A modern physical theatre has grown from a variety of origins.
Mime and theatrical clowning schools, such as
L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq in Paris, have had a big influence on many modern expressions of physical theatre. Practitioners such as
Steven Berkoff and
John Wright received their initial
training at such institutions.
Contemporary dance has also had a strong influence on what we regard as physical theatre, partly because most physical theatre requires actors to have a certain level of physical control and flexibility. These qualities are rarely found in those who do not have some sort of movement background. Modern physical theatre also has strong roots in more ancient traditions such as ''
Commedia dell'arte'', and some suggest links to the
ancient greek theatre, particularly the theatre of
Aristophanes. Another physical theatre tradition started with the French master
Etienne Decroux (father of
corporeal mime). Decroux's aim was to create a theatre based on the physicality of the actor, allowing the creation of a more
metaphorical theatre. This tradition has grown, and corporeal mime is now taught in many major theatrical schools.
Daniel Stein, a teacher out of the lineage of
Etienne Decroux, has this to say about physical theatre: 'I think physical theatre is much more visceral and audiences are affected much more viscerally than intellectually. The foundation of theatre is a live, human experience, which is different from any other form of art that I know of. Live theatre, where real human beings are standing in front of real human beings, is about the fact that we have all set aside this hour; the sharing goes in both directions. The fact that it is a very physical, visceral form makes it a very different experience from almost anything else that we partake of in our lives. I don’t think we could do it the same way if we were doing literary-based theatre.' Arguably, the point at which physical theatre became distinct from pure mime is when
Jean-Louis Barrault (a student of Decroux) rejected his teacher's notion that the mime should be silent. If a mime uses their voice then they would have a whole range of possibilities open to them that previously would not have existed. This idea became known as "
Total Theatre" and Barrault advocated that no theatrical element should assume primacy over another: movement, music, visual image, text etc. He viewed each element as equally important, and believed that each should be explored for their possibilities. Barrault was a member of
Michel Saint-Denis's company, alongside
Antonin Artaud. Artaud has also been highly influential in shaping what has become known as physical theatre. Artaud rejected the primacy of the text and suggested a theatre in which the
proscenium arch is disposed of to have a more direct relationship with the audience.
Eastern theatre traditions have influenced some practitioners who have then influenced physical theatre. A number of Oriental traditions have a high level of physical training, and are visual masterpieces. The Japanese
Noh tradition, in particular, has often been often upon. The energy and visual nature of
Balinese theatre fascinated Antonin Artaud and he wrote extensively on it. Noh has been important for many practitioners including Lecoq, who based his neutral mask on the calm mask of Noh.
Jerzy Grotowski,
Peter Brook,
Jacques Copeau and
Joan Littlewood have all been consciously influenced by Noh. Alongside contemporary western practitioners, certain Japanese theatre practitioners were influenced by their own traditions.
Tadashi Suzuki drew partly on Noh and his students and collaborators have disseminated his highly physical training into the west. This has particularly happened through
Anne Bogart's collaboration with him, and the simultaneous training of her actors in both the
Viewpoints method and Suzuki training. As well as Suzuki, the
Butoh Movement, which originated from
Tatsumi Hijikata and
Kazuo Ohno contained elements of Noh imagery and physicality. Butoh, again, has been influencing Western practitioners in recent years, and has certain similarities with Lecoq's mime training in terms of ideas (impression and consequential embodiment of imagery, use of mask, etc.) Besides a gradual infusion of ideas from outside the Western theatre tradition, influences have arisen from within theatre as well starting with
Konstantin Stanislavski. Later in life, Stanislavski began to reject his own ideas of
naturalism,{{cite book Contemporary dance has added significantly to this mix, starting particularly with
Rudolf von Laban. Laban developed a way of looking at movement outside codified dance, and was instrumental in envisioning and creating movement not just for dancers but for actors as well. Later on, the
Tanzteater of
Pina Bausch and others looked at the relationship between dance and theatre. In America, the
postmodern dance movement of the
Judson Church Dance also began to influence theatre practitioners, as their suggestions for movement and
somatic training are equally accessible for those with dance training as those with theatre training. Indeed,
Steve Paxton taught theatre students at
Dartington College of Arts and other institutions. ==Notable performers==