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Breath and Physical Technique for the Actor
Actors ask me all the time: Why is breathing SO HARD?
Usually the actor is expressing frustration around an experience that should be completely natural and uncomplicated: breathing. Within the first few weeks of rigorous physical training for actors most are confronted with a disarming truth- their breath is not supporting their emotional life or their impulses. It can make an actor think to herself- what have I been doing all these years?!
Our breath is always with us (hopefully!). The degree to which our breath is connected to our experience, expression, action and feeling- cannot be overestimated. We develop breathing habits that are predominantly subconscious. These habits connect to our most basic instincts: survival, security and taking action. When we feel threatened we instinctively hold our breath. This happens to us in our modern environment for the same reasons that it happens to animals in the wild.
Imagine standing on a street in an unfamiliar part of the city at night. Suddenly instinct tells you someone’s nearby with an energy you don’t like. What happens- you stop breathing. Breath makes a lot of noise inside our bodies. It roars in our eardrums as the air moves in and out. When silence seems essential, it helps to hear every little sound. Breath expels scent and creates motion- literally identifying that we’re alive. When we are threatened, rigid stillness might keep us secure. We’re fighting eons of evolutionary instinct! Oh, is that all?
Today these instincts become habits that still must deal with threats of a different nature- embarrassment, feelings of failure, anxiety, judgment or criticism, inadequacy, conflict avoidance. These things can be a ‘threat’ to our security. These things are also what characters in scripts have to live-through and what actors must embody in the most tension-free way.
The actor must confront this challenge through training. It must deal with the practice of new breath patterns but also with the range of experiences that tend to ‘shut down’ the actor’s breath. This range will be unique for each actor. One actor might have incredible difficulty processing her rage and that’s when her breath tends to shut down or become very shallow. Another might have great difficulty engaging her joy or her sexuality that’s when her breath shuts down her behavior. It isn’t a matter of artificially replacing one habit with another. The actor must engage her full instrument- her imagination, her emotional life, her body- in the practice of experiential, spontaneous breath. In real life our breath enables us to resist experiences and shut down in order to ‘survive’- in the imaginary world the actor’s breath must, in effect, be saying YES to every experience. When this happens, the audience is allowed to witness human behavior in a beautifully heightened form.
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“I was placed in the intense reigns of Charlie Sandlan. I became a better artist, actor, friend, sibling and daughter because of the studio. Even now, I crave the studio every day. What I learned is present in my work every day. I truly believe in everything they stand for.”
“Maggie taught me that I could control my work, my acting, and to throw all of the bullshit out that I had in my head about ‘what I should be doing’ and to just listen and respond honestly, in the moment. She gave me a craft. She is, quite simply put, THE BEST.”
“Maggie Flanigan taught me the true meaning of artistry, passion, and professionalism. I am certain that I continue to work as an actress because of my training with Maggie. At every audition and every performance, her guiding voice is with me. It is a gift beyond measure.”
“Maggie Flanigan is uncompromising, her instincts as a teacher are razor sharp. She doesn’t miss a beat”
“Maggie Flanigan has been one of the most important people in my artistic life. I want to work with Maggie trained actors. As an actor myself, she is my first source. I do not say this lightly, if you are serious about acting, and willing to work very hard, then go to Maggie.”
“Maggie helped me find my sense of truth, an actors greatest asset. Maggie is an expert at instilling that vital ingredient, which allows an actor’s potential to become limitless. My work will forever be rooted in the clarity and honesty she helped me develop.”
“After working for ten years, I did the 2 year program, and now feel that I have the tools I need to become the actor I’ve always dreamed of being. Maggie Flanigan instilled in me a clear sense of truth and a standard of perfection. I am a better actor because of this studio.”
“As an actor, the core of what you have to rely on is your sense of truth and humanity. Maggie allowed me to discover and embrace mine. Trusting my sense of humanity and truth has given me the ability to take risks in my work and my career decisions.”
“Maggie Flanigan has the unique ability to get an actor to the essence of what is true in a moment. She creates a safe and caring environment in which to work.”
“Maggie Flanigan introduced me to my own spirit and my own sense of Truth. Her passion for teaching and ability to communicate are rare gifts to any actor looking for a technique to set his or her talent free. Maggie’s voice has been the one constant guide in my career.”