When I was in graduate school in addition to directing a thesis production I had to write something as well. I wrote a piece on a small but important book " The rediscovery of style by Michel Saint-Denis the co founder of Juilliard with John Houseman. At the time I didn't know I would become the repertory director of Juillliard's touring company after graduation and learn first hand a lot more about these two founding artists. I also had the great fortune of meeting John Houseman and having him review our work.
" Style is the man himself" Michel Saint-Denis
Michel Saint-Denis said " Style is the man himself"... what does he mean? That style is not an external definable idea. We over simplify this word. We say that piece is archetypal, this one is poetic and this one is naturalistic..etc. While all these terms and concepts are true they do not get at what Michel was saying. That style is so much more than an exterior show. It has to do with who the writer is. Nature and Nurture. Who are they? When and where are they writing? Who are the essential people in this writer's life. In dreams we say you are everyone in your dream and the people and symbols are also from your own life. Your mother, father, sisters and brothers, children and loves of your life...its the same for playwrights. Study Tennessee Williams and Chekhov and you will see they are writing the same play over and over as they find the truth of their own lives; it becomes the universal truth of our human condition.
"Theatre comes from life, but theatre is not life. Life in the theatre demands transposition and style"
Michel also said " Theatre comes from life, but theatre is not life. Life in the theatre demands transposition and style". Today we have gotten so far from this important concept and understanding. We are obsessed with making life on stage 'real;" but theatre is an art form. IT is an interpretive reality. Even devised work layers in poetry, interpretation, points of view that are not just documenting life. Actors are artists. And for me the art of acting is about transformation. Not playing yourself on stage but walking in the shoes of someone else's life. Laura in Glass Menagerie is Rose in Tennessee's life. Amanda is his mother. He is Tom. But again it is an interpretation of life. Great art is based in reality but it becomes something else. And actors and all theatre artists must study technique to create a process to uncover what the writer intended.
And actors and all theatre artists must study technique to create a process to uncover what the writer intended.Â
We are stuck in the everyday reality on our cell phones and computers and televisions. Now we make self tapes to get into schools or get a job. Technology is a valuable tool. But theatre is live. It is an art form like any other. Perhaps it is the greatest of art forms. As it combines everything. Visual art, physical behavior, dance, music, language and psychology.
being "real" isn't what acting or theatre is. It is a poetic interpretation of life
It challenges all we know. But being "real" isn't what acting or theatre is. It is a poetic interpretation of life that allows us the distancing effect Brecht told us about. We are pulled into the story and life on stage while also being allowed to think and observe. We feel and we think. Intellect is a combining of the heart and mind and soul.
We need this connection more than ever before. And an actor being "real" is not theatre. This art form is so much more...and training is key as well as experiencing and understanding living life.
-Jennifer McCray Rincón