Navigating dissonance : bodymind and character congruency in acting

Abstract

This chapter sets out to create an embodied approach for responsibly navigating actor-character dissonance in performance. Actors attempt to enflesh characters in performance. Enfleshment is the subjective, deliberate and in-the-moment embodiment of the performance intent in context. Characters are constructed through clues in the playtext, the craft of acting, the conventions and aesthetic vision of the production, as well as the multi-modal, bodyminded sense of self shaped by and through the lived experiences of actors. To deliver and maintain congruent, nuanced, and consistent performances, actors need to make embodied shifts. These shifts can be explained by Zarrilli’s concept of the four bodies in/of performance, namely, (i) the surface body; (ii) the recessive body; (iii) the aesthetic inner body; and (iv) the aesthetic outer or performance body.1 These bodies necessarily intersect and are simultaneously present in, and navigated, during performance. This embodied navigation requires heightened awareness. The first three bodies relate to the actor’s bodyminded self. The fourth body enfleshes the character in performance. Optimally navigating the shift between the third and fourth bodies creates congruence between actor and character. This navigation results in the perceived believability of the character. Non-congruence results in actor- character dissonance. This dissonance impacts on effective character representation and can impact actors’ well-being if not managed responsibly.