As an actor, awareness of your movement is the key to transformation. By making deliberate physical choices, you can fully and articulately embody different ways of being: you can become someone or something else. Laban's Efforts give you a way of identifying and making these choices. Working with them helps the actor to create wholly present and physically ambitious performances.
This book outlines Ewan's practical process, which allows the actor to understand their own movement and that of others by exploring one key part of Laban's work: the 'Efforts of Action Drive'.
This complete, stage-by-stage, working process has been developed through more than thirty years of work with actors in the studio. Clear instructions for practical exercises are woven throughout the book, as well as exciting ways to apply the work in rehearsal, performance and on set. This allows the actor to learn and apply Laban's Efforts for themselves. Full video and audio resources allow the reader to experience the practical work in action.
INTRODUCTION
Laban and His Work
Laban's Work on Effort
Approaching the Efforts
About this Book
How to Use this Book
Part A: THE BIGGER PICTURE
CHAPTER ONE: MOVEMENT AND THE ACTOR
What is Movement?
What is Effort?
What is Action?
Laban's Efforts and the Actor
CHAPTER TWO: UNLOCKING MOVEMENT POTENTIAL
The Body in Space
Basic Locomotion
The Body as Orchestra
Part B: BUILDING BLOCKS
CHAPTER THREE: WEIGHT, TIME, SPACE
The Motion Factors
Examining Weight, Time, and Space
CHAPTER FOUR: EMBODYING THE MOTION FACTORS
Weight
Time
Space
Discovering the Eight Basic Efforts
Part C: DISCOVERING THE EFFORTS
CHAPTER FIVE: ABOUT THE PROCESS
Process Overview
Basic Philosophies
CHAPTER SIX (a): THE PROCESS WITH FLOATING
Preparation
Meeting the Effort
Mapping the Effort
The Effort as Code
A Journey (Guided Improvisation)
Efforts in the World
CHAPTER SIX (b): THE OTHER SEVEN EFFORTS
Dabbing
Wringing
Thrusting
Pressing
Flicking
Slashing
Gliding
Part D: THE EFFORTS AT PLAY
CHAPTER SEVEN: THE EIGHT EFFORT ARCHETYPES
What is an Effort Archetype?
Embodying the Eight Effort Archetypes
Applying the Eight Effort Archetypes
Observing the Eight Effort Archetypes
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE EFFORT WEAVE
What is an Effort Weave?
Effort Weave Preparation
Basic Effort Weave
Internalised Effort Weaves
Effort Weaves with An Agenda
CHAPTER NINE: EFFORT DUOS
What is an Effort Duo?
Discovering Effort Duos
Embodying Effort Duos
Effort Equation
Creating Effort Equations
Part E: APPLYING THE EFFORTS
CHAPTER TEN: ADVANCED EXPLORATIONS
Uniting Efforts and Text
'Giving Birth': Embodied Storytelling
Creating a Precise Physical Score
'Cloning': Discovering Characters
'Gallery-Glide': Unlocking Text
Manifesting Thoughts and Feelings: Subtext in Action
'Bottling': Mapping Bottled Emotions
CHAPTER ELEVEN: EFFORTS IN REHEARSAL
Preparation
Creating Character
The World of the Play
Advanced Observation
Final Reflections
APPENDICES
APPENDIX A: NOTES ON PROCESS
The Role of Flow
Self-Reflection
Control
Working with Gestures
Working with Vocalisation
Using Music
The Game of Life
Relating to Constraints
APPENDIX B: A NOTE ON WORD CHOICES
APPENDIX C: FOCUSING THE WORK FOR THE ACTOR
APPENDIX D: MUSIC SUGGESTIONS
GLOSSARY
BIBLIOGRAPHY
LIST OF VIDEO RESOURCES
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
INDEX
