Movement director

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A movement director creates physical vocabularies through actor movement in various production settings, including theatre, television, film, opera, fashion, and animation.

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Movement directors work closely with directors and performers, collaborating with the creative team to realize the physical life of the work. They propose a physical language to performers and directors, and devise training methods or teach skills that will help facilitate a specific physical style. The movement director may create and research information about etiquette, proxemics, gestural language, social codes, a character's condition (related to medical conditions within their historical context, and factors such as inebriation, pregnancy, etc.), and personal journey (e.g., ageing). They are also responsible for specialist movement such as period dances, falling techniques, acrobatics, animal work, and chorus movements.^[1]

Although choreography may be part of a movement director's skill set, not all choreographers are movement directors. For instance, primate movement consultant Peter Elliot worked on Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes, showcasing specialized movement consulting that diverges from traditional choreography.^[2] In recent years, fashion campaigns and shows have employed movement directors like Stephen Galloway and Ryan Heffington to enhance the presentation of models and clothing on runways.^[3]

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The title of "movement director" has existed since the early 20th century, although rarely mentioned in credits. The National Theatre created the role "Head of Movement," first held by Jane Gibson. Glynn MacDonald has long been the Master of Movement at the Globe Theatre, while Struan Leslie became the Royal Shakespeare Company's Head of Movement in 2009.^[4]

Prominent contemporary movement directors include Jane Gibson (Cheek by Jowl), Kate Flatt, Struan Leslie (English National Opera), and Liz Ranken (Shared Experience). Other notable figures are Michael Ashcroft, Steven Hoggett, Polly Bennett, and Toby Sedgwick.^[5] The influences of Jacques Lecoq and Rudolf Laban have been foundational in British theatre movement, shaping practitioners like Claude Chagrin and Michel Saint-Denis.

In 2020, the Movement Directors in Contemporary Theatre: Conversations on Craft by Ayse Tashkiran was published, marking the first book dedicated to contemporary movement direction practices.^[6] In 2022, Kate Flatt published Movement Direction: Developing Physical Narratives for Performance.^[7]

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Movement directors have been advocating for formal recognition of their profession. Training programs are available at institutions like the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, where Ayse Tashkiran leads the MA/MFA in Movement: Directing and Teaching.^[8] The Guildhall School of Music and Drama offers a similar program, as does Manchester Metropolitan University.^[9] In 2020, the Movement Director’s Association was established to represent professionals in the UK .

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• Archived copy Archived April 8, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
• "about us". Cheek by Jowl. Archived from the original on 2011-09-27. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
• "Guildhall School of Music & Drama: Acting". Gsmd.ac.uk. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
• "| Postgraduate Study | Manchester Metropolitan University". Mmu.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2011-10-15.
• "History of the National - History of the NT". National Theatre. 1963-10-22. Archived from the original on 2011-11-01. Retrieved 2011-10-15.

• Callery, D. (2001). Through the Body, London, Nick Hern Books.
• Chambers, C. (2004). Inside the Royal Shakespeare Company, London & New York, Routledge.
• Conway, M. (2008). Tea with Trish: the movement work of Trish Arnold, Parts 1 and 2 New York.
• Dennis, A. (2002). The articulate body: the physical training of the actor, London: Nick Hern.
• Flatt K. and Melrose, S. "Finding – and owning – a Voice: Choreographic Signature and Intellectual Property in Collaborative Practices", Dance Theatre Journal Vol. 22 – 2
• Flatt K. (2022).Movement Direction: Developing Physical Narratives for Performance, The Crowood Press, Wiltshire, UK.
• Evans, M. (2009). Movement training for the modern actor London, Routledge
• Ewan, V. and Green, D. ( 2014). " Actor Movement: Expression of the Physical Being" London, Bloomsbury
• Hodgson, John & Preston-Dunlop, Valerie (1990): Rudolf Laban: An Introduction to his Work and Influence, Plymouth Northcote House.
• Hope-Wallace, P. (1966). The Guardian, Review of ‘The Royal Hunt of the Sun’, National Theatre, 1966
• Mitchell, K. (2009). The director's craft : a handbook for the theatre, London, Routledge.
• National Theatre Archive, accessed 27.01.2009.
• Pisk, L. (1975). The actor and his body, London: Harrap
• Tashkiran, A (2016). Chapter 25 in ‘British Movement Directors’ in The Routledge Companion to Jacques Lecoq, edited by Rick Kemp and Mark Evans (Abingdon; Routledge).
• Tashkiran, A. (2020). Movement Directors in Contemporary Theatre: Conversations on Craft, (Bloomsbury, Methuen Drama, Great Britain).
• Tashkiran, A. (2009). "Movement Directors: the secret weapons of theatre, Research Presentation by Ayse Tashkiran at Central School of Speech and Drama", CSSD Library.

• What is a movement director?
• History of movement direction