Imagined interior of London’s Fortune Theatre (1599). Sketch ©Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Ashland.
Occasionally a colleague responds to the term Theatrical Intelligence with “Isn’t that an oxymoron?” and much as it irks me to hear it, I understand. Theatrical logic doesn’t make much sense to those who are not in the theatre.
The theatre ditty below reflects amusing contradictions in what some think of as our oxymoronic world:
In is down, down is front Out is up, up is back
Off is out, on is in
And of course Right is left and left is right. A drop shouldn’t
And a block and fall does neither. A prop doesn’t
And a cove has no water. Tripping is OK.
A running crew rarely gets anywhere
A purchase line will buy you nothing
A trap will not catch anything And a gridiron has nothing to do with football. A strike is work (in fact, a lot of work) And a green room, thank God, usually isn’t. Now that you’re fully versed In theatrical terms…”Break a Leg”. But not really. Author Unknown
The language is confusing but absolutely explainable.
In fact, there is a long history of theatrefolk being thought of as not quite normal or respectable: in the early 20th century, it was common to see NO THEATRICALS signs on reputable hotels and eateries; women onstage were assumed to be prostitutes. Yes, the prejudice was rampant.
When Actors’ Equity was founded in 1913 as the first labor union in the performing arts industry, it paved the way for The Four A’s: the Associated Actors and Artistes of America.
These days there is a national hunger for creativity in the workplace. Corporations, governments, academic organizations and communities of all kinds are looking to artists for inspiration and answers to the lack of satisfaction of their workers. It’s the reason I’ve started leading Theatrical Intelligence Workshops, because it’s time to spread the word.
So,what is the answer to the question “Is Theatrical Intelligence An Oxymoron?”
YES, if you’re a skeptic.
NO, if you’re willing to challenge your assumptions and imagine a stage as the center of your world.
For those of us who work in the theatre, that’s what we’re lucky enough to do every day.
Tags: Inspiration, Language, Workplace
My name is Ann Sachs, and I'm developing a process I call Theatrical Intelligence®. This is my Beta-Blog, where I post ideas and bits of writing as I build the idea into a book and a business.
I think ‘Theatrical Intelligence’ is a clear, precise, and actually brilliant description of what I would call an awareness, a sensitivity, a mind set, either innate and developed, or acquired through experience, that comes into play in the performance of a specific, artistic genre . . theatre. Most people who are committed to an activity that absorbs their whole being can usually be said to have a sixth sense in relationship to the performing of it, that bonds them to that activity with a heightened awareness/ intelligence, that would not otherwise come into play. There’s also ‘musical intelligence’, ’seafaring intelligence’, cinematic intelligence’, and on and on. Jokes about it are silly to me and are part of that tradition you described, of sneering at what is not understood, ie. the arts and artists, and at what is perhaps, unfortunately experienced as elitst.
So well said, Jane. Thank you for seeing the context and the wisdom of so many other intelligences. And thank you Howard Gardner, who got it all started with Multiple Intelligences! http://www.howardgardner.com/FAQ/faq.htm
It is my quest to take the elitism out of it. In fact I love non-arts people in the workshops, because it brings them such joy.
Ann -
Have you read Dan Pink’s “A Whole New Mind”? He argues that the intelligence we need to compete in the future needs to combine the traditional left-brained modes of thinking with more right brain creativity. It isn’t either or, its both.
So TI sounds to me like creativity, showmanship, communication, design, and all the kinds of intelligence that Pink cogently argues we cannot compete today without.
Would love to hear your thoughts.
Yes, Bonnie – you are right on target! I read Dan Pink’s book the day it came out.
Also, my theory of Theatrical Intelligence is influenced by three generations of my family who were neurologists and then neurosurgeons. I’ve been fascinated by the balance of right brain-left brain thinking since the time I was a child, although I didn’t know that’s what it was at the time.
Would love to have a conversation about this.