Sports & Exercise Research Volume 25 Number 3
Author：Hsien-Wei Kuo; Chin-Fang Kuo
Period/Date/Page：Vol. 25 No. 2 (2023 / 06 / 30) ， P119 - 130
DOI：10.5297/ser.202306_25(2).0001
Levels of Body Refining: Performing Skills of Taiwanese Professional Acrobats
Abstract：This qualitative study interprets and analyzes the performing skills of Taiwanese professional acrobats via a case study and immersion/crystallization analysis. Levels of body of physical presentation and interpretation during preparation, rehearsal, and performance are discussed. Seven participants (three males and four females) aged between 33 and 52 years were selected. They had at least six years of training and over 15 years of practical experience. In-depth interviews revealed that each participant had different levels of experience and perceptions depending on their age, occupational age, experience, and expertise. Results show that professional acrobats have developed three levels of body (technical, role-based, and artistic) through their cumulative performance experience, social environment, habit patterns, and institutional influences. The technical body implies a sound traditional technical foundation in skills that acrobats have developed since childhood, which emphasizes the difficulty, skill, and integrity of movement techniques. The role-based body evolves during the process of preparation and rehearsal. Acrobats then experience friction with the director due to their understanding of the script or character or different views on the choreography or rehearsal, resulting in various challenges in implementation. However, once their skilled movements develop into a well-refined whole after multiple performances, their gestures become highly expressive, creating excitement and anticipation in the audience. The artistic body is made possible by the discussions, bonding, and trials between the acrobat and the director before the rehearsal, and continuous practice brings it into the "second act of the act." Most professional acrobats remain in a plateau within the technical and role-based body. (Full text)
