The presentational system in theatre

Title: The presentational system in theatre
Description: The presentational system in theatre is, except in specific genres such as mime, composed of both physical and verbal material, and furthermore, the verbal is necessarily dependent on and constructed by the vocal. The paralinguistic features inseparable from vocal performance are an essential and inescapable part of the verbal content and of the meanings constructed. The structuring process can be represented in a schematic way.

In traditional text-based theatre, a great deal of time is spent in rehearsal in carefully knitting together tiny fragments of speech and actions that motivate, illustrate, and interpret them. In other forms of performance the structuring process often involves a similar meshing together of words and action, though in some, words may be found only after the actions have taken shape, in others the words may exist only to be subverted by the action, etc.
Designer: McAuley, Gay
Date: 1999
Source: Space in Performance: Making Meaning in the Theatre.
Bibliographic Citation: McAuley, Gay. 1999. Space in Performance: Making Meaning in the Theatre. University of Michigan Press. Page 136.