When I moved to Jolly Ol’ England I worried that my combat skills might begin to lapse with lack of training opportunities. Fortunately, I’m at a theater department where there is never a shortage of stage combat. But when I first started considering this grad school, I began to think about how I would maintain my training and that question has stayed with me through my time here and just recently I’ve really started exploring it.
Individual training for actors is difficult, and this extends to actor combatants. Unlike musicians, dancers, and singers actors don’t have a traditional set of scales or drills to practice our craft.
Actor combatants, on the other hand, have an arsenal of techniques that they can drill ad nauseum. But those various cut and footwork drills are just that, drills. Doing scales and drills work one half of the actor combatants muscles. The actor part, the creative part must be accessed as well.
The question then becomes – What is the best way to explore and train creatively without a partner?
This isn’t (entirely) a rhetorical question.
One possible answer to this question I belive lies in the area of Martial Arts. Many martial arts employ a Kata in their training. Kata is a Japanese word that translates literally into ‘Form’. In martial arts a Kata is a detailed choreographed pattern of movements. In the stage combat world the closest thing to a Kata that we have is the Skills Proficiency Test (or equivalent). However, SPTs and SPRs, unlike Katas vary from teacher to teacher, sometimes even created for individual students. I believe this approach is partially incorrect.
Now, I don’t believe that all of stage combat should have a universal form or kata; in fact the individuality should be applauded. But what I have been warming to as a concept is creating a very specific and personal fight or kata that gets worked and reworked year after year so that it gets perfected over time. These Katas can then be taught to students, perhaps adjusted a little here and there to reflect the martial artist performing.
Therefore, I have begun to create my own individual Katas based on SAFD SPT requirements. They will begin as individual choreographed pieces and eventually become SPT and SPR fights to be taught. For those wondering what the difference this is between just creating fight for a SPT, the simple answer is that there isn’t one except, perhaps, with loftier goals in mind.
As I continue my exploration, I will be sure to keep you all informed and updated with my progress. Until then, I’d love to hear what techniques and ideas that you all have discovered for personal training.
Ta from the Motherland!
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