10.3: Abstract Movement

Overview

Performers can incorporate abstract movement to embody emotional rhythms, visualize thematic concepts, and engage audiences in an embodied experience. Effective use of movement requires attention to time, space, and energy, with variations in speed, spatial positioning, and intensity shaping audience perception and emotional impact.

Abstract symbols, images, and gestures further enhance performance, allowing subtle, universal cues to convey thematic and emotional significance. Objects, colors, and bodily gestures can carry metaphorical weight, while stillness can heighten tension, focus attention, or punctuate expressive gestures. Performers may also use their bodies to create visual metaphors or socially recognizable images, inviting audiences to co-create meaning.

Context and audience influence interpretation, underscoring the ethical responsibility of performers to avoid misrepresentation. Oral interpretation performers can create rich, ethically grounded performances that communicate textual meaning while engaging audiences both intellectually and sensorially by integrating abstract movement, gestures, and symbolic elements.

Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): While oral interpretation does not involve dance, performers employ movement techniques similar to those used in choreography to convey meaning, emotion, and thematic nuance. (CC-BY; Barry Goyette - Two dancers)

Learning Objectives

1. Understand how time, space, and energy impact the message of a performance.
2. Apply symbols, images, and gesture to enhance audience engagement and convey nuanced meaning.
3. Recognize how embodied practices reflect identity, social norms, and cultural context, and apply strategies to perform ethically without misrepresentation.

 

The Body as an Instrument of Performance

Every individual engages in a series of social performances daily, and these performances collectively shape personal identity. In oral interpretation, it is important to remain aware of how such embodied practices influence the meanings communicated on stage. Performers should not attempt to solely mimic the actions of other people or erase their identities to fully “become” a character, as doing so risks ethical and cultural misrepresentation. Instead, performers should use their bodies as an instrument to abstract everyday performances. For instance, if white woman attempted to imitate traditional Indian classical dance by exaggerating hand gestures (mudras) and facial expressions without understanding the cultural or spiritual significance, her performance reduces a rich, sacred art form to a caricature. This causes offense to those who value the dance’s deep meaning and context. Instead, the performer should inhabit a liminal space moving authentically and abstractly while sharing the character’s story.

By embracing the body as and instrument of abstract interpretation, performers can engage ethically and meaningfully with their texts, audiences, and identities.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{1}\)

Activity 1: Exploring Embodied Identity in Oral Interpretation

Objective: To help performers become aware of how bodily gestures, posture, and movement communicate meaning, identity, and social cues in oral interpretation.

Instructions:

1. Observation Exercise: Pair up with a partner. Observe your partner sitting naturally for two minutes, noting gestures, posture, and subtle movements (e.g., crossed legs, hand placement, leaning). Discuss what these gestures might communicate about confidence, composure, or social identity.

2. Gesture Experimentation: Select a short passage from a text you will perform. Identify two or three gestures or postures that could convey the emotional tone or social positioning of the speaker. Experiment performing the passage with exaggerated, neutral, and subtle versions of these movements.

3. Reflection: Write a brief reflection on how your bodily choices altered the meaning of the text. Consider how context, audience, and cultural norms influenced your interpretation.

Incorporating Abstract Movement in Oral Interpretation

In oral interpretation, movement plays a crucial role in shaping meaning and engaging audiences. While theatrical performers focus primarily on gestures that mimic literal actions (such as walking, pointing, or holding an object), oral interpretation performers incorporate abstract movement. Abstract movement offers a more expressive and symbolic ways to communicate emotion, theme, or rhythm. Abstract movement refers to physical actions that do not directly imitate realistic behaviors but instead evoke ideas, sensations, or emotional states through form, flow, and energy.

For example, instead of physically acting out “opening a door,” a performer might extend their arms slowly outward to suggest openness, vulnerability, or transition. These kinds of movements communicate mood or metaphor rather than literal narrative detail.

Purpose of Abstract Movement

Rather than relying on literal gestures, performers can experiment with nonliteral motions that suggest meaning symbolically. Abstract movement helps performers:

• Express emotion and tone: Movements can mirror the emotional rhythm of a text—sharp, angular gestures might convey tension or conflict, while fluid motions can express calm or introspection.

• Visualize themes: Performers can embody abstract concepts such as freedom, confinement, or transformation through shape and motion.

• Create visual interest: Dynamic movement patterns draw the audience’s attention and enhance engagement.

• Build connection: Movement invites the audience to feel rather than just understand, transforming interpretation into an embodied experience.

To effectively integrate abstract movement into oral interpretation, performers should begin by identifying emotional or thematic peaks where movement can deepen understanding, such as points of discovery, conflict, or transformation.

Time, Space, and Energy

When incorporating abstract movement into a performance, three primary elements should be considered: time, space, and energy. Time refers to the speed at which movements are executed; alternating between fast and slow motions can sustain audience engagement while emphasizing the emotional or thematic significance of the performance. Space involves the performer’s use of the stage or performance area, as movement across the space can reflect changes in mood, emotion, or power dynamics, and variations in proximity to the audience can influence the perceived intimacy of a moment. Energy pertains to the quality and intensity of movement, with sharp, forceful gestures conveying strength or urgency, while soft, gentle motions communicate subtlety, vulnerability, or calm. By thoughtfully integrating these three elements, performers can enhance the expressiveness and impact of their movements within oral interpretation.

Symbols, Images, and Abstract Gestures

When performers encounter difficulty incorporating abstract movement into oral interpretation, they can explore the use of symbols, images, and gestures as tools to enhance meaning. Performers usually avoid using multiple large props in oral interpretation performances. Rather, performers typically only incorporate a black binder into their performances. Performers can integrate symbols into attire or minimal objects, providing subtle and universal cues that audiences can intuitively interpret. Effective symbols extend beyond their literal presence and can take the form of objects, colors, or gestures that evoke deeper emotional or thematic significance. For instance, a chair may symbolize absence or presence, while a scarf could represent connection. Similarly, colors carry connotations, such as red indicating passion or conflict and blue suggesting calmness or sorrow. When using symbolic objects, it is advisable to select items that are wearable or already present in the performance space, maintaining a clean and focused staging. Performers should avoid overloading the performance with multiple symbolic elements; instead, they should select one or two symbols that align with the text’s central themes and allow these elements to sustain emotional and thematic weight throughout the piece.

We might also use movement to replicate specific images that are commonly performed in society. The performer’s body can become the image. Through shape, stillness, and spatial arrangement, the performer can sculpt visual metaphors. For example, curving the body inward might evoke protection or grief and expanding outward can symbolize freedom or revelation. Performers can also invite the audience to contribute to the imagery perhaps by holding cards, responding to cues, or imagining scenes collectively. This transforms the act of seeing into a shared, co-created experience. 

Incorporating abstract gestures into an oral interpretation performance enhances meaning, emphasizes emotion, and helps communicate subtext through physical expression. In oral interpretation, abstract gestures act as a bridge between the spoken word and the embodied experience of the character or narrator, allowing performers to make the text more vivid and accessible for the audience. Abstract gestures should arise naturally from the text’s emotional and thematic content rather than being added as decoration. Avoid literal gestures that simply act out the text (e.g., pointing when saying “over there”). Instead, focus on expressive gestures that amplify or suggest meaning. Abstract gestures should feel metaphorical, complementing the spoken language rather than mirroring it. Effective abstract gestures emerge from genuine emotional connection rather than planned choreography. During rehearsal, explore how your body naturally wants to move as you speak the text. Notice spontaneous impulses (hand movements, shifts in posture, or head tilts) and refine them to ensure they feel purposeful and clear.

Stillness

Stillness can be as powerful as gesture. A lack of movement can draw attention to the voice, create tension, or emphasize control. Alternating between stillness and gesture creates rhythm and visual interest, allowing gestures to carry more weight when they do occur. These approaches align with abstract performance techniques where the performer embodies the imagery rather than merely describing it. By incorporating abstract movement, oral interpretation becomes not only a vocal but also a physical exploration of meaning. Through intentional, expressive motion, performers can translate the emotional and thematic undercurrents of literature into embodied form, creating a performance that resonates on both intellectual and sensory levels.

Exercise \(\PageIndex{2}\)

Activity 2: Exploring Abstract Movement in Oral Interpretation

Objective: To help performers integrate abstract movement, symbols, and gestures into their oral interpretation to enhance emotional expression, thematic depth, and audience engagement.

Instructions:

1. Select a Passage: Choose a short excerpt from a text (1–2 minutes). Read it silently and aloud to identify emotional or thematic peaks—moments of tension, revelation, or transformation.

2. Movement Mapping:

   • Identify one or two abstract movements that could express the text’s emotion or theme (e.g., angular gestures for conflict, fluid gestures for introspection).

   • Experiment with time (speed of movement), space (use of stage or proximity to audience), and energy (intensity and quality of motion) to convey meaning.

3. Symbol Integration:

   • Select one symbolic object, color, or gesture to reinforce the text’s message (e.g., a scarf for connection, red for passion).

   • Incorporate this symbol into your movements without distracting from the text.

4. Gesture Exploration:

   • Allow gestures to emerge naturally from the text’s emotional content.

   • Avoid literal mimicry (e.g., pointing when saying “over there”) and instead focus on gestures that metaphorically amplify meaning.

5. Stillness and Rhythm:

   • Experiment with alternating stillness and movement to emphasize key moments, create visual interest, and complement vocal delivery.

6. Performance and Feedback:

   • Perform the passage for a partner or small group, inviting them to reflect on how movement, symbols, and gestures influenced their understanding and emotional engagement.

   • Revise based on feedback and refine gestures and abstract movements for clarity and expressive impact.