Questioning Invitational Rhetoric in Theatre and Training Practices

This article looks at the role of language in actor training and teaching and how invitational language is increasingly used within a wider context of consent-based practices. It shares much with invitational rhetoric, a concept from communication studies that prioritises the notion of invitation rather than persuasion, with the latter considered patriarchal and dominating. Its three main principles, based on feminist ideals, are equality, immanent value (meaning that every living being has an intrinsic value) and self-determination. This approach has been picked up in many fields including politics, education and body-based practices, from yoga through to actor training and teaching.

The article suggests that ‘inviting’ is not always an accurate reflection of the dynamics at work in teaching or actor training. It argues that consent practices are not always appropriate, particularly for physical work that involves touch: here seeking consent might increase nervousness and compromise technically sophisticated practices like acrobatics or impede processes that require manual stimulation such as for vocal resonance. It examines these issues by briefly considering the author’s own practice as well as that of Jerzy Grotowski. The piece suggests that inviting, broadly understood, does not always recognize participants’ actual obligations and fails to acknowledge the value of the teacher’s experience, expertise and necessary authority, and the difficult complexities and challenges of consent-based work.