Mid-Winter Reflection

Winter Goals 2008-2009

*To identify what feeds my creative state and what it depends on to exist and thrive.

*To be mindful of how I treat my body, mind, and heart and how to open and engage all three in the studio.

*To balance professional concentration with playful freedom in the classroom.

*To give my undivided attention and patience to my teachers and classmates.

*To commit to performing and being watched.

*To surrender to the spontaneity improvisations require.

*To be able to track more clearly:
1) Neutrality and the purity of it
2) Vertical and the history of it
3) Energy moving through my body (specifically each element)
4) Positioning in space and lines of force
5) Complex physical designs
6) Ideas and their dramaturgical arcs within packets and scenes

*To discover the physics of metaphors and the metaphors of physics.

*To make the relax in every acting beat the most important part.

*To concentrate on demeanor and the information it reveals.

*To savor transitions and their importance.

*To increase my flexibility and release tension stored in my muscles.

*To Perform Compelling and Interesting Stories.

ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT-GOAL-BUFFET

Rereading my Winter Goals, I was amazed at how many there were and, subsequently, how many I had forgotten and lost sight of. Goals are meant to focus attention on the details. My list was so extensive and complicated, it almost defeated the purpose of setting goals, because goals so numerous and so broad tend to lose their meaning fairly quickly. It was like I wanted to binge and consume as many goals as I could, but in the end, I could barely taste anything. How can you savor one goal when your plate is piled high with such a variety?

A tendency of mine in the studio is to overcomplicate my storytelling so it is no surprise that I totally fell into that trap as I was setting my winter goals. To put it in Method terms, this list feels extremely action-oriented and doesn’t showcase the device. A goal tells a specific story, and with my plethora of goals, I wasn’t sure what story I was telling.

This realization has brought me to my one spring goal: Simplify. The technical exercises we focused on this winter have helped me physically feel and embody more fully certain devices and limitations. As this connection between my intellectual and physical understanding has strengthened, I have begun to trust myself more and feel more centered and grounded. I am slowly but surely sensing what it feels like to be the empowered actor who can rely on herself for her own inspiration. With this growth, my objective in the studio can focus more and more intensely on my ability to manifest more honestly and specifically the stories I’m performing.

In my attempt to Simplify, I need to make a concerted effort to slow down and take less for granted. I need to continually remind myself of the value and importance of one goal that I strive towards, or one limitation that I do my best to embody instead of writing goal upon goal or making packets impossible to follow. My artistry needs to be more precious than I sometimes treat it.

sooo... after reading this AMAZING reflection, first I was all , then I was like now I'm all ! For realz, yo!

Beautifully spoken, marty!

Sarah-Teradactyla (that's who you are to me every time I look at your JokesND photo)

Thank You for what you wrote...I appreciate the support, and I know that YOU know what I'm talking about as far as ME goes in the studio...Would anyone like a plate of Complicado Complicada Complicated for Dinner??? That's me as an artist right now...I think I need to tone down the complicated drama in the studio and keep it simp, yo?!

Peace,
J.