strengths. We work with the pure intention of creativity in the desire to share and place our uniqueness into our work. In pursuit of a true creative consciousness we seek the unified state where we move from inner conflict  towards inner alignment and satisfaction in our work.

In actor training we are working towards the experience and understanding of the integrated or unified state where awareness of the instrument allows us to work with and gradually overcome habitual behaviour, self conscious behaviour and result conscious behaviour. We strive to work from a place of readiness.

How should we know the place of readiness?  

In martial arts it may be described as a place of complete stillness, ie readiness to move in any direction and respond to any advance. In forms of movement and dance it may be described as centredness. In voice work it might be described as the free voice or natural voice coming from the centre. In physical theatre training it has been described as dynamic stillness.   In acting it might be described as a sense of presence.

The place of readiness isn’t. Activity or energy being spent to control fear. It isn’t self doubt, anxiety, pain. It isn’t self criticism. It isn’t apprehension. It isn’t self imposed limitation.

It is: an acceptance of self and the environment. It is a release of instinctual and patterned tendencies towards certain types of self protective behaviour. It is a readiness to allow the truth of oneself into ones work. It is like being out of our own way in self expression.  It feels like gravity and light; ownership of potential radiating in every direction. When we see it in class and on stage we see presence.

An actor in performance is a person under a certain type of pressure.

Some might say, enormous pressure where adrenalin levels are at an all time high.  In this heightened state we wish our performance to be compelling and convincing for an audience. Our tendency can be to fall back on behaviour that is habitual and/or controlling under the pressure to “get it right”.  We can be limited by our need to control fear. Fear of judgement, criticism, our own expectations etc.

We have a tendency to rely on old habits or habits of the social self that limit an expansion into greater freedoms of impulsivity and creativity.  

For this reason we embark on a process of ongoing training. We strive to become  masters of a craft that is on one hand so simple and in another so complex. One might say we are working to set ourselves free from limitation.  

Our goal is to achieve a “unified state” of awareness that provides us with the opportunity to transcend self limiting behaviour, to free our need to control fear.

To work from a place of readiness and centredness.

How do we achieve this? One of the first steps to expanding awareness is the naming process. Identifying through various exercises and practises those aspects of our nature which fall into the above three categories, of self limiting behaviour. (mentioned in greater detail in earlier articles)

Another step is the expression aspect of the work.

Once I have named and exposed a habitual tendency, a limitation, an apprehension, I can go to work directly exercising the muscle in the particular area where I am less strong.

For example: if I am afraid of becoming vulnerable in my work I can do vulnerability exercises. I can practise with an intimate share with an understanding member of the ensemble. I can share something that is important and meaningful, thereby committing to the act of experiencing from a truthful and heartfelt perspective.

If I am uncomfortable with anger expression I can work this muscle by isolating anger, and expressing it for its own sake without having to focus on any particular person or issue. I can blow the balloon way past where I would normally need to go in a performance and practise this one particular “muscle” of expression.

In every aspect where I become aware of a resistance to a particular form of expression I can practise it specifically. Thereby reducing my resistance and becoming more comfortable in that area.

When I face a fear of expression  I gain “muscularity” in that area and also release a certain amount of instrumental tension that is preventing me from reaching a place of readiness in my work.

Once I am released from fear I have no need to control it. The energy I spend controling a fear can now be placed directly into my work. Which means I have chanelled the energy and used it in a positive sense. I am working from a place of readiness not a place of tension control.

Expanding self awareness.

Introspection, meditation, expurgation, mutual discussion, intimate sharing of feelings, counselling, facilitation of the inner selves; are all means by which I may expand self awareness.

Another avenue is to practise allowing moment to moment impulses. Many exercises are done in class to expand self awareness centre around two things. The first is that they are expressive in nature and require us to “talk to ourselves”. The second is that are repetitive and uncensored. Leading to a feeling of surprise when we hear ourselves say something that prior to that moment we were either unaware of or had been reluctant to admit.

By expressing feelings and thoughts and putting them into words we have begun the process. But this is not all that is required to release moment to moment impulses. We will often have to deal with self consciousness or self judgment that will tell us that it is not OK to express our feelings by stating them out loud.

However it is the very repetitive nature of these exercises and the fact that they are uttered out loud that gradually release us from censoring our impulses.

In creative expression our impulses are the magic food of inspiration.  

Our impulses must be free. We must build a relationship of trust with ourselves. It is no doubt probable that as we develop in our craft our free impulses become more and more precise or refined in their expression.

We so often stem our impulses by thinking or controlling or fearing. We fear a dissatisfactory result, we think it will be not good enough to earn the applause etc. All the time we are behaving this way we are self limiting and denying the rest of the world our magic. Our unique gift which no one else can provide.

When we commit to a process of instrumental freeing we are exercising and expanding instrumental awareness, range of expression and trust of impulses.

In practising the naming, exposing and expressing techniques we are doing two things:

Firstly we are building muscularity and condition in the functional areas of our craft, namely expressive range and the ability to connect to our inner truth: that which we can share, that which we can give, that which is unique.

Secondly we are learning to work from a place of readiness that is seated in confidence, generosity, and esteem. Our place of readiness is our truth,

limitless and abundant expression, our dynamic potential.

Martin Challis is an actor, director and mentor
in the Merry Old Land Of Oz

©2001 Martin Challis

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