Product Description

The Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation that grew out of the postmodern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with-space and time-into six categories. Since that time, directors Anne Bogart and Tina Landau have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors to function together spontaneously and intuitively and to generate bold, theatrical work.

The Viewpoints are a set of names given to certain principles of movement through time and space-they constitute a language for talking about what happens on stage. Coupling this with Composition, which is the practice of selecting and arranging the separate components of theatrical language into a cohesive work of art, provides theatre artists with an important new tool for creating and understanding their art form.

Primarily intended for the many theatre artists who, in the last several years, have become intrigued with Viewpoints yet have had no single source to refer to in their investigations. It can also be used by anyone with a general interest in collaboration and the creative process, whether in art, business or daily life.

Anne Bogart is Artistic Director of the SITI Company, which she founded with Japanese director Tadashi Suzuki in 1992. She is the recipient of two OBIE Awards and a Bessie Award, and is an associate professor at Columbia University. Her recent works include Alice's Adventures; Bobrauschenbergamerica; Small Lives, Big Dreams; Marathon Dancing; and The Baltimore Waltz.

Tina Landau, noted director and playwright, whose original work includes Space (Time magazine 10 Best), Dream True (with composer Ricky Ian Gordon) and Floyd Collins (with composer Adam Guettel), which received the Lucille Lortel Award for Best Musical, an OBIE Award and seven Drama Desk nominations. She has been an ensemble member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company since 1997.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #30663 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781559362412
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

About the Author
Anne Bogart is a director, teacher and co-founder of the SITI Company.

Tina Landau, noted director and playwright, is best known for her collaboration with Adam Geuttel on Floyd Collins and is a past recipient of the Princess Grace Award. She has been an ensemble member of the Steppenwolf Theatre Company since 1997.

Customer Reviews

FINALLY!
It took forever to finally arrive.. both in the sense that it kept getting delayed, but more importantly as a director who has trained with Viewpoints and wanted to impliment them into my work.

The book is very accessible to even those who have not taken any Viewpoints classes with a laid out ground plan for how to introduce each Viewpoint as well as how to use them in rehearsals and creating new pieces. The end of each section includes several options to eithe expand or replace, making the plan fit perfect for whatever you're doing. I read it cover to cover in a sitting and will be referencing it in the future as I direct those new to Viewpoints as well as those previously exposed.

Indeed a "practical guide"
This book was highly recommended to me by a dancer friend, and I've found it to be extremely useful for dance improvisation sessions I'm leading with a group of non-dancers. The authors offers numerous exercises that groups can build on, experiment with, and use to generate skill and teamwork. If you're looking for inspiration for your own performance project or creative ideas for group activities, you will find them here.

Viewpoints
I wanted a good, basic look at Viewpoints and this book has been exactly what I hoped it would be. It is to the point but still offers enough explanation to make sure the reader understands each viewpoint. If you want a good, basic background of the work this book does well.