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Theatre Arts for Advanced Secondary Schools

that the ability to interact with the audience is evaluated. Body language includes
facial expression, postures and eye contact. There are different types of theories
of body language that theatre artists can apply to make their performances unique
and fabulous. Though there are several theories of body language, the focus will
be put on gestural theory, mimesis theory, Mehrabian’s Communication Model
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and Nonverbal Expectancy Violations Theory.

Gestural theory

This is one of the theories that trace the origin of body language. The theory tries
to establish that speech originated from gestures. According to gestural theory,
ancestors used to communicate through gestures before they discovered verbal
language. The body parts that were used to communicate information were
primarily arms and hands. Gestural language is also referred to as pantomime
which means an expression of meaning through gestures. These early pantomimes
developed into “protosign” or gestures which later were agreed to be used by all
people to stand for a particular thing or item. After the discovery of language,
gestural language continues to be used in day-to-day communication as it adds
nuance and emphasis to the speech. Reflecting the theory of theatre, gestural
language in theatre performances is important because of the following reasons.
(a) Use of Space: One of the components of gestural theory is space. Signers
use the space around their bodies to convey meaning so as in theatre. The
space used on stage requires being used or occupied for a reason.

(b) Facial expression and body movement: These play a crucial role in conveying
the tone, mood and grammatical features during performance in front of
the audience.

(c) Multiple channels: Gestural languages can convey information
simultaneously through hand movements, facial expressions and body
posture, unlike spoken languages which are linear. For example, a performer
can use hands, head, and legs to demonstrate anger.

(d) Clarity and back-up: Gestural language adds meaning to what has been said
through speech. Using gestures makes the performance rich, interesting and
understandable. For example, if the language used for performance is not
familiar to the non-speaker’s audience, the message can be communicated
through gestures.

Gestural theory is an essential language of human interaction in ordinary situation
and on stage because of having significant social and cultural values.

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