GENRE

Phsical Theatre

definition

Physical theatre is a growing art form worldwide.  In Europe, especially, physical theatre is a known and recognized form, seen most prominently at festivals such as the London International Mime Festival and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.  Companies such as Complicite, Theatre du Soleil, and La Fura del Baus have been creating exciting and innovative productions of physical theatre for decades, winning awards, and traveling the globe. 

The term "Physical theatre" has been applied to performances consisting mainly of:
Mime 
Contemporary dance 
Theatrical Clowning and other physical comedy 
Some forms of puppetry 
Theatrical Acrobatics

While performances based around all of the above could equally claim to be "Physical Theatre", the key distinguising factor is a focus on narrative, character and storytelling. However, it is often difficult to draw a distinct boundary between what is and what is not physical theatre, and distinctions are often made quite arbitrarily by critics and performing companies.

Modern Physical Theatre has grown from a variety of origins. Mime and theatrical clowning schools such as L'Ecole Jaques Lecoq in Paris have had a big influence on many modern expressions of physical theatre, and practitioners such as Steven Berkoff and John Wright received their initial training at such institutions. Eastern European practitioners have also had a strong influence on modern physical theatre, and both Vsevolod Meyerhold and Jerzy Grotowski are regarded by many as "fathers" of modern physical theatre. Contemporary Dance has also had a strong influence on what we regard as physical theatre, partly because most physical theatre requires actors to have a level of physical control and flexibility rarely found in those who do not have some sort of dance background. Modern physical theatre also has strong roots in more ancient traditions such as Commedia dell'arte and some suggest links to the ancient Greek theatre - particularly the theatre of Aristophanes