Deconstruct to reconstruct:A proposal for the inclusion of Fitzmaurice Voicework® in the training of dancers

Abstract

This article forms part of my Ph.D research around exploring breath as a catalyst for theatre making. My research is positioned within the University of Cape Town’s Drama Department and endeavours to draw from various traditions, methods and theories of breath, such as Yoga, Fitzmaurice Voicework®, Qi Gong, the Sanskrit system of rasa, and the study of breath and its uses in certain Southern African Sangoma (traditional healer) practices. The focus of this article is on the Destructuring aspect of Fitzmaurice Voicework, and argues a case for its inclusion in the training of dancers. Broadly speaking, Fitzmaurice Voicework can be divided into two main components, that of Destructuring and Restructuring. The notion of deconstructing to reconstruct is explored through breath and body in an attempt to enhance the live sensorial presence of the performer in relation to the audience. The breath is explored as an authentic and embodied element that is experienced somatically by the performer and is investigated as the impulse as well as thread that connects body, imagination and language (be it verbal or corporeal). This article serves as a proposal to include the Destructuring aspect of Fitzmaurice Voicework in the training of dancers, in an attempt to develop a holistic, psychophysical and somatic approach that considers the well-being of the performer.