or as long as you’ve been teaching, the students to be safe. They’ll know Moss has training in fencing and you’ve had in your mind that perfect how to make it a part of the show, stage combat, and he regularly attends play to direct—a Shakespearean trag- rather than a fight that interrupts the workshops to keep his skills sharp. “For edy, say. Maybe Romeo and Juliet. acting. They can teach the students me,” he says, “the reality of being in a Now you have the actors who can things the teacher might not know. small school where you’re a one-stop carry it. The administration is behind “We don’t teach you how to fight. shop anyway is when I have money, I you. Your students are thrilled. We teach you how to act with vio- would rather spend it on an expertise I There’s just one problem. Almost lence. You want to learn how to fight, don’t have myself.” before you can bite your thumb, you can go watch wrestling,” says Both Martin and Rodgers hire chore- there’s a brawl with naked blades in New York-based fight director ographers, but they’ve also gained Act I, scene one. The year might be Michael Chin, who recently earned enough experience to teach or choreo- right for Shakespeare, but you have the title of fight master from the Soci- graph some of the basics without out- better things to do than face disas- ety of American Fight Directors. (He’s side help. trous injury and potential lawsuits. one of only eleven fight masters in In deciding whether to stage fights Stage combat in high school pro- the U.S.) themselves or not, teachers need to be ductions is a challenge, but it’s not Ben Martin at Lee’s Summit West sure they aren’t overestimating their insurmountable. In fact, if you ap- High School in Lee’s Summit, Mis- own abilities. Just like the overeager proach stage violence properly, it can souri, has brought fight choreographer student who can barely do a be an exciting, safe, and fulfilling ex- Richard Buswell in to work with his summersault but swears she can do a perience for your students and audi- students, and says that it has im- back flip every night in the play, a fight ences. proved his own understanding of how choreographer without the necessary Teaching Theatre talked to a num- to teach simpler elements like slaps. background may be courting disaster. ber of educators and fight choreogra- “I think I do it better now, having “A little knowledge can be a danger- phers in the United States and Canada worked with Richard,” he says. “I ous thing,” says Hurley. “But knowing to see how they work with students have a more complete grasp of it enough to know your limitations is a and stage combat. All of them have now, almost more of a three-dimen- good thing.” tricks, tips, and methods they’ve de- sional approach.” Chin takes a harder line. “I know veloped over the years to make stage Margo Rodgers, the drama teacher sometimes there are budget handcuffs, violence a positive part of their teach- at Anderson Collegiate Vocational In- but if you can’t get a fight choreogra- ing repertoire. stitute in Whitby, Ontario, has worked pher, don’t do the fights,” he says. several times with Peter Hurley, a For teachers who choose to seek out- Bringing in the pros fight director with Fight Directors side help, the SAFD in the U.S. and Some teachers stage fights them- Canada, since 1995. She says that he’s Fight Directors Canada are two organiza- selves; others rely on professional taught her and her students aspects of tions which have established credentials choreographers. Ultimately, the deci- fighting that people don’t usually con- and documentation of training. They sion comes down to the teacher’s sider, like how to drop a knife so that also have or can provide member con- level of comfort with leading her stu- it doesn’t bounce. “These are all the tacts so teachers and directors can find dents in potentially dangerous activi- tricks of combat. It’s the sound,” she someone near them. Not every qualified ties. says. “It’s the noise the kids make. It’s fight choreographer is a member of There are pros and cons to both a kind of vicious ballet.” these organizations, but the groups are a options. Professional stage choreogra- It’s also true that not every teacher good place to start looking. phers tend to charge by the hour, and needs to hire an expert. Phil Moss, for the budget of a high school drama drama teacher at University Liggett Balancing safety and quality department, it isn’t cheap. Also, School in Grosse Point, Michigan, has All of the fight choreographers inter- schools in smaller or remote areas never brought in an outside choreog- viewed emphasized that safety always may not have easy access to people rapher, and has staged injury-free pro- comes first when teaching actors of any with the necessary experience. ductions of shows including The Com- age how to fight. However, they also On the other hand, qualified pro- pany of Wayward Saints, Cyrano de stress that safety doesn’t need to get in fessional fight choreographers will Bergerac, West Side Story, and I Hate the way of staging a thrilling fight scene know how to stage a fight and teach Hamlet. that supports the whole production. TEACHING THEATRE Teaching stage violence to student actors BY ELIZABETH COBBE Ideally, a well-choreographed fight the safety of the actors and add to their “The same way you teach an ac- will blend in with the rest of the plays’ performances. After all, many profes- tor to cross to stage left with motiva- action. Everyone can think of at least sional fight choreographers are also tion,” says Buswell, “I talk about one show they’ve seen in which the working actors. motivation and subtext. I talk about actors seemed to halt their perfor- “Stage combat without technique is what is the character trying to do? mance so they could whack some dangerous. Acting without technique is How good a fighter is the character? swords together. Skilled fight choreog- boring,” explains Chin. “You need to Why are you going for the arm in- raphy, on the other hand, will protect combine both.” stead of the leg?” Danforth Comins and James Newcomb battle it out in the Oregon Shakespeare Festival production of Richard III. Fight choreography by John Sipes. DAVID COOPER DAVID COOPER TEACHING THEATRE SUSAN DOREMUS Every teacher and fight choreogra- ‘Puppy training’ pher interviewed has their own way of In any group of students, teaching and staging violence to keep there invariably will be a the students safe as they improve their range of abilities when craft. Here are some of the strategies learning about stage vio- they shared. lence. Teachers also en- counter the overeager Fighting in slow-mo students who won’t go at Whether they’re staging a fight for a rehearsal speed or follow production or teaching a few moves in proper safety practices class, the teachers and fight choreogra- with weapons. phers suggest running the moves at a “One of the problems I pace that’s slower than how the fight have is kids see Kill Bill, will run in performance, while main- a movie that has lots of taining the same spacing between fighting, and they think, partners. This helps the combatants ‘Oh, I can do that!’” re- gain precision and technique in their marks Moss. moves, and it removes adrenaline The teachers and cho- from the equation. That, plus repeti- reographers say that they tion, also helps the actors ingrain the make the less responsible choreography in their muscle memory. students sit out and watch Margo Rodgers uses a metronome the other students work. with her students so that their rhythm It’s discipline, but it also stays constant, no matter at what puts the student in a posi- speed they run the fight. Other teach- tion to see how the other ers use music to pace their students. actors are working, and However they enforce the speed, why it’s better to do it the though, they come back to the slow- right way. motion fight rehearsal repeatedly “It’s like puppy train- throughout the rehearsals and perfor- ing,” says Rodgers. If they mance run. don’t figure it out after “If you can do it at tai chi speed watching once, then have perfectly,” says Hurley, “I’m not wor- them sit out again until ried. I can walk away.” the lesson sinks in. Similarly, Buswell sometimes has A student tries out his sword skills during a 2005 Thespian “The kid who is gung- students rehearse a sword fight without Festival workshop. ho is physically out of con- blades, simply using their index fingers, trol,” Martin explains. “We pointing in the direction of the blade. “You don’t have to run through full- preach safety first, and if they’re being The students keep the same spacing speed every day, but you do need to unsafe, they sit out and watch.” Most of they use when they’re holding actual make sure they know what they’re do- the time, he says, once is enough to con- weapons. These types of teaching strat- ing,” suggests Chin. vince them. egies may look or feel less glamorous Some teachers and choreographers What’s more, the teacher needs to take than the actual fight, but they go a long choose to designate a fight captain from safety seriously enough that if the students way toward indoctrinating students in among the students—usually an actor are not performing the choreography the practice of safe stage combat.