Your Body Knows provides the foundation actors need to move with ease and power. It is a practical guide to movement starting at the very beginning: knowing your body and experiencing how it works.
Through the work of F.M. Alexander, Rudolf Laban, and Michael Chekhov, this book offers basic training in movement fundamentals. Its step-by-step process supports the actor's work in any acting or movement training program and as a working professional. The book focuses on three main areas of exploration:
Body facts - Know your body and its design for movement. Let go of misinformed ideas about your body. Move more freely, avoid injury, and develop a strong body-mind connection.
Movement facts - What is movement? Discover the movement fundamentals that can serve your art. Explore new ways of moving.
Creative inspiration - Connect your body, mind, and imagination to liberate authentic and expressive character movement.
Your Body Knows: A Movement Guide for Actors is an excellent resource for acting students and their teachers, promoting a strong onstage presence and awakening unlimited potential for creative expression.
Acknowledgments
Introduction
PART I
Know Your Instrument (So You Can Really Play)
Section I The Starting Place
Chapter 1 Your Motion Detector
Chapter 2 Your 3-Dimensional Body
Chapter 3 Your Moving Breath
A Restful Break: Constructive Rest #1
Section II You Are Designed for Movement
Chapter 4 Get to Know Your Joints
Chapter 5 Joint Connections in Your Head-Spine-Pelvis
Chapter 6 Joint Connections in Your Arm Structure
Chapter 7 Joint Connections in your Feet, Legs, and Pelvis
Chapter 8 Strong Bones, Dynamic Muscles
Chapter 9 Connecting Your Joints and Your Whole Body
A Restful Break: Constructive Rest #2
Section III What You Think Is What You Get
Chapter 10 Your Body-Mind Connection
Chapter 11 Body Myths vs. Anatomical Facts
Chapter 12 Your Primary Coordination
Section IV Claiming Your Inner and Outer Space
Chapter 13 Your Inner Space
Chapter 14 Exploring "Outer Space"
Chapter 15 Inner and Outer Space: A Movement Partnership
Section V Pathway to Presence: Putting It All Together
Chapter 16 Connecting Body, Mind, Breath, and Space
Chapter 17 Practicing Presence
PART II
Elements of Expression
Section VI Authenticity and Commitment
Chapter 18 Authentic Impulse: Listening Within
Chapter 19 Your Body Leads The Way
Chapter 20 The Four Brothers
Section VII Foundations
Chapter 21 Space
Chapter 22 Time
Chapter 23 Weight
Chapter 24 Flow
Chapter 26 Qualities of Movement
Chapter 27 Shape
Chapter 28 Spatial Tools
Chapter 29 Text and Your Responsive Body-Mind
PART III
Creative Practice
Chapter 30 Whole-body Warm-up: Staccato-Legato
Chapter 31 Movement, Character, and Relationships: Putting Principles and Skills Into Practice!
Chapter 32 Performing for an Audience: My Space, Your Space, Their Space
Chapter 33 Movement and Space: Creating the World of the Play
Conclusion
List of Key Words and Key Practices
Appendix I - Practices for Further Exploration
Appendix II - The Movement Pioneers
Bibliography
Index
