11th Hour Ensemble specializes in devising theatrical performances through the use of physical theatre. Here’s a little about our method.


What is Physical Theatre?

       There’s no easy answer to this question. All theatre is inherently physical because an actor’s primary tool is his/her body (which includes the voice). However, Physical Theater can be considered any theatrical piece that uses physical expression as the primary language through which the story is told. This can encompass a diverse realm of styles including mime, clowning, puppetry, dance theatre, slapstick, and Commedia Dell’arte. Many Asian theatre styles fall into this category as well, such as Beijing Opera, Noh, Kyogen, Suzuki actor’s training method, and Butoh among others. Additionally, any performance, even a ‘straight,’ contemporary play, can be crafted with a specific and deliberate use of physicality and/or an artful eye for bodies in space. Such pieces might not contain anything remotely dance-like or rigorous in them, and still hold all the visual power and exactitude of a finely choreographed ballet.


What is Devised Theatre?

       Traditionally, plays are written by a playwright and then rehearsed and performed by a company of actors and a director. When theatre is devised it is created in rehearsal, through the collaboration and experimentation of the company. This means that the company may begin rehearsing with nothing more than an idea or theme, and through various means generate and write the play. Depending on the company, these ‘various means’ of creation can vary greatly. Typically, improvisation is the primary tool used to devise. However, unlike Improvisation Theatre, by the time it is presented to the public, a devised show will usually have a set script that has been rehearsed and orchestrated with precision.


11th Hour’s Method

       In deciding which method(s) to use to generate material, we look at the unique qualities of the piece in question. Very little may be known about the piece when beginning composition, but often it is based on something specific, like a story or a theme. Then there is the question of why we’re doing the piece or what we hope to achieve with it. By identifying these things we can then make decisions which will define the play’s outline and direct us as we begin to explore the world of the play.
        Viewpoints is the primary physical method of composition utilized by our company. Originated in the postmodern dance world of the 1970’s by choreographer Mary Overlie, the theory has since been adapted for theatre by Anne Bogart and Tina Landau. Offering a vocabulary that defines specific components of movement, Viewpoints allows performers to focus and easily talk about the mechanics of a physical choice. Using this vocabulary, games and exercises are introduced which quickly produce organic and intuitive material that is then assessed, refined, and edited for the piece.
        It is the director’s job to do this ‘editing,’ as it is their job to oversee and maintain the continuity, integrity, purpose, and vision of the whole play (just like a traditional process). Having this outside eye allows the actors to freely create without having to self edit, and allows the director to mold what they produce into the final product.
       Though Viewpoints is the method of development we use, there are many physical influences in our work that reveal themselves both through movement and approach. 11th Hour is most truly an ensemble with regards to how we have sought to educate one another in the various disciplines that each of us are trained in. Just as the vocabulary in Viewpoints manages to create a common language, we have made an effort to create our own language by each introducing the basic techniques of our individual skills to the group. As a means of better understanding each other while expanding the group’s knowledge, this sharing of skills has also allowed us to compare and contrast different types of movement. Such disciplines have included Ballet, Jazz, Gymnastics, Karate, Biomechanics, Yoga, Musical Improv, Noh and Kyogen. Additionally, the ensemble formed while attending school at SFSU where we all trained in the Suzuki Method. Another fundamental piece of our collective education, Suzuki prepares the individual mentally & physically for intense ensemble work. Our hope through work like this is to truly embrace the notion of ensemble by way of synergy and collaboration and to equip ourselves with the means to devise innovative work.