Going to Ground
This next section is fraught with danger, because the stage floor is very unforgiving and has no qualms about damaging actors. I’m starting with the easy stuff and moving to the more complex, but just because I am describing it doesn’t mean that it is safe. It isn’t. I have seen similar techniques taught with painful results, sometimes because of a moment of inattention of the instructor, sometimes because of a minor misunderstanding by the actor, and sometimes because a human body is not designed to be hit by a hardwood floor. The first simulations should be studied by every actor, the latter ones should only be attempted by those who already have a lot of experience and control. And complete control is the most important thing here – if you can’t do the movement in slow-motion, you can’t do the movement. Unless you have the physical control to freeze your body in space at any and every point along the way, you haven’t mastered the action and must not perform it.
When learning any of these techniques, use your ears. When done correctly, no part of your body should strike the ground hard enough to make a sound. Each sound you hear is a bruise waiting to develop. So go slowly at first: build up speed only if you can do so silently.
When you are comfortable enough with the technique, start adding a little misdirection. Since audiences look for meaning from the actor’s face, raising your gaze as you begin the drop will keep the audience from focusing on the mechanics of your carefully controlled descent.
knees to floor
How I hate the sound of an actor’s knees hammering the boards as he kneels to the floor, especially when his character is a prisoner being “forced” to the ground. No matter how gentle the guards are, the prisoner himself drives his knees to the floor as though they were nails into plywood.
To get the knees gently to the ground, start by keeping your back and head nice and straight as you gently bend your knees until you are almost sitting on your heels. Don’t lean forward of back, your first action is simply to squat. The knees are a few inches off the ground right now, but we’ve taken your body weight out of the equation. Now just lean back, and the knees will gently and automatically lower to the floor, completely under your control without the rest of your body forcing the knees into the boards. To give it a little bit more of a natural look, I let one knee land slightly ahead of the other, and then allow the upper body to bend forward to finish the pantomime.
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If the moment to be portrayed is in fact a prisoner being forced to the ground by a guard, let the victim perfect the drop before adding the aggressor, who merely has to match his own pantomime to match the victim’s drop. The same applies to converting any of the following drops into a throw.
back/sit fall
This is called a back fall by some because that’s what it looks like, and a sit fall by others because that’s what you actually do. Falling backwards usually comes after a push, and actors sometimes respond to the push by leaning backwards and letting gravity take over. What a great way to damage the arms, spine and head.
The main thing we want to protect is the head, so we’re going to break down this simulation, each step designed to reduce every possible inch of distance between head and floor before we ever lean the head back. First, take a giant step backwards with the upstage leg and slowly sit on that heal. The bigger that first step is, the easier the rest of the simulation is. (Taking a step back with the upstage leg makes it look as though the fall came from being pushed back. By kicking out the downstage foot forward and sitting on the stationary leg, it looks more like being pushed down. Some people like to call the first a back fall and the second one a sit fall. I don’t much care what you call it so long as you don’t hurt yourself.)
Back all as viewed from behind. Note that the upstage hand is used to hit the ground for the sound of impact.
The upper body should still be straight with the head facing forward. Gently roll back off of your heel until you are sitting on the floor. Now, tuck your chin to your chest and roll back onto the floor. At the very last moment release the chin, lifting your gaze up but still keeping the back of your head an inch off the floor. Smack the ground with your upstage arm to add the sound of the head bouncing on the floor to complete the illusion. This is a simulation using controlled and fluid motion. Challenge yourself to not use your hands to stop your momentum. If you use your legs and work your balance, you shouldn’t need to ever use your hands, which is a great skill to develop should you need to be holding props when you fall.
With time, the movements will naturally blend until it looks more like one drop instead of five segments, but don’t rush. Make sure that each part feels comfortable before moving on to the next. Remember that your goal is to have enough control so that you can stop the simulation at any point of the fall should you need to.
side fall
You’ve guessed it! A side fall is nothing more than a back fall going sideways. Just a couple of modifications are needed to make it work. Of course you’ll need to step deeply out to the side instead of backwards, but you’ll also need to let your hips roll out a bit so you can sit on the floor before continuing to roll on your side as you finish the fall. Your upstage hand is not seen by the audience, so it can smack the ground to give the sound of impact. Just as in all falling simulations, challenge yourself to stay in control. You should be able to stop and reverse movement at any point of the fall. Challenge yourself to not use your hands to stop your momentum.
forward fall
More difficult than the other falls, but very necessary to learn. Just like the side and back falls, a bigger initial step makes it easier to control your center of gravity. Unlike the other falls, this illusion has to take a detour halfway through.
First step deep in one direction ……. …….. then melt into the other
Let’s say you are going to fall straight forward. If you step directly forward trying to get low, your knee is soon going to get in your way. Instead, keep your eyes on that spot on the ground where you should end up, but take that first step out about 45 degrees from that center-line. Make that step as long and deep as you can, but don’t lean forward from the waist yet or you’ll lose control. Now you are going to very gently use your fingers, then palms, then forearms to help melt into the floor as you slide back to that original center-line.
Even when working directly with actors, and I completely describe what we are going to do, and then I demonstrate it a few times, most don’t get it at first and will try to fall in the direction that they step. So remember, first step in one direction, then glide in the other. As you melt into the ground, keep your head up as you arch your back. Your belly should make contact with the ground before your chest does, and turn your head to the side (you don’t want to stop your fall with your nose). Add an appropriate body impact reaction when you are done to give the illusion of a sudden stop.
Never use your hands to stop your momentum. I keep harping on that for three reasons. First, it doesn’t look like a fall, it looks like a push-up. Secondly, because you can’t trust your wrists to actually stop your body without starting to damage some very delicate ligaments. Lastly, you might be holding a prop. Learning to fall without using your hands means you can safely handle the prop as well.
forward roll
A forward roll is not a somersault. In a somersault both hands are placed on the ground and the head and body go directly over in a straight line and into a roll. Too many things can and do go wrong with somersaults, especially neck and wrist injuries, so for stage we use the forward roll.
I’m going to describe the mechanics of the forward roll, but the danger level is so high that it absolutely requires the supervision of someone with excellent teaching capability in tumbling skills. If an actor insists that he or she can safely perform a forward roll on a hard surface, challenge that by having him or her do the roll in super-slow motion as well as at 3/4 speed. Then have them do the same thing in reverse. Someone who is truly in control should be able to go backwards or forwards, and freeze the motion at any point of the roll while in slow motion. If they get that far, then close your eyes and listen to the roll when performed at 3/4 speed. They must be able to do so in near silence. Any thumping on the floor means that an injury could and probably will happen in the future. By the way, the head need never, and must never, touch the ground.
Unlike the somersault, the forward roll is asymmetrical, and you should learn how to perform it both left and right. Start by kneeling on the ground, right knee close and left knee further back, and put your left hand down as well, making a comfortable 3-point stance. Your right hand is free and I want you to look at it. Keep staring at it as at touches the ground between your left hand and right knee and then travels along the ground all the way back to your left foot. Yes, all the way back. At some point you will find this to be impossible, but you will also have placed you right shoulder completely on the ground and your face is practically under your left arm. Reach some more and gently push off with your right knee, and your upper back will begin to roll with your legs following gracefully along. OK, maybe not so gracefully, but you’ve just performed your first forward roll and you didn’t hurt yourself.
You must tuck your chin to your chest and not ever have your head touch the ground, but you will do that automatically if you concentrate on reaching for that trailing leg and you really look at that reaching hand. Just stick with this baby roll until it feels second nature, and then try the same thing but switching to the left side. At first it might turn into a side roll, but for now that’s fine. As you gain confidence, you’ll be able to focus more on improving the look by forcing your feet to actually go over your head instead of falling out to the side. Each time you finish a roll, make sure that you’re in control of your legs as well. At the end of the roll at least one foot should land flat on the ground, and that one can take the force away from the other leg. You don’t want your leg to simply crash into the floor or you’ll hurt that exposed ankle bone. Don’t try to do too many of these at one time. A dozen or so each day is fine: more than that will just make you dizzy.
Ready for more? Then with time slowly increase the height. First, try going into the 3-point stance but with the right foot on the ground instead of the right knee. Now you’ll have to push off a little bit more in order to start the roll, and you’ll have to tuck in you chin even more. When that works for you, we increase the height a bit more by lifting that left knee off the ground as well. That’s right, the 3-point stance is now both feet and the left hand, but the reach and tuck remain the same. And remember to try both left and right rolls.
Feels good? Excellent – now do the rolls in reverse. If you can’t go forward and backward, stop here and do not continue until you can.
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Well, I congratulate you on mastering the backward roll! As difficult as that was to do, you’ll find that it will give you the control you’ll need when you have to change directions in the middle of a roll, as you may need to during performance. Crazy things happen: the scissors that were safely on the mantle are now on the ground, right in your path. You’ll just catch a glimpse of it as you begin the roll – can you stop in mid-roll, alter your direction while your tush is in the air, and roll out of harm’s way? Of course you can, because you have developed the skills in rehearsal that can protect you in performance! Aren’t you glad you put in the extra sessions to practice something you thought at the time was unnecessary?
As your body gets higher and higher, it will get more difficult to lower that shoulder to the ground, so you’ll find that you’ll need to support the drop with that reaching arm, using it as part of the roll before your shoulder even gets there. Start thinking of your body as a giant steel hoop starting from your pinky finger tip, and continuing in one unbroken curve past your wrist, elbow, shoulder, crossing your back to the opposite hip then the side of your knee and the opposite foot. Those are the body parts that will touch the ground during the roll and no others. As you get momentum going be sure and keep your ankle from smacking the ground. (I broke my ankle that way in performance once – really dumb. That’s one reason why regular judo techniques don’t work onstage – no padded mat.)
As you steadily improve you’ll find that you can begin to step into the roll instead of rigidly forming the stance first. In other words, you’ll step forward with your right foot and start your reach with the right hand before your left hand has touched the ground. Instead of reaching so dramatically back to your trailing foot, you’ll find that you can push off a bit more with your feet and still have control of the roll. Finish this move by rolling onto the hip – not by banging it to the ground. You’ll find that you can even roll right onto your feet and then stand right up without even slowing down the roll.
One more thing – some very highly placed fight choreographers, the tops in the field, teach this with a flat-backed landing, using both feet slamming to the floor to take the impact. While attending one of their workshops, I witnessed an actor seriously hurt doing this – while under the direct supervision of one of these famous experts. I knew it was unsafe before I saw the injury occur, but foolishly said nothing. These same fight masters still insist on continuing to teach the forward roll this way. An unsafe move is unsafe no matter who teaches it.
tackle
This is a partnered illusion that increases the danger level, so I am hesitant to include it. But given the number of shows in which actors have to grapple with each other, I feel compelled to at least offer a suggestion as to how it can be made safer.
The tackle from the front is a combination of a back fall by the victim and a forward fall by the aggressor. As you’ll recall, the back fall travels in one direction, while the forward fall makes a detour on its way forward. Since the person being tackled can only go back, the tackler should plan on moving first away from the victim as the “tackle” begins, and then finish by moving back toward him once he is safely seated on the ground. For the victim the sequence is get hit, then step back, then sit. Have the actors practice this at least four feet apart from each other, then slowly inch them closer together until it looks as though one has caused the other to fall.
throw from choke from behind
Again we are in a high danger level here, but a brief description. This is a forward roll from the victim along with a simple kneel to the ground for the aggressor. (A reminder here that once we begin the simulation of the throw, the roles of victim and aggressor are reversed; the victim is now the one who was doing the choking and the aggressor is the one who was being choked.)
The first part is an elbow strike to the victim, which “releases” the choke hold. The aggressor lightly touches the victim’s arm. When the victim is ready to begin the forward roll, he leans back a little bit to let the aggressor know when to begin the simulation of the throw.
With the outside leg, the victim steps just in front of the aggressor before starting the roll. The aggressor helps the illusion by pointing to the ground in the direction of the victim’s roll to seal the illusion of actually having thrown someone. The lower the aggressor can kneel to the ground, the easier for the victim to do the forward roll. The aggressor does NOT lift up the victim at any point. The aggressor’s only job is to provide an illusion of throwing while the victim performs a standard forward roll. If the victim wants to jump up in the air first, that’s his business. Don’t let the victim tell the aggressor to “help him out” by lifting him up.
traps and locks
There a whole raft of illusions designed to look as though one actor has immobilized another by either twisting a limb and painfully applying pressure to a joint. Most of these are taken from aikido and its parent discipline jujitsu. Although simple to perform, the margin for error is very small and so the possibility of doing real damage to the victim is very large. For that reason they are to be considered advanced techniques, and we must relegate them to the list of those that must only be taught under the direct tutelage of an on-sight instructor. With one exception.
Twisting someone’s arm behind their back is probably the best known of the immobilization techniques, and actors are apt to do this one on their own. For that reason only I am going to provide some instruction for the aggressor. In performing this technique he must do … nothing. Just let the victim twist his own arm behind his back. The aggressor does absolutely nothing except act his little heart out. [Which is basically the same instruction for all traps and locks.]
fall down a flight of stairs
Now we’re really into the bruises and broken bones area, but too many shows have this in it for me to ignore here, so let me give you some pointers, though you still need to get someone with experience to help with this. By the way, this is way beyond the training of most fight directors, so make sure that the person you get knows his or her stuff.
Just to make sure that you have the skills to do this, first practice doing slow-motion continuous forward rolls, no standing up in between.. Begin on a flat surface with a gentle decline. If you have the space, put two chairs about three feet apart and do continuous rolls in a figure eight around them. Then roll down some equally gentle steps, preferably carpeted ones. Try rolling uphill as well – it’s a great workout for the abdominals. As the mood strikes you, try twisting in different directions as you roll. As you start to feel some of the bumps and bruises, feel free to pad those areas of your body that always seem to find the hardest part of the floor. Very thin foam pads can be sewn right into your costume that can protect you and will not be noticed by the audience.
From the top of a staircase the biggest danger is in the initial loss of control, gravity and momentum being what they are. Instead of attempting a forward roll from a standing position right down the stairs, try beginning with a “slip” into a sit-fall first. This at least gets you sitting down on the first step, from which you can slowly tuck into a front/side roll. In order to keep your speed under control, allow your limbs to make contact with the wall and rails. This not only gives you the opportunity to continue to practice the fall in slow motion, but it also gives a better random look to the fall for better believability. It’s funnier and safer if you work in the idea that you are not just falling but are desperately trying to stop from falling. Trying to grab at the railing, bouncing off of the banister, getting a foot hooked in a rail that can spin your body into a belly slide – all of these things can be incorporated into your fall and can help control the tumble. But remember: if you can’t do it slow, you can’t do it at all.
Don’t try to do too much at once. A dozen or so rolls during each session is plenty. Anything beyond that and you risk getting too dizzy and bruised for any useful rehearsal.
fall from a height
It’s very exciting of course to see someone leaping out from a high point on a set and have them disappear into the void. Please, please call in an expert stunt artist. You need someone who can not only teach the technique but also evaluate the performance area. By the way, this is way beyond the training of the vast majority of stage combat instructors, so don’t ask your local fight guy to work it out for you. People will only get hurt.
Obviously the higher you go it becomes more dangerous for the actor. Building a fall protection system (a “drop box”) is mandatory for heights above nine feet, and it must be built by a professional company. Don’t do it yourself. The legal liability is huge if anything goes wrong. And even small drops of less than six feet put tremendous strain on the ankles, and there is always the risk of someone striking his head after the fall and killing himself. I’m serious.
stomach throw
An exceptional tumbler can make this simulation work, but it is also exceptionally dangerous. The stomach throw (tomoe nage in Japanese) is the Judo technique of pulling your opponent down on top of you while you do a back-fall, simultaneously thrusting your foot into his stomach, and them kicking straight up, his momentum taking him over your head and behind you. In a perfect world, it can be simulated by a variation of the sit fall combined with a leaping forward roll, but don’t let your actors convince you that they can do this safely. There is no way that something like this should be included in a show unless you have the best fight director in the area teaching it and a very talented tumbler for the victim. When this goes wrong, it goes horribly wrong and can lead to a broken neck.