Description

Laban was a movement theorist, and this exercise is based on (a simplified form of some of) his ideas. Take 3 categories:

• Timing: Sudden or Sustained
• Weight: Heavy or Light
• Space: Direct or Indirect

Then try and make characters that behave/speak following combinations of the 3 categories:

• punching : sudden / heavy / direct
• slashing : sudden / heavy / indirect
• wringing : sustained / heavy / indirect
• stroking : sustained / light / indirect
• dabbing : sudden / light / direct
• smoothing : sustained / light / direct
• pushing : sustained / heavy / direct

Notes

The attributes go with the characters, not necessarily with the actual performer`s body. A heavyset person may move about delicately.

Variations

You can introduce this in a fairly simple way, by asking the players to move about the room, according to directions or orientations:

• be a `horizontal` or `vertical` person
• be downward, or upward
• be light or heavy

Then experiment with these: be suddenly light (bird taking off from a tree) or continuously light (be a cloud).

You can do this using different kinds of music. What direction / weight / movement does a certain song or theme inspire?

Then try to experiment with characters: who or what would be vertical person be (a general?). What/how would be continuously light person be (stoned?). Suddenly light (flirty?). See also Fast Food Stanislawski .

Origin

Attributed to Keith Johnstone . See Impro for Storytellers .