ABSTRACT
Sexual violence occupies a unique, complex, and often uncomfortable place within the disciplines of stage combat and staged intimacy. In terms of mechanics, it is most likely to be a collaboration between multiple departments and artists (fight director, intimacy director, props, set). In terms of aesthetics and practice, it is among the most loaded and least “fun.” Scenes of abuse and sexual assault bring a serious tone to a rehearsal or training room. The real possibility of emotional triggers and potential histories of abuse are on the table. And while many intimacy professionals may feel that a consensual kiss or caress may be accomplished with safety and specificity by a director with a strong background in consent-forward collaboration, the unique subversion of acts of intimacy into acts of power, dominance, and violence that is present in a scene of sexual assault requires additional care, time, and technique. As stage combat and staged intimacy are generally symbolic physical languages standing in for actual acts of violence and intimacy and designed for clear narrative understanding by an audience while providing safe and repeatable choreography for performers, certain things about these representations of sexual violence must be true in a safe and healthy performance/rehearsal environment. This chapter explores both the mechanics of staging sexual violence and the dramaturgy of the physical narratives created in such compositions. Case studies of plays include: A Streetcar Named Desire, The Exonerated, West Side Story.
