Actor Safety: What every actor should know
Have you ever been involved in a show where someone decides to add things? Once I saw a teacher of mine in a show and they said “did you like the kiss after that number? I just improved that”. I’m sorry, WHAAAAATTT? Tip: don’t do that… it is non consensual and definitely not something to celebrate. I ended up learning more about intimacy work in college and naively assumed that what I learned is common practice in educational theatre environments post grad.
However, recently, I was in an acting class in New York City where a fellow classmate was pushed too far. I won’t state exactly what happened in this class, but this classmate was forced to improv a traumatic experience for them personally with a scene partner (who they didn’t know well). I’m lucky that as an experienced actor, I know my boundaries and how to communicate them. But many actors, especially newer actors, don’t have the tools they need to keep themselves safe.
And to top it all off, after all of us were sitting there shocked and the classmate went out crying, the teacher said “your generation is too sensitive”.
I think this is untrue. I, like many actors, find it exhilarating when exploring circumstances and emotions that are intense. I am perfectly fine going to great depths of my acting abilities, but only if there are rules in place for my physical and emotional health.
So what does that mean? When explaining intimacy work with others who don’t understand it, I love to use my haunted house analogy.
Just like in a scene, when you’re in a haunted house your nervous system can’t tell the difference between real and fake. But in a haunted house, you know that 1. The scary people can’t touch you (usually unless you’re into this kind of stuff bless your soul) 2. You bought a ticket to go in and 3. Everything around you was designed and is essentially fake. In that same vein, you should be going into a scene with ground rules, especially if there is intimacy.
In the pursuit of helping fellow actors stay safe, below is an exercise you can go through with any scene partners you may have whether it’s in an audition, rehearsal, or show.
I should start this off by saying that while it is a major interest and dream of mine, I am not a certified intimacy coordinator. I’ve taken many workshops and have actively put exercises that I know into practice as a professional actor and as a choreographer/director.
Fences and Gates Exercise
Vocabulary
Fences: places where your scene partner may not touch at any given time. Example: I have a fence around my front chest, my neck, and my front and back lower pelvis.
Gates: places where your scene partner is allowed to touch in a certain scenario. For example: I have a fence around my front chest, but if there is a part of the play where we hug, that fence (with my permission) may become a gate to hug.
Face your partner
Go one partner at a time. First talk through your fences and gates. “I have a fence around my hair, I have a fence around my inner right wrist, etc”.
Have the partner repeat back to you your fences and gates until they get it correct.
Then slowly have your partner use the back of their hand to touch where you didn’t say your fences and gates were from head to toe (if you have gates, don’t open them for this exercise). This is to desensitize touch and make sure you both are on the same page. This should be done slowly
Repeat with the other partner.
*Things to keep in mind before you begin the above exercise or any intimacy work
try to use non sexualized language. Butt -> back lower pelvis. Boobs -> front upper chest.
Always have a safe word. Anyone at any point is allowed to call this safe word and the rehearsal should stop. Personally, I’ve never been in a production where our safe word has had to be used, but it’s important to make sure that no one is being put in a dangerous situation. If someone isn’t doing the intimacy choreography set, call it.
The safe word in a production should be a word in the script or that would be said in passing during the production. Some of my past examples include Pineapple, … , …
things change from day to day. It is encouraged to do an abbreviated version of the above exercise every time you work together (ie before every show).
It’s okay if some days your fences or gates change. Are you in the middle of the run and your right knee starts to hurt? Make sure to update your fences with your scene partners.
The safe word in a production should be a word in the script or that would be said in passing during the production. Some of my past examples include Pineapple, and Chinchilla.
All of the intimacy work that I explained above I am lucky to have learned in college. I am excited to eventually begin my intimacy certification because it is something that is extremely important to me. Everyone deserves to feel safe in any room. And as an aspiring director and choreographer, I want to make sure I have the tools to keep my company safe.
Check out my instagram next week, where I will be posting my favorite resources and exercises for learning more about actor safety!
XOXO,
EM