Salter(2005) Moving Well – Laban Movement Therapy in Action

MOVING WELL:
Laban Movement Therapy In Action
by Edwin Alan Salter
Conjure up in your mind the image of
someone a bit down and finding it hard to
make an effort; and now let. it exaggerate
until the person is hopelessly sad and
depressed. If you were ahle to visualize or
feel that image, try again hut now with
someone rather anxious and trouhled; and
then let that develop towards uncontrolled
agitation. Does one of these come more
easily to you than the other?
We recognize these emotions in others
and, if we are at all empathetic, can feel
the moods that are enmeshed in such
physical states. Our postures and
gestures hoth announce how we are and
condition our thoughts and feelings.
Though these are the simple truths of
everyday experience, they are too often
overlooked hy narrow 'scientific' hlinkers
which seek to treat symptoms in isolation,
a drug for this had thought and another
for that had emotion. In reality we live out
and enact ourselves in the totality of our
activity and the way we set ahout life.
Mind and Body
I recently had a patient whose childhood
contained a secret. She did not know
her father. This would not have trouhled a
more rohust person, but in her case
protecting the secret led to a gradual
reluctance to take any risk, to chat freely,
to go out or to let neighbours through her
front door. Another patient, chronically
anxious and ill at ease, had a small but
curious gesture. His hand would go to his
ear in a circular defence, brief hut tense.
Scarcely noticing it, he was hearing his
mother repeating the same old destructive
injunctions of infancy. The signs in
these cases were easily overlooked, the
first hecause so generalized in life, the
second hecause so tiny a quirk. A Lahan
movement practitioner would understand
them hoth.
Rudolf Laban worked in Germany and
Britain and, with his many associates,
established a way of descrihing, analysing
and notating human movement from the
most general to the highly detailed. From
this analysis sprang ways to repair and
rebalance, to enhance and enliven, hody
and mind through movement.
Consider your own life. You know
fairly well what you eat and wear, what
fills your thoughts, how you spend your
money and your time. But how do you
move, how does your energy appear in
action? Do you think of yourself overall as
strong or sensitive, swift or sustained,
straight or sinuous, steady or spontaneous?
These, respectively, are the four
motion factors of weight, time, space and
flow. Each is a range between two polar
opposites. so there are two distinct groupings
at the extremes of strong - swift -
straight - steady and of sensitive -
sustained - sinuous - spontaneous.
(Single words are inexact equivalents and
my choice here is an approximation only.)
Alongside this description of the
dynamic qualities of movement, Laban
developed a way of identifying the shapes
and patterns in space traced out hy our
hody hahits and gestures. Lifted or sunk,
wide or narrow, advancing or withdrawn,
these are the simple three dimensions of
hody states, the vertical, sideways and
front-back axes of physical space. In the
zone around them we weave the spatial
design of our inchnations and actions,
trails more or less stahle, more or less
expansive. All these features, and many
others, can be summed up and dissected,
and perhaps checked against fundamental
organisations of efficient or expressive
movement.
Laban's ideas flourished first in
theatre (and I met them through dance
where his influence and his notation
for recording choreography are still
important), hut in Britain their effect was
also partly on work and then chiefly on
education. For many years schools, especially
primary, included creative dance
and movement in their timetahles. Sadly
an era viewing children essentially as
adults in the making, employees and
consumers to be. rather than having the
distinctive rights of their age, has had
little time for such teaching. Creative
...more
children suffer psychological an.
physical problems that are movement related
because their lives at school and at home are so
very deprived in movement terms. Of course other
large factors (pollution, diet, lifestyle, uncertainties and
threats) are contributing to the flood of developmental
and early onset disorders. But there is no excuse for
stifling in childhood such a natural protective as
the joys of action and interaction in
movement. ^
POSITIVE HEALTH JANUARY 2003 55

movement sounded soppy (which it is
not), nonprofit-making and unfit for
league tables, something that might
encourage children to hecome positive
individuals with their own ideas. The
politicians were precisely correct in fearing
such encouragement. And more children
suffer psychological and physical
prohlems that are movement related
because their lives at school and at home
are so very deprived in movement terms.
Of course other large factors (pollution,
diet, lifestyle, uncertainties and threats)
are contributing to the flood of developmental
and early onset disorders. But
there is no excuse for stifling in childhood
such a natural protective as the joys of
action and interaction in movement.
H Mouement Inuentory
Much of the language by which you
(and others) describe yourself has fairly
obvious movement equivalents, for this
integration is naturally built into
speech. Cohesive individuals will 'hang
together' these characteristics, A lightning
mind does not of course translate as
rushing about, but there will be some
swift precision; and real strength of mind
does not require thumping, but might
correspond to resolute focus. Some social
and psychological polarities are fixed in
stereotypes (for example, the down-trodden
and the nose-in-the-air). Laban
reminds us not to forget the simplest and
broadest perspective, but recognizing and
prescribing for the subtleties of character
is a highly skilled task.
How would you break down your own
week in movement terms, and what do
you do most of? Suppose you spend long
hours at a computerized workstation,
your hody even more stuck in a groove
than your mind. One plausible sounding
compensation for this might be a ferocious
game of squash or session of aerobics. The
sensible advice for most bodies would be
first to mitigate the work situation by a
regular routine of stretching, tension
readjustment and whole body movement
- and. no. this does not have to be either
conspicuous or time-consuming. Secondly.
the balance should probably be less severe
and more integrated, perhaps dancing
would do (it contains relationship, is
larger in rhythm, whole body, non-visual.
and so on). Think of the movement
demands on a hair stvli.st: would swimming
compensate? And
how to balance the odd
mix of frustrations and
repetitions in keeping the
home going - what about
rambling? If too much of
your movement week is
heavy and dreary, try
badminton; if fast and
finicky, try yoga.
Part of tbe work of all
good therapists is to
teach how to maintain
health. A vulnerable
spine may always need
exercise to adjust it and
build muscle strength. A
predisposition toward
depression may need an
equally tailor-made
prescription. One such
patient of mine was given
a set of movement-based
routines: a daily postural
exercise to maintain a
lifted and alert carriage; a regular energetic
social activity: and, wben necessary.
an imagined (pictured and felt) dispersal
of burdening glooms by splendidly airy
fireworks deserving of smiles.
Looking Good
Almost all of us rightly care how we
look and some of us spend enormous
amounts of time and money on our
appearance. The results are not always
for the hest, like a decorative revamp that
unwisely ignores material, function and
histor>'. Sometimes it is as though we lose
the knack of graceful natural movement,
so that merriment is supplanted hy
vulgarity, elegance by mannerism: and
even standing and sitting seem beyond
some people. Mr Bush's gorilla walk and
Mr Blair's stagey hand repertoire reveal
the contrivance of their roles.
Standing and sitting (often adjusted
by Alexander teachers) are important,
especially when prolonged or awkward as
workers in offices and shops, factories and
orchestras, readily discover. But correction
has to be taken in the context of function
and individuality. Re-establishing
the natural is not always easy and begins
by discarding the dross of bad habits and
poor compensations. Then comes the
basics of a movement education and
learning to use the body well. This has
Sometimes it is as though we lose the knack of graceful natural
movement, so that merriment is supplanted by vulgarity,
elegance by mannerism; and even standing and sitting seem
beyond some people. Mr Bush's gorilla walk and Mr Blair's
stagey hand repertoire reveal the contrivance of their roles.
little to do with either ballet exercises or
pumping up muscles.
When was the last time you did something
with exquisite gentleness or fierce
energy? What does it feel like to stand
perfectly still for a couple of minutes?
How is it if you release your hands from
endless busyness to carve out the largest
spaces within reach. The Laban method is
to create a range of movement and to integrate
what is appropriate into a coordinated
whole of posture and gesture.
Having a conversation is as much a dance
as a dialogue: the design of buildings is
about pathways, enclosures and dynamics
rather than uninhabited structure
however decorated. We look good not in
isolation but as we bring our particular
life and expression into environments and
relationships.
As a theatre artist. Laban himself was
most interested in enhancement, in bringing
to life the peaks of human potential.
Remedy where necessary, but his tradition
has even more to do with making
ordinary life become special. For example,
community 'movement choirs' opened
participation in expressive action to all.
opposing the world of shabby harms and
alienation.
Practice and Principle
Recognizing a movement-related
impairment, a Laban practitioner will
sometimes prescribe a sequence of movement
to be regularly practised. Important
will be tbe dynamics of movement, its
design in space, the way the body is used
and the context or relationship built into
the phrasing. In psychotherapeutlc work I
often find mental change far easier to
su.stain if it is not forever negated by
physical enactments of fear, sorrow,
POSITIVE HEALTH JANUARY 2005

Suppose you spend long hours at a computerized workstation, your
body even more stuck in a groove than your mind. One plausible
sounding compensation for this might be a ferocious game of
squash or session of aerobics. The sensible advice for most bodies
would be first to mitigate the work situation by a regular routine of
stretching, tension readjustment and whole body movement...
shame, the ills tied by habit into every
action. A systems approach to individual
or group therapy may not necessarily deal
with the apparent content of 'the problem'
at all, but rather address the process
which sustains it. By changing the interactive
system - for example how members
of a family or a work team look at each
other, place themselves in a room, use eye
contact and touch - a healthier pattern
may emerge which simply allows an
unnecessary problem to resolve and fade.
Needless to say, my technique with
weight issues does not involve any
attention to weighing or to diet foods.
Insomnia is another common problem
best tackled indirectly, not by seeking
sleep but by restoring the variety and
rhythm of activity.
The usual therapeutic approach to
many problems is a direct attack: if stiff
try limbering, if phobic try confrontation.
This is fine if it works, and with skilled
support it does surprisingly often. Done
badly it is like the world's advice to the
lonely that they should make friends.
Smokers are wise to give up, but what
activity is to displace the movement
habits of fingers and lips let atone
compensate for the neurochemical effects
of nicotine? Giving up one thing often
needs to be an exchange for the better, a
matter of hoth ins and outs.
Sometimes I find that a more general
strategy towards change is helpful. In
movement terms this concerns the
dynamic factor of flow and the necessar%'
range from restrained caution to lively
initiative. If someone is stuck, in their life
as a whole or with a dominating problem,
then embracing any change will promote
freedom. First tasks may be as simple as
a different journey to work or a
rearranged household routine: and
usually new consequences arise. A
creative movement class can promote
improvisation and the sparky vitality of
youthful flow which is often diminished
by tedium and restriction and by ageing
itself.
I would hke to highlight two simple
principles which underlie much of the
Laban work, and neither is fanciful or farfetched.
The first distinguishes what
might be called contrived movement - a
way of doing adopted out of necessity or
pretence that may pass muster but is illfitting
and comes at a cost - from authentic
movement that is properly integrated
with personality and is truthful (though
Flow, spahing and streaming:
the realizalitm of a natural
gift balanced in life by
meditation
not always perfect or ideal of course).
Contrivance can be done with virtuoso
skill and many jobs are so badly designed
that there is no alternative, but it is
always to be reduced as far as possible. In
severely damaged individuals - or those
who have for many years suppressed their
real talents and opinions - finding the
authentic can be both difficult and inspiring.
Additional expressive development
may be needed, for example, of voice and
speech as means and of knowledge and
attitude as content.
The second principle recognizes that
expression and impression are equally
real processes which shape individuals
and cultures alike. Understanding the
outgoing behaviour of others is a complex
achievement, perhaps a defining specialization
of human evolution that makes us
so effective as social heings. Equally, what
is done to us (even if by ourselves) is similarly
forceful and stamps itself on our
personalities. Chain up people for long
enough and they may be able to survive
only as beasts, require unquestioning
obedience for long enough and you will
achieve automata. Many lives bear
witness to similar if less extravagant
blighting.
It cannot be said that Laban discovered
these two principles from scratch.
Ancient rhetoricians, like modern politicians,
were well acquainted with
contrived performance, and military
trainers have long used brutal routines to
harden soldiers to the cruelty of war. But
he did give them salience and redirect
them toward the hetterment of humanity
rather than its harm. If I try to reformulate
and focus this therapeutically. we
come to see what is done - action whether
produced or prescribed - as a kind of
behavioural pivot. It operates between
inner and outer, experiential and social,
existential and biological. It is at this
pivot that movement therapy operates.
Shams and Truths
Contemporary life is not kind toward
the hody. The visual far outweighs the
kinesthetic. There is also a strangely
morbid fascination with the body as
machine and with al! the opportunities for
technology to intrude. This interest
extends lifespan from Caesarians to
autopsies, embracing everything from
instruments of apparent enhancement
(breast enlargement, "recreational" drugs)
to those of destruction (extreme sports,
the means of torture and war).
In the privileged West our bodies
suffer not from poverty and cruelty but
from choices we make (or are lead to)
which are profoundly uncaring. We
unduly value an essentially static and
temporary glamour which has no respect
for the varied attractiveness of individuals
POSITIVE HEALTH JANUARY 2005 57

of different ages and outlooks. Never have
so many been overweight and so many
(mostly the same) on diets. Never have the
opportunities for activity been so varied
with movement so often ugly and inept.
These disadvantages are particularly
evident among the less privileged in our
increasingly divided society.
Part of our contemporary vulnerability
is the pressure (largely economic
from the forces of con.sumption and of
employment) for us to be narrowly
defined. We may be very good in one role
hut allegedly quite hopeless outside it. so
prosperity leads us to require a mentor,
coach and trainer to decide to buy shoes,
choose them and tie the laces. The Laban
approach is quite opposite in spirit and
emphasises our versatility and our
humane involvement with others.
Movement therapy is no fad. The
particular approach introduced here which
I have developed is only one of many that
have sprung from common foundations in
the original work of Rudolf Laban. As a
movement system that has an enormous
background of academic study and of practical
implementation over many years in
different fields of endeavour, it has much
influenced other methodologies and often
been unwittingly adopted. The next time
you see a television psychologist pointing
out how lying is often accompanied by a
tongue-in-cheek gesture or how chaotic
home routines are associated with child
misbehaviour, think Lahan.
Simply because it is nonverhal, the
movement approach can evade the thickets
of wordy defence and untruth that
often surround problems. It becomes a
key part of what might be called expressive
behaviour therapy. Its sheer differentness
can give heart to those sceptical
about talking their way to improvement.
There is much to be said for brief therapy
in general, though re-education in movement
can be relatively slow if long-held
habits are to be overcome, and I increasingly
believe that therapeutic change may
need some defence against attrition. But
the notion that a banished symptom will
inevitably reappear in a new guise should
be abandoned along with the invariable
necessity of pain for gain.
Whether to cure an ill or to realize a
potential, the starting point is to notice, to
feel. We are so used to the photograph and
the sound bite that it takes an effort to
recognize these as no more than poor
suhstitutes for reality. In the therapeutic
programme, as in life itself, the first step
is to learn how to become aware. The
second step is to discard the merely artificial
and outrightly damaging. And the
final step is to rediscover and enhance a
natural integration and individuality.
Bibliography
Laban R. The Mastery of Movement. Northcote House.
1988.
Laban R. Life for Dance. Macdonald & Evans. 1975.
Further Inrormation
The Laban Guild for Movement and
Dance at www.labanguild.org or via the
Guild Secretary at 7 Coates Close,
Heybridge, Maldon, Essex CM9 4PB.
nbout the Author
Dr EA Salter MA, MSc, PhD is
accredited in Psychotherapy, Hypnotherapy
and Counselling, and is based
in Norfolk. After earlier theatre work,
he taught in universities in London, Brunei
and Sweden. He has studied and written
very widely and current interests include
the weight problem', aesthetics and therapist
training. He can he contacted on
Tel: 01553-771917 or at Human Factors, 26
Nelson Street, King's Lynn PE30 5DY.
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58 POSITIVE HEALTH JANUARY 2005

This article was originally published in Positive Health PH Online Issue 107 ‐ January 2005:
www.positivehealth.com/article/movement/moving‐well‐laban‐movement‐therapy‐in‐action