To temper my post from last week, I decided to go back to my original topic: What are awesome fight scenes and how do we make important artistic choices?
My post called Fight Craft talked about how fight direction and stage combat in general are best categorized as skills and craftsmanship. It should not be called Art until one of the following conditions are met:
- Messages, especially emotional or ethical conundrums, are explored or expressed through the art itself
- People (especially the wealthy) will pay to see the pure art (not as part of a theatrical production)…but not if it’s merely a competition between craftsmen.
- Arts evolve and change through movements, and breakthroughs are made within the art, not merely borrowed from other arts.
To illustrate this idea, here’s two examples. Do either of these qualify as Art to you? What makes something greater than a series of tricks to show off?
So, who is making stage combat as Art? Where is it respected? And what can you do?
Zorro
To have combat and movement integrated so completely into the fabric of a play is very encouraging.
I was very excited to see the following piece on a theatrical Zorro: hlntv Zorro
Sword, whip, dancing, swinging from ropes… What more do you want?
Maupin
One show that I mentioned in passing in my previous post was a one-act play called La Maupin that we performed as part of a Toronto Fringe Festival show called Duel of Ages in 2007.
Duel of Ages was a showcase of fight scenes that spanned history, fight styles, and tones. From the hamstringing of Jarnac to the comedy of the reluctant pistol-duel, we were all well-employed on that show. Here’s a nice review: BlogTO Fringe 2007 Duel of Ages
Audiences enjoyed it too, so this may be the “pay to see it” model that I’m after.
Aggressive Negotiations
Fight Director Jared Kirby’s current show is a showcase like Duel of Ages was. If I was in New York, I’d make a point to see it.
Aside: Also on my list for NYC is the creepy re-imagining of Macbeth called “Sleep No More” (http://sleepnomorenyc.com/), and even without witnessing it myself, I know it qualifies as Art project.
Aggressive Negotiations Scenes include:
- Romeo & Juliet
- Princess Bride
- Les Liaisons Dangereuses
- Batman
- Serenity
- Fight Club
- Silver Lining Playbook
- Hamlet
- Zastrozzi
You can learn more at ArtOfCombat.org
Speaking of Jared, he shared on Facebook a new “art” called Combat Juggling. Apparently this is real, and the goal is to be the last one still juggling three clubs, though they don’t have to be the same three one started with.
FDC Certification
The Fight Directors Canada test for actors (Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Actor-Combatant levels) require the candidate to perform one fight scene for each weapon style.
The goal is to create opportunities for actors to make interesting, entertaining and insightful choices within the fight. The test is not merely to see safe performance of choreography, but to engage in creative storytelling in a fight context.
Like Duel of Ages and Jared’s show, the FDC certification should be a series of scenes that are engaging for an audience, demonstrating the candidates understanding of movement, the illusion of violence, and the things that make performance something worth watching.