ABSTRACT
In The Mastery of Movement Laban defined Shadow Movements as ‘tiny muscular movements such as the raising of the brow, the jerking of the hand or the tapping of the foot, which have none other than expressive value. They are usually done unconsciously and often accompany movements of purposeful action like a shadow.’ 1 I would add that shifts of the whole body can sometimes be considered in the same category as Shadow Movements. Later in the book he notes that: ‘They are the key to the understanding of what could be called the alphabet of the language of movement: and it is possible to observe and analyse movement in terms of this language.’
