Unit I: The Actor's Body (Weeks 1–3)
Guiding Question
How do I become present?
Areas of Focus
- Breath
- Grounding
- Interoception (internal body awareness)
- Attention and focus
- Embodied awareness
Acting Applications
- Simple improvisation
- Observation exercises
- Neutral presence
- Developing the actor's instrument
Unit II: The Relational Body (Weeks 4–7)
Guiding Question
How do I connect authentically?
Areas of Focus
- Active listening
- Partner awareness
- Nervous system regulation
- Boundaries, touch, and consent (when appropriate)
- Spatial awareness
- Ensemble collaboration
Acting Applications
- Repetition exercises
- Improvisation
- Nonverbal scene work
- Status and relationship exercises
Unit III: The Expressive Body (Weeks 8–11)
Guiding Question
How does emotion move through the body?
Areas of Focus
- Gesture
- Movement qualities
- Vocal embodiment
- Rhythm and tempo
- Character development through physicality
Acting Applications
- Monologue work
- Physical character creation
- Embodied storytelling
Unit IV: The Performing Body (Weeks 12–14)
Guiding Question
How do I bring somatic practice into performance?
Areas of Focus
- Scene study
- Rehearsal process
- Presence under pressure
- Performance
- Reflection and integration
Acting Applications
- Scripted scene work
- Partner rehearsals
- Final performances
Weekly Rituals
To create consistency and deepen embodied practice, each class follows a series of recurring rituals.
Arrival Practice (5–10 Minutes)
Each class begins with a structured arrival practice that signals the transition into creative work.
Students are invited to:
- Set aside distractions (phones away)
- Remove shoes if comfortable (optional)
- Practice a brief body scan
- Connect to the breath
- Participate in a standing meditation or grounding exercise
These rituals help establish presence and prepare students for focused artistic exploration.
Reflection Journal
Each class concludes with five minutes of written reflection.
Students respond to prompts such as:
- What surprised me today?
- What did I notice in my body?
- Where did I feel most present?
- What challenged me?
- What will I carry into next week's practice?
The journal serves as an ongoing record of each student's embodied learning process and encourages thoughtful self-reflection.
Weekly Quote
Each class opens with a short quotation that introduces the day's theme and serves as a discussion prompt.
Examples include:
"The body never lies." — Martha Graham
"The actor's body is the first instrument." — Jerzy Grotowski (adapted from his work)
These quotations encourage students to connect theory with practice before entering movement and performance work.
Closing Reflection
Every class concludes with three guiding questions:
1. What did you notice?
2. What challenged you?
3. What are you curious about?
These questions cultivate observation, reflection, and continued inquiry rather than evaluation or judgment.
Personal Practice
Rather than assigning traditional homework, students develop an individualized daily somatic practice throughout the semester.
By the conclusion of the course, each student creates a personalized 10-minute actor warm-up that includes:
- Breath
- Grounding
- Mobility
- Vocal activation
- Centering
This practice becomes a sustainable resource that students can continue using in rehearsals, auditions, and future performances.
Final Portfolio
Instead of a traditional written examination, students complete a final portfolio that documents both their artistic process and embodied growth.
The portfolio includes:
- Selected journal reflections
- A written description of their personal warm-up practice
- A reflective essay describing how their understanding of acting has evolved throughout the semester
- A recorded or live performance demonstrating the integration of somatic principles into scene work
This assessment emphasizes growth, self-awareness, and the practical application of embodied acting techniques.
Guiding Principle
Throughout the semester, one central question serves as the foundation of the course:
How does the body know before the mind does?
Every discussion, movement exploration, improvisation, rehearsal, and performance returns to this guiding inquiry. Rather than presenting somatic acting as a collection of isolated techniques, the course offers students a cohesive framework for developing presence, authenticity, and embodied performance. By learning to trust the intelligence of the body, students cultivate a more responsive, imaginative, and truthful approach to acting that extends beyond the classroom and into their artistic practice.
This version is formatted like a professional curriculum proposal that you could include in a teaching portfolio or submit to a department. It reads more like a university course document than a class outline, while still being accessible and visually clean for a PDF.