Actor Training in Toronto, Theory in Practice
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Bell & Howell Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48106-1346 USA ACTOR TRAINING IN TORONTO: THEORY IN PRACTICE Laurin Marie Mann A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, Graduate Centre for Study of Drama, in the University of Toronto @ Copyright by Laurin Marie Mann 1999 National Library Bibliotheque nationale du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibliographic Sewices services bibliographiques 395 Wellington Street 395. rue Wellington Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Ottawa ON KIA ON4 Canada Canada Your He Vorre reference Our lire Notre retdr~~r~~ The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accorde me licence non exclusive licence allowing the exclusive permettant a la National Library of Canada to Bibliotheque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distribute or sell reproduire, preter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microfom~ vendre des copies de cette these sous paper or electronic formats. la fome de microfiche/fih, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format Bectronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriete du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protege cette these. thesis nor substantid extracts from it Ni la these ni des extraits substantieis may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent Stre imprimes reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. Abstract Actor Trainins in Toronto: Theory in Practice Doctor of Philosophy, 1999 Laurin Marie Mann Graduate Centre for Study of Drama University of Toronto The decision to examine acting theories prevalent amongst performance teachers in Toronto emanated from a perceived lack of research into the subject of acting in English Canadian theatre studies. When the project began, I did not realize that the more general subject of acting theory has received little attention in theatre scholarship as well. In order to study the acting theories of Toronto teachers, it became necessary to define acting and its theory, distinguish it from performance theory, and determine prominent concepts within acting theory which could serve as a framework within which to compare and contrast the ideas and practices of various theorists and practitioners. In Chapter 2, the key concepts of acting theory outlined in Chapter 1 are employed in an examination of the ideas of some prominent acting theorists of the past century. The data engendered by the research leading to this portion of the study served as a foundation for an historical as well as conceptual understanding of modern acting theory. This framework proved invaluable in the preparation and analysis of ii a survey distributed to Toronto performance teachers (outlined and analyzed in Chapter 3), and in an examination of the acting theories of six Toronto teachers studied in depth through interview and classroom observation (Chapter 4). When the primary materials examined for this study are compared in Chapter 5, several distinct tendencies are revealed concerning acting theories held by performance teachers in Toronto, These are: a view of the function of theatre as experiential, as well as enlightening; the primacy of the actuality of the actor, particularly qualities of instinct and impulse; the predominance of internal approaches to actor training and practice; a devaluation of the primacy of the play text and, thus of the author's intent; a dismissal of the technical areas of theatre as elements of actor study; a growing awareness that actors need training in the business as well as the art of making theatre; and an open minded and eclectic approach to actor training, suggesting a similar attitude towards theory. iii I wish to thank my supervisors and thesis committee Dr. Joyce Wilkinson, Dr. Michael J. Sidnell and Dr. Richard Plant, for their invaluable assistance and support during the research process. I also thank the Toronto acting teachers who gave so generously of their time and energies to participate in this study, particularly: Rosemary Dunsmore, Karen Hazard, Bernadette Jones, Alan Jordan, Kevin McCormick, and Tony Pearce- This work is dedicated to my father and mother, George and Nellie Mann, and to my sister Debra for their unfailing love and support. TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................iv CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION AND METHODOLOGY ............ 1 CHAPTER 2: KEY CONCEPTS IN MODERN WESTERN ACTING THEORY ....28 CHAPTER 3: ACTING THEORY IN TORONTO: GENERAL SURVEY ..80 CHAPTER 4: ACTOR TRAINING IN TORONTO: CASE STUDIES ......128 Alan Jordan .................... 130 Karen Hazzard ................... 144 Tony Pearce .................... 157 Rosemary Dunsmore ................. 170 Bernadette Jones .................188 Kevin McCormick .................. 203 CHAPTER 5 : TOWARDS A TORONTO ACTING THEORY .......... 222 CONCLUSION ........................... 276 BIBLIOGRAPHY .......................... 289 APPENDIX A: SURVEY ...................... 301 APPENDIX B: SUPPLEMENTARY ANSWERS TO SURVEY QUESTIONS .....305 APPENDIX C: LIST OF SURVEY PARTICIPANTS ............310 CHAPTER I : INTRODUCTION AND I!+BTHODOLOGY The subject of acting is a little explored area of research in English Canadian theatre studies. We have no definitive history of Canadian acting, and no studies of the techniques and ideas of contemporary acting teachers such as are available for our American and British counterparts. No articles by Canadian performers are included in Toby Cole and Helen Krich Chinoy's Actors on Actinq, and articles and books on Canadian actors and their art are few and far between.' As our theatre artists pass away, the opportunity to document their ideas and their art is lost. This study, which explores the acting theories of contemporary acting teachers in Toronto, makes an initial investigation into this neglected area of research. To examine dominant acting theories in Toronto requires a working definition of the major term, but acting theory is as difficult to define as is the term theory itself, This study takes theory to be "a unified system of laws or hypotheses, with explanatory force," and, more generally, "a field of study" (Lacey 157). Acting theory has been examined in both these ways. The most prominent of these are: Murray D. Edwards, A Staqe in Our Past: Enqlish-lanquaqe Theatre in Eastern Canada from the 1790 's to 191 4 (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1968) ; Robert B. Scott, "Professional Performers and Companies," Later Stases: Essays in Ontario Theatre from the First World War to the 1970fs, ed. Ann Saddlemyer and Richard Plant (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997); R,H. Thornson, "Standing in the Slipstream: Acting in English Canada," Contemporary Canadian Theatre : New World Visions, ed. Anton Wagner (Toronto: Simon and Pierre, 1985); and Lynda Mason Green and Tedde Moore, comps. and eds., Standins Naked in the Winss: Anecdotes from ~anadian Actors (Toronto: Oxford University Press, 1997). A few biographies of Canadian actors have also been published. The most readily available are those on William Hutt, Amelia Hall, Mary Pickford and Marie Dressier. Certain theorists, such as Constantin Stanislavski, set out principles for actors to follow in order to attain a desired result, while the editors of the book of interviews, Actors Talk about Actinq, assume that any idea having to do with acting can be considered worthy of inclusion. Relationship between Actinq Theory and Performance Theory This project is an examination of acting theory rather than of performance theory. Performance (as well as the theory that examines it) is an inclusive concept that encompasses many disparate disciplines (including acting) which can be said to be performative. Richard Schechner defines the term in the introduction to his book of essays, Performance Theory: Theatre is only one node on a continuum that reaches from the ritualizations of animals (including humans) through performances in everyday life--greetings, displays of emotion, family scenes, professional roles, and so on--through to play, sports, theatre, dance, ceremonies, rites, and performances of great magnitude (xiii). Though I am aware that other kinds of performativity impinge on acting and theatre, this study assumes a distinctive art and craft