The theatrical educational model through the neurological approach of acting
Annita Capousizi
Instructor of the inclusive performing arts,
Artistic director of the theatre group ARTimeleia, Greece
WORKSHOP
Athens International Conference "Theatre/Drama & Inclusive Education"
Athens 21, 22, 23 March 2025
Hellenic Theatre/Drama & Education Network TENet-Gr)
Language: Greek
Limited number of participants
SUMMARY
Theoretical background
The concept of inclusion, which is now so urgently claiming its place, refers not only to ‘vulnerable social groups' as we tend to refer to them, but also to a more general restructuring that brings together people, sectors, fields, the confluence of which can lead to greater social equality and equity.
The holistic approach required by social changes affects and must first and foremost affect the educational system through which a new reality can be born.
A key argument of the dialectic around inclusive education is the belief that when topics, subjects and studies are combined and approached simultaneously, learners begin to see the interconnections, the 'eclectic affinities' of information coming from seemingly 'alien' disciplines. This develops the mechanism of correlation - a genetically recorded way of learning in humans - and furthermore the material that is gathered is used as a means of knowledge rather than as a scrapbook of information. Thus, learners are committed to an educational practice that is meaningful by experience itself.
The aim of the primary interdisciplinary research of this workshop was, through neurological observation and recording, to create a practical model of practice, a method that can be applied to actors with and without disabilities. The reason neurological observation was chosen was because neuromuscular function, and by extension its outward manifestation, has much more in common (rather than differences) between people than we might imagine.
The result is the establishment of the inclusive method of acting "neurological approach to acting" through which basic principles of acting are examined and analysed neurologically so that, their perception and study acquire a practical inclusive background.
Methodology
The workshop includes the analysis through neurological observation of 7 basic principles of acting: Relaxation, Concentration, Action, Emotional-emotional recall, Given Conditions, Tempo-Rhythm, Imagination.
These principles are approached and explored on two levels: theoretical and practical.
At the theoretical level we examine these principles on a neurological basis and analyze on their conceptual interpretation, the application they have to our neuromuscular system. Thus, concepts that until yesterday remained on a theoretical level of approach, resulting in their practice as they see fit, become through neurological observation a visualized and accessible information.
We then transfer this information to the practical level. Using acting exercises analysed and designed based on the neurological approach and neurodiagnostic exercises adapted to the acting direction, we test the application of the neurological approach as an inclusive preparation practice in theatre.
The neurological approach to acting is the original working method of the ARTimeleia inclusive theatre group and the first published inclusive method of acting in Greece.
Applications-Results
Applying the methodology of the neurological approach to acting both in an educational context and in the rehearsal process within a period of 6 months, the following were observed:
- Harmonious cooperation of disabled-neurotypical actors.
- A common rhythm and a common language of communication was acquired much faster.
- The disabled actors pushed their physical limits, trying out movements that, until then, they had been afraid of or thought they could not do.
- They showed more confidence physically and mentally in a wider circle of people, whereas previously they had relied only on their own people for physical facilitation and transportation.
It should be emphasized here that through the implementation of the behavioral training programme of the neurological approach to acting, we do not claim medical data, but an improvement in the physical and mental state of disabled people is recorded, such that in this particular group of neuromuscular diseases, it works catalytically in stabilizing symptoms, which is important for the slower progression of the diseases. At the same time:
- Neurotypical actors expanded the degree of perception and empathy.
- They showed greater boldness and confidence in themselves.
- They were more generous on stage.
Participation requirements
-The practical part includes physical practice (chiropractic) by the facilitator to the participants and by the participants to each other.
- Comfortable clothing.
Annita Capousizi is a director and trainer of inclusive performing arts. Until 2017 she was the head of the theatre workshop of MDA HELLAS (Muscular Dystrophy Association of Greece). This was the beginning of the research she continued in the United States as a Fulbright Foundation Artist Fellow 2016-2017. In the States she collaborated with the Carolinas Healthcare System Neurosciences Institute and the American Center for the Alexander Technique. The result was the documentation of an inclusive method of acting called the "Neurological Approach to Acting". The Manual: "The theatrical training model through the neurological approach to acting - Working with people with neuromuscular diseases" was published in May 2023 by ION Publications and is the first published inclusive method of acting in Greece. She is the founder and artistic director of the inclusive theatre group ARTimeleia (www.artimeleia.com)
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