Flow-Acting: Modern Sports Science and the Preparation of Actors

Theatre artists and acting teachers throughout history have sought to find and create presence. By combining modern sports science with an understanding of systems of actor training I have suggested an approach that makes presence a trainable skill. My coach Dr. Scott Sonnon, developer of the Circular Strength Training System, has refined modern sports science to emphasize the development and maintenance of flow-state. This state allows the athlete to respond openly and freely within a constantly changing situation.By combining my life long study of acting with my eight years of work with Coach Sonnon I am developing a system to teach actors the skill of cultivating flow. This work will enhance the actor's presence and ability to handle the stress of performance while developing a strong, supple, and coordinated psychophysical instrument. Video of examples of the exercises can be found in the accompanying materials.This work was created in Microsoft Word 2004 for Mac.

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Fine Arts

Level thesis:degree_level

Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Theatre

Year dc:date.available

2008

Author dc:creator

• Billew, Barrett Slade

Contributors dc:contributor

• Dr. Noreen C. Barnes

• Acting
• Acting Pedagogy
• Sports Science
• Scott Sonnon
• Circular Strength Training
• Soviet Sports Science
• The Viewpoints
• Flow-state
• Presence
• Arts and Humanities
• Theatre and Performance Studies

Statement dc:rights

• © The Author

Identifier

https://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/775

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarscompass.vcu.edu:etd-1774