January 10 day Intensive 2010

2010-01-28T10:10:00.010+10:00

I make sure to come along to as many of the training and rehersal days as I can. I always take notes and write down thoughts which Jacqui, John and myself often discuss afterwards at the Three Monkey's coffee house in West End. Unfortunately, I was only able to attend two days of the 2010 January 10 day intensive. Below are some of the notes I took from these two days. Florence Forrest (FF)

Some notes:

Monday 25th January 2010

"The pressure comes out of your centre, out upon your perimeter, exerting (itself) upon yourself." John Nobbs (JN)

"Don't balance, feel the floor." (JN)

"Not holding but feeling, feeling the ground, feeling yourself." Jacqui Carroll (Jacqui)

"(it's) the relationship with the ground that is getting more - getting softer and stronger." JN

"You have to know yourself in time and space" JN referring to the exercise Hanging Five.

...continuing he said,"Paradoxically, when you do something specific at a certain time you become universal (that is) separated from the quotidian - the mundane, everyday." (to amplify - the mundane or quotidian is that state which lacks consciousness of meaning and is therefore unempowered or slack - FF).

Wednesday 27th January 2010

After the Walks Jacqui and JN talked about the centre always being between the legs rather than one's weight moving from one leg to the other leg. Continuing JN said, "the static bit (ie the focus of the centre) is more important that the moving bits (like the legs or arms or the object held in the hand) - it (the centre) supports the movement. Concerning yourself with this primary object (generates focus and) everything comes out of that." Jacqui concurred saying, "(it is indeed) the heart of the matter."

"The upper body is free and the lower body is the power." Jacqui

"The arms decorate the centre. (The action) doesn't start at the arms, it finishes there. It (always) starts with the centre and this is very important." JN

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Some thoughts from this time being discussed with Jacqui and JN...

One of the most interesting new or rather developing understanding is that of the state of interior shading or dappled light - meaning a state where consciousness is both involved internally within a private sphere (moonlight or shadows) while simultaneously maintains an active expression to the outer world of other people and relationships (sunlight). The interior involvement gives the audience something to explore, to go into the actor, while the active involvement means that the actor is still involved in the exterior play of action and relationship. When the actor attempts to complete exteriorise themselves (actively show everything) they burn out the audience's attention but when both interior and exterior worlds co-mingle the actor in effect puts their self a little in the background allowing the audience to approach or be included and, if they are able, to peer inside the cool, beautiful depths and feelings of the heart. A very important point is that while the audience can peer into the shaded regions of the actor's interiority (ie their quietness, receptivity and heart), the actor meanwhile is enjoying a privacy in the shadow of their Being because while bathing in that shadow of privacy the soul can finally sit comfortably in the presence others....this shadow of privacy allows the content, that is, the nature of the heart to reveal itself.....which seems counter-logical but this paradox is surprisingly true.

....these are very raw understandings expressed spontaneously in my rather Jungian/poetic language....and there is so much here one might say and so many ways in which to say it......to be continued

OzFrank Theatre Notes

January 10 day Intensive 2010