Movement of Joints Workshop

Theatre Studies Workshop Reflection: Introduction to Movement of Joints.

The workshop conducted on that day was really enriching in my opinion. It was aimed at exposing us to the mechanism of the joints and to help us understand certain things about ourselves hitherto unknown. So we started off by playing a simple game, ‘Simon Says’. I thought this game was actually a good precursor to the work that we were going to do that day, because the game of ‘Simon Says’ requires one to follow instructions.

Now it sounds simple but in actuality this isn’t the case. Sometimes we might want to move our bodies in one way to express an emotion, but perhaps due to the incapability of our bodies, we are unable to do so. So while playing that game it started to dawn on me that discipline of the body is crucial in theatre. One has to be in complete control of his body, because after all he is its master.

Shortly after the game concluded, our instructor introduced us to a few types of puppets, namely the finger puppet, the mouth puppet, the glove puppet, the puppet that is controlled by rods, and string puppets. He showed us a few techniques of a puppeteer and demonstrated to us certain concepts of puppetry that could also be applied to that of theatre. I think this was really enriching as well because I myself don’t have a lot of exposure to the technicalities of puppetry, but it was really amazing to see him move these puppets and “breathe life” into them. While he demonstrated moving the puppets, he then related concepts of puppetry, such as energy, to all of us. One has to mimic life, and transfer that into the puppet, or the movements would just look jerky and artificial. Similarly, an actor needs to be precise in his movements, and know exactly how to move and speak to achieve desired effects and emotions.

We then watched a few videos of interesting pieces that used puppetry. These people did not use elaborate puppets, or elaborate props. Simple things like Styrofoam balls and a doll can already be used to create beautiful art. He also told us something important: “If one does not appreciate art, one would not know how to create it.” A lot of theatre is about feeling. There is no “right” or “wrong”, but everything is again dependent on the audience receiving your piece.