The Viewpoints Book: A Practical Guide to Viewpoints and Composition

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A key principle of the Viewpoints practice is horizontalism, [4] a distinct focus on a non-hierarchical organisation of the performance elements, meaning shared engagement with elements like space, body, text, time, shape, and emotion. The practice subsequently constitutes a shared agency of creation amongst performers and creators in working through the individual body and its surrounding material environment as part of a collective ensemble. The Viewpoints thus encourages the performer to incorporate their own bodily impulses and personal experiences in the act of creation. [5] It is taught all over the world and used by countless theatre-makers in the rehearsal process to develop flexibility, articulation and strength in movement, and to enrich ensemble playing. An invaluable resource for theatre-makers, as well as for anyone with an interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life. 'Viewpoints is timeless - a system belonging to the natural principles of movement, time and space. Perucci, Tony (19 December 2017). "On Stealing Viewpoints". Performance Research. 22 (5): 121–123 – via Tandfonline.

Overlie, Mary (2016). Standing in Space: The Six Viewpoints Theory and Practice (1sted.). Billings, Montana: Fallon Press. p.66. ISBN 978-1-5136-1361-1. Perucci, Tony (31 August 2021). "The Viewpoints and the Secret of the Original Anarchist: Mary Overlie and the Undercommons". Performance Research. 25 (8): 95–100 – via Tandfonline. The Viewpoints are a set of names given to certain principles of movement through time and space--they constitute a language for talking about what happens on stage. Coupling this with Composition, which is the practice of selecting and arranging the separate components of theatrical language into a cohesive work of art, provides theatre artists with an important new tool for creating and understanding their art form.The Viewpoints are a set of names given to certain principles of movement through time and space—they constitute a language for talking about what happens on stage. Coupling this with Composition, which is the practice of selecting and arranging the separate components of theatrical language into a cohesive work of art, provides theatre artists with an important new tool for creating and understanding their art form. Repetition: a) Internal Repetition: repeating a movement done with one's own body, and b) External Repetition: repeating a movement occurring outside one's body. [12]

urn:lcp:viewpointsbookpr0000boga:epub:12af6468-d1b0-4dec-bb87-c0d73bf091c2 Foldoutcount 0 Identifier viewpointsbookpr0000boga Identifier-ark ark:/13960/t4tk1396r Invoice 1652 Isbn 9781559362412 Bartow, Arthur, ed. (2006). Training of the American Actor (1sted.). New York: Theatre Communications Group. p.189. ISBN 978-1-5593-6268-9.

Summary

An invaluable resource for theatre-makers, as well as for anyone with an interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life.

In The Viewpoints Book, first published in the United States, acclaimed theatre directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau introduce the history, terminology and philosophy of Viewpoints, and offer a step-by-step recipe for using it as both a training tool and a rehearsal technique. Anne Bogart is Artistic Director of the SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is the recipient of two OBIE Awards and a Bessie Award, and is an associate professor at Columbia University. Her recent works include Alice's Adventures; Bobrauschenbergamerica; Small Lives, Big Dreams; Marathon Dancing; and The Baltimore Waltz.Sometimes, our reliance on technology detracts from our power of observation. Find time each week to unplug and notice the composition of the world around you. How are the people and objects around you arranged? Where is the empty space? What rhythms do you notice? What draws your eyes, ears, nose, and hands? What emotions do these observations create? The theory and practice of the Six Viewpoints are organized in two parts: The Materials and The Bridge. Bogart and her collaborators broke with this form. First, they placed greater emphasis on actors’ observations than on their feelings. Second, they prioritized evocative movement and metaphor over naturalistic storytelling. Gesture: a) Behavioral gesture: realistic gesture belonging to the physical world as we observe it every day. b) Expressive gesture: abstract or symbolic gesture expressing an inner state or emotion; it is not intended as a public or "realistic" gesture. Over the last twenty years, Viewpoints has ignited the imaginations of actors, directors, designers, choreographers, dramaturgs and writers. It is taught all over the world and used by countless theatre-makers in the rehearsal process to develop flexibility, articulation and strength in movement, and to enrich ensemble playing.

The Six Viewpoints theory was adapted by directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau, ultimately resulting in the delineation of nine "physical" and five "vocal" Viewpoints. Bogart and Overlie were on the faculty of the Experimental Theatre Wing at NYU Tisch School of the Arts in the late 1970s and early 1980s, during which Bogart was influenced by Overlie's innovations. Overlie's Six Viewpoints are considered to be a methodology to examine, analyze, and create performance in non-hierarchised and deconstructed way, whilst Bogart's Viewpoints are considered practical in creating staging with actors. It is a philosophy translated into a technique for training performers, building ensemble, and creating movement for the stage' Anne Bogart and Tina Landau A lot of people don’t like to use their bodies for expression. It’s a very vulnerable thing,” Mitchell said. “But once they get into the work, they realize how useful it is to get up and start trying things.” One of the goals of Viewpoints is to use accidents. This means that no matter what choice an actor makes, the ensemble should affirm that choice and incorporate it. For Viewpoints practitioners, there is no right or wrong. This belief opens up an actor’s range of choices, so performances become more dynamic.

HOW DID VIEWPOINTS ORIGINATE?

Bartow, Arthur. 2006. The Training of the American Actor. New York: Theatre Communications Group. ISBN 978-1-55936-268-9 The Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the postmodern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with—space and time—into six categories. Since that time, directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors to function together spontaneously and intuitively and to generate bold, theatrical work.