My mentor, Daniel Levinson, has spent the last few months choreographing the stage combat for Julius Caesar at the Stratford Festival. He is also the associate fight director for Macbeth.

The Stratford Festival website recently ran an article about Daniel and his work. It’s a brief look at the ideas that a fight master can bring to a show, and a little about the process of building a fight for a specific production. Here’s a little excerpt from that article:

Stratford Shakespeare Festival – Scene Notes

At its most basic level, the job is to choreograph fight scenes. But to do this effectively you need more than an arsenal of combat skills. You need an actor’s understanding of character, a director’s eye for story and a dancer’s feel for movement.

Go read the whole interview, because Daniel is articulate yet brief in his comments. In every interview I’ve read with him, he has so clearly captured the importance of stage combat and its effective use on stage. There is also great footage of a fight rehearsal embedded on the site. Stratford.ca: “Will ye, like soldiers, come and fight it out?”

I’ve always admired Daniel for his pragmatic approach to every problem and his attention to what really matters. As you read in the interview, and saw in the video, he does not go on at length, but chooses his words well. He also doesn’t cloud the issue, but is always clear yet friendly and very funny.

He’s everything I aspire to be in a teacher and fight director.

Daniel’s website is RapierWit.com, which details the goings-on at his studio, Rapier Wit, located near the corner of Bathurst and Wellington in Toronto.

“You must practice until the sword becomes an extension of your body.”

A study published recently in the journal Current Biology shows that when you use a tool, your brain incorporates it into your body-plan. The idea of tools being part of your body (especially an expert) is not a new idea. It just never had any evidence from scientific research – until now.

After using a mechanical grabber that extended their reach, people behaved as though their arm really was longer, they found. What’s more, study participants perceived touches delivered on the elbow and middle fingertip of their arm as if they were farther apart after their use of the grabbing tool.

That second finding means that the grabber tricked their brain into thinking their arm was longer than it really was.

“We believe this ability of our body representation to functionally adapt to incorporate tools is the fundamental basis of skillful tool use,” Cardinali said. “Once the tool is incorporated in the body schema, it can be maneuvered and controlled as if it were a body part itself.” Brain represents tools as temporary body parts, study confirms

If a student is performing a cut inefficiently, using too much muscle to force the weapon around, I’ll often tell them to “put your mind in the tip”… meaning that they should not think that they are so far from the action. I’m glad that there’s a solid foundation for that kind of advice, instead of hocus pokus.

Last Friday, I had the honour of meeting sword master F. Braun McAsh. His claim to fame is the Highlander TV series. And that is how he is introduced by everyone.

Highlander TV SwordMaster

His pledge to the producers was that he would provide an original move or way of using a weapon in every episode. “Original” meaning that the technique would not have been previously seen in film or television. He was also given the artistic freedom to decide on the weapons used in each fight.

He talks about that time, when they filmed an episode every five days, as a fight director’s dream. Always learning and implementing new weapons and styles.

Intimidating By Reputation Only

McAsh is a tremendously nice guy with a strong hand-shake. He smiles a lot and has an avuncular manner that is easy to like. Barrel chested and deep-voiced, it is odd to hear him talking about the book he is writing or the hours he spends in the library doing research. You expect him to be brawling with ruffians. Even to hear him talk about the history of swords is a little unnerving.

He has a deep knowledge of swords, military history, and the use of weapons through time. To understand a particular sword shape and its proper use is intimately tied to the armour used, and both exist in a context. To truly master any individual weapon, Braun recommends researching every aspect of its circumstances. And he exemplifies that advice, a veritable encyclopedia of arms and armour.

Head of the McAsh Clan

Yes, he has a castle or two. We talked about our Scottish ancestry and the fact that he is the eldest of his clan.

Stage Combat and Stunts

We talked for a while about the sad state of stage combat in Vancouver. (More on that in another rant – I mean article). Suffice to say that he echoes a sentiment I’ve heard before: that Vancouver is dominated by stunt coordinators who can get away with injuries and breaking weapons, leaving no room for the safe fight choreographer. He is careful not to cast stones and never mentions names, but can barely contain his contempt for movies that have 300 accident reports.

Sword Research Yields Practical Hilt

At the end of the evening, he showed me his custom hilt with a thumb ring. The image to the right is a thumb-ring on a different sword, just for illustration purposes. The thumb-ring on his side-sword was not a closed loop, but a U-shaped side ring on the thumb side of the hilt. He said that all kinds of cuts are improved by taking advantage of this shape.

I did a couple of moulinets to see what he was talking about. To be able to suspend the sword on the thumb at the bottom of a vertical circle gives a lot of mechanical power to bring it back around the rest of the circle. I was sold.

He theorizes that it developed from the scimitar, and other curved swords used by mounted cavalry. It is most often found in German swords. From its usefulness in completing big circles, one can see how horse riders would love it, but also understand why it fell out of use for infantry. It is useless for thrusting.

Keeping Up

As I alluded to, he is in the middle of writing a book, though computer problems have interrupted his process this week. He is still working on films, and spent this week on set. I met him at Academie Duello, where he organizes their Stage Combat Study Group, and drops in for other classes as often as he is able. Come by on Friday evening for free sparring, and you might meet him yourself.

This is your last week to catch Fat Pig, which is getting fantastic reviews, like this one:

From Vancouver Observer:

Fat Pig: Highly Recommended
Director Michael Scholar Jr. has done a great job at staging the play in a way that keeps the audience focused and engaged. The set is minimal and shifts direction, both physically and metaphorically, at several points throughout the performance.

Kathryn Kirkpatrick delivers a brave and stellar performance as Helen, the object of Tom’s (Lawrence Haegert) desire and Haegert pulls us in completely with his performance, giving us hope that he’ll come through in the end. Jennifer Mawhinney and Aaron Craven’s characters (Jeannie, Carter) provide the cringe. Their dialogue is rich with all we try to hide in ourselves.

Fat Pig is a play that everyone should see. If you can get past the title, it’s definitely worth the time.
Vancouver Observer: Articles

The play is not about obesity itself, but concerns honesty. I found it a fascinating exploration of what it means to be honest with oneself and with others. Is being truthful always good? Is changing your mind a matter of integrity? Is there any truth or lies without a society’s judgment? Each of the characters struggle with these ideas, and that’s what makes this play engaging.

A couple of other reviews:

From “An Unidentified Production”: Blog by TwentySomething Theatre

This Is What I Like To See
The quality of this Vancouver production of “Fat Pig” was equal to what I saw on Broadway.

From Irresistible Theatre: Blog by Angela Konrad

Fat is Phat
Michael Scolar Jr. has created a terrific production in every respect. In addition to drawing lovely performances from his actors, the staging is inventive without being self-conscious, the pacing is spot on, and the comedy and pathos are in perfect balance.

Fat Pig makes my first Top Ten entry of 2009.

The performances are selling out, so call to reserve tickets.

Where: Performance Works, Granville Island
When: May 20 – 30
Tickets: Tues – Thur & Matinees $21.50; Fri – Sat $25.50
Contact: 604 684 2787
Tickets Online: ticketstonight.ca
Website: www.fatpig.ca

Why reading a book on a new martial art or stage combat will do very little for you:

The Cone of Learning

This image is from an article called Learn Anything on Litemind.com

Why People Put Down Book Smarts

Learning from a book is often frustrating precisely because it is limited. You know that you can’t fully learn a skill from a book, especially if it is only described in words. Many classic books on slight of hand have few images, they’re all description. It’s up to the illusionist to interpret the words, and work in front of a mirror to achieve their version of the trick.

Fortunately, producing images in books has come a long way since the first magic manuals. New books have lots of pictures and diagrams. But if you’ve tried to learn a complicated skill from a book, such as a martial art, you know that you still need description, because you can’t get a good sense of movement from still pictures.

Video Training

So, knowing that people are frustrated with books, a huge video market has sprung up. This is not just a “money grab” by marketers… learning by video really is better. They teach all kinds of skills by video, even accounting and psychology. And that works because of the learning pyramid: the combo of hearing and seeing (and reading slides if they use that) means that you remember things better, and for a longer time.

The biggest value comes from learning physical skills from a video because you can see the movement. You don’t have to follow picture 1A, 1B, 2, 3… and read the descriptions of each one to get the flow of a technique. You watch the expert and listen to the voiceover simultaneously. What an excellent way to learn!

But that’s not the best way…

Teaching

It has been said that to truly be a master at anything, you must teach it. That’s because you actually learn by teaching. If you’ve never taught your skill to a student, try it. You’ll find that you have to explain things in more than one way to get them to truly understand it. You may have to invent a metaphor by saying “It’s like painting a fence… up, down.” And by trying different approaches, you solidify your own knowledge.

Just Do It

If you like the shiny books, put them into practice with a training partner. Better yet, take a class. Your instructor will be able to correct your form… the book just sits there. Video instruction is obviously better, given this learning theory. Still, the video can’t correct you. Only an expert instructor with a good eye can tell you if you’re doing it properly.

When you think you’ve got a combat skill down pretty good, try simulating a real fight scenario. It will teach you where your skill might be weak, and solidify the motion into your body even better.

Warning:
Never start learning a skill in a high stress situation or when tired. You’ll learn it wrong and teach your body to do it badly. It will be difficult to correct yourself later. When learning a new skill, warm up (not to exhaustion), then slowly perform the movement. If you have a teacher, get corrected on your form before you try to go faster. If you have a book or video, watch yourself in the mirror and see if you match the image. When you think it’s right, go faster. Then do it with a partner slowly. Then faster and controlled. Only after going through these steps should you try to do it “for real”.

This is a fight scene from the movie Serenity, as the fight director designed it.

embedded by Embedded Video

YouTube link: Serenity Bar Fight Rehearsal

The stunt woman’s name is Bridget Riley. Chad Stahelski was the stunt coordinator.

The Value of a Fight Director

One thing you notice about this clip that is different from demo reels of most stunt teams is this: editing. A martial artist wants to show off the height of their kicks, their flexibility, their accuracy with a partner, and they set up a camera to best show off their assets for a series of moves. A fight director knows how to use the camera to tell the story as well as capture the correct angles for the strikes. Most martial artists and fencers have no idea how to frame a shot, what camera moves accomplish, or why film is different from a live performance.

Filming Rehearsal

You’ll also note that this is a recording of rehearsals. From the cuts, you know that this wasn’t one long take, but the camera was repositioned for each sequence. In this way, the stunt coordinator can show the director what angles would be best, and how he would direct the scene. The director may disagree, make suggestions or cuts, but at least he can decide before the day of the shoot where the camera should be angled, and where it should move.

Recording your rehearsals the way they will be filmed (in shorter sequences, with the camera moving in an appropriate way) will allow the performers to see where they need to change their particular moves. Shooting on digital and playing back on a large monitor immediately allows the rehearsal to continue with little interruption. Does that kick need to be higher to sell? Does that punch need to be extended? Seeing the recording immediately tells the performer how to improve in a much better way than verbal notes.

Be A Director

Plan your shots. Plan the fight in general shape, then start deciding on moments that you want to show, and decide how to show them. Shooting a “master” with a still camera at a long distance will help you remember the shape of the fight, but should NEVER be used for actual footage.

Once you know each shot, drill them one at a time. You think the Serenity team ever performed that fight from top to bottom? I wasn’t there, but I can pretty much guarantee they didn’t. First of all, look at all the wire work. If they didn’t have people flying the way they did, the fight would be entirely different. Take the cuts as a blessing. A cut allows you to optimize a sequence of one to ten moves in isolation. So isolate them.

Changes

Deal with feedback from the director or the DP before the shoot days. I’ve seen too many arguments on the set. If you film the rehearsal with the angles you think are best, you don’t have to let the director imagine what it will be like.

And if the DP has a way that he thinks will improve it, you can try it in rehearsal rather than having a fight with all your performers waiting around in costume.

A Note to Producers
If your production has a fight scene, it will suck unless you do the following steps:

1. Hire a fight choreographer or a stunt coordinator who has fight experience. Do not hire a martial artist or fencing master to design the fight. They can perform it, but they don’t know angles or storytelling.
2. Allow time and rehearsal space for the fight to be designed and rehearsed before filming.

Fat Pig

Jesse nominated actor Michael Scholar Jr. takes the Director’s reigns for “Fat Pig”, with actors Kathryn Kirkpatrick (Helen), Aaron Craven (Carter), Jennifer Mawhinney (Jeannie),and Lawrence Haegert (Tom) giving compelling performances filled with realism and passion. “Fat Pig” also features designs by Itai Erdel (Lighting) and Naomi Sider (Costume and set Design) with poster design by Dion Johnstone and website design by Richard Johnson. – Fat Pig website

The Vancouver premiere of Fat Pig by Neil LaBute opens May 20 on Granville Island, 1218 Cartwright St. There is not much physical violence in the piece, but I consulted for the stage combat. I also watched a full run of the show. The writing is by turns hilarious and heart-wrenching. With news piling up every day about the obesity epidemic, it is important to see theatre that reminds us that fat people are first and foremost people. The acting is strong from all four performers, the timing is tight, and the emotional connections are touching.

I loved working with the talented cast, and I can’t wait to see opening night. Hopefully I’ll see you there.

The name of the site is PlayFighting, so I would be remiss not to talk about play.

Experts on Play

TED, the annual conference on Technology, Entertainment and Design, hosted an entire sub-conference on “Serious Play” in 2008. Here is one seminal talk from that show:

Play in Stage Combat

With regard to staged violence, the final product that is performed for the audience is always choreographed and no part of it is improvised. However, in the beginning stages of rehearsal play is helpful.

• The actors need to trust each other. Play in a safe environment permits trust.
• The actors need to familiarize themselves with the weapons. If we start with choreography from the start, then it will never be more than a series of planned moves. Good stage combat is like good dance: the audience should believe it is spontaneous.
• Everyone is different. Some actors will have knee problems, or a previous wrist injury, and everyone is a different height. Play will show me what feels natural and optimum for the actor instead of imposing cookie-cutter choreography.

Entertainers Work and Play

However, what the audience sees is our work, not our play. A good comedian writes jokes and routines, memorizes them, and performs them in the way he thinks will have the funniest delivery. Bad comedians improvise. When a gag flops, a good comic can go back to his script and try something different with his set-up or punchline and see if the result is better or worse.

It’s the same with stage combat: the performance originates from play, but it is work that can be precisely replicated. Safety is the reason we choreograph. For fighting games to be safe, the players have to be slow, and obey certain rules. To make a fight convincing on stage, the fighters need to appear to be trying to kill the other: fast, desperate, and usually not rule-bound. We can’t improvise that. So we plan everything.

My Play Process

If time permits, I usually start with some exercises or games that get the actors moving and playing without any weapons. This gives them physical contact and the feeling of confrontation without any danger. Then, we can get into the choreography remembering that feeling of trust and keeping our freedom of movement. At some points, I’ll ask the actor, “What do you want to do now?” This keeps the performer involved in the creation process and enhances their memory as well. But in the end, it’s to recapture the game’s quality: making choices to win as a part of safe play.

FDC 2009 Nationals

In case you weren’t aware, I am the VP of Communications for Fight Directors Canada, and the webmaster. As such, I have the pleasure of announcing that I have completed a major re-design of the FDC site.

Click Here for the All New FDC.CA

Features

• Glossary: Yes, the FDC glossary is back online.
• Member Profiles: All members get a listing, categorized by their level, and with tags indicating where you live and your union status.
• Beautiful: Don’t you love the new look? If you think something doesn’t look right, it might be because you’re using Internet Explorer. Try Firefox, it’s free and renders pages more accurately and quickly.
• Awesomeness: Need I say more?

National Workshop

Don’t forget to sign up for the National Stage Combat Workshop held in Waterloo, Ontario this year. You get a 30% discount if you register before April 1!

Assisting Fight Master Simon Fon

First Year

• Group 1: Monday, 9 March 2009 2-5pm
• Group 2: Wednesday, 11 March 2009 2-5pm

1. Warm Up
2. Knife Fighting
   1. Grips: Heaven (hammer), Earth (ice-pick)
   2. Attack lines 1-12
   3. Defanging the Snake

Second Year

• Group 1: Wednesday 11 March 2009 9-11am
• Group 2: Wednesday 11 March 2009 11-1pm

1. Quarterstaff: Review choreography
2. Unarmed Fight Choreography