Movement Study at the Cutting Edge

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rudolf laban

Movement Pattern Analysis is based on the premise that patterns of body movement reflect cognitive processes involved in making decisions.  This premise usually is met with skepticism, for at the level of popular consciousness, mind and body are still separate entities.

However, mind and body are no longer being viewed as separate entities in many academic disciplines.  “Embodied cognition” – the notion that moving and thinking are intertwined – is gaining traction among philosophers, linguists, developmental specialists, and neuroscientists.

The interconnectedness of thinking, feeling, and moving has long been obvious to movement specialists – at least experientially.  … Read More

A Life for Dance

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Laban’s autobiography, A Life for Dance, is a curious book, but one that reveals a great deal about his creative vision and theatrical activities.  As he notes in the letter to his publisher that opens the book:

“I recount in my book how a human being makes his way through thousands of circumstances and events.  Since this person happens to be a dance master or even a dance-poet, the book will frequently speak about the precious little-known art of dance. … Read More

Observing Movement, Observing Life

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In Mastery of Movement, Laban asks readers to observe a person in everyday life, a person portraying a character in a mime scene, and a dancer performing a national or period dance.  Observers are to analyze the use of the body, along with the use of space, time, and weight.

This is a useful exercise for any actor; it is also a task that Laban set for himself.  In his autobiography, Laban describes his first experiences as a young and very idealistic artist-to-be. … Read More

Laban’s Dramatic Imagination

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One challenging aspect of Laban’s Mastery of Movement is his description of many dramatic scenes meant to be embodied by the reader.  These scenes involve multiple characters, various dramatic conflicts, and several changes in mood on the part of all the characters involved.

Laban wants the reader to get up and mime these scenes, thinking about how the body would be used, where movement would go in the space around the body, and what kind of efforts would appear and change.  … Read More

Rudolf Laban – Man of Theatre

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Laban’s life work was to create a rich palette of movement options from which a performer could draw.  By the time he wrote Mastery of Movement, he had a lifetime of experience observing movement and working with dancers and actors, which he distilled into this intriguing work.

Ironically, Laban’s own creative methods and experimental dance and theatre works are little known.   However, recent re-creations of work mounted by Valerie Preston-Dunlop, Alison Curtis-Jones, and Melanie Clarke provide glimpses of his work and methods that are useful in illuminating aspects of Mastery of Movement.… Read More

Laban Is Good Company

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I have been re-reading Laban’s autobiography in preparation for teaching “Mastering Rudolf Laban’s Mastery of Movement.”  Laban’s writings are evocative, and I always find him to be good company.

Laban and I have seldom met in the most luxurious of settings.  During my seven years of doctoral and post-doctoral research, he and I met in a windowless room in the top of the University of Surrey library.  Here he kept me company under fluorescent lights as I engaged with his handwritten musings on yellowing sheets of paper and tried to make sense of geometric sketches in colored pencil. … Read More

Mastery of Movement: Laban’s Other Masterpiece

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Mastery of Movement is for body and effort what Choreutics is for space and shape – the most comprehensive treatment of Laban’s ideas in English.  The book has an interesting history.

The first edition was published in 1950, after Laban had published Effort and Modern Educational Dance, and after he had written (but not published) Choreutics.  Thus Mastery draws upon Laban’s endeavors in industry, education, and theatre.

The first edition is focused on movement for the stage, but Laban’s observations go well beyond this, addressing broader functions of movement in human life and evolution.… Read More

Why Laban Wrote Mastery of Movement

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Laban wrote Mastery of Movement on the Stage (1st edition) “as an incentive to personal mobility.”  And indeed, the first two chapters provide a number of explorations organized around movement themes focused on body and/or effort.  Laban hopes to encourage a kind of “mobile reading,” as he explains in the Preface.

However, he also notes that there is something in the book for those who want to remain in a comfy chair.  That is, such readers can learn more about “thinking in terms of movement.” … Read More

What Makes a Good Team?

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Long before diversity became a political issue, Warren Lamb was encouraging diversity in management teams.  His model of diversity was not based on age, race, creed, or gender. Rather it was based on decision-making style.

Lamb found that the best teams are made up of people who have different decision-making strengths.   That is, you need someone on the team who is strongly motivated to Investigate, someone who Explores, someone who is quite Determined, someone high in Timing and so on.

There is just one problem. … Read More

What Makes a Successful Leader?

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In his observation and analysis of thousands of business executives, Warren Lamb found that leaders come in many shapes and sizes.  That is, there is no single “leader” profile — successful leaders can approach decisions in quite varied ways.

However, Lamb discovered that the characteristic pattern of motivation tapped by the MPA profile has much to do with how a leader defines his or her responsibility.

For example, a leader who emphasizes Attending will believe it is his/her responsibility to analyze the situation, consider alternatives, and make sure there is sufficient informed preparation prior to taking any action.  … Read More