The basis of the Meisner system is to stop actors merely performing an attitude, but to make their psychological and physical responses real, so that they are actually really in the role. Modern tarot bears a similarity to this programme, in that readers and querents often ask themselves who they are in a card, what they are doing, how the characters relate to each other, what they would say, and so on. This is exactly the personal involvement and motivation which can be lacking in an actor playing a role: so the only difference would be that an actor is finding the motivation and involvement, and the tarot reader is getting to discover their own motivation and involvement.
Meisner Technique is perhaps best known for its repetition technique, in which two actors sit opposite each other and repeat statements to each other, however the author of the book I have taken as my guide (Nick Moseley: Meisner in Practice. Nick Hern Books, London, 2012) before his students get to repetition gets them to sit opposite each other in pairs and just look at each other for several minutes. Predictably, he says (p.12) that the effect of doing this has results such as laughter, staring competitions, establishment of status as in one observer and the other observed, and boredom. One of the reasons this approach interests me as it could be applied to tarot is that these sort of dynamics and *exactly* the sort of not-necessarily-conscious behaviours, psychological mechanisms and defences, which should be brought out in a tarot reading.
I think this is even more easily adapted to tarot than the repetition exercises, and perhaps is therefore a good start to the approach. I've picked the 6 of Cups for this post because there's quite a lot going on in it for the viewer to see. I would suggest that simply looking at the card and taking a note of the thoughts and feelings which arise is a useful (and fairly standard) exercise.
For example, someone who is unacquainted with the strange world of tarot cards may wonder why two deformed children and in the grounds of a castle surrounded by massive chalices with flowers in, and be simply irritated by the whole thing. If that happens the whole exercise of looking at a tarot card may seem pointless and the reader may be tempted to jack it in.
I would suggest that that is exactly the sort of 'block' that the Meisner technique is intended to overcome, because the viewer is being prevented from learning anything about themselves or what is going on in the card, by their instant reaction here. These blocks are intended to be overcome and replaced by other psychological and physical responses, by subsequent exercises, but at this stage the important thing is having the reaction and being aware of it.
There are of course other possible initial reactions and different people will notice different things and respond differently. They may notice the house, they may notice the children's clothes, they may count the chalice, they may notice the windows, they might wonder who the character in the background walking away is, they might notice the relative colours, they might notice the weather. I personally find the X on the balustrade of the steps draws my attention more than anything else and I have to wrench my attention away from it. The viewer might feel a moment of tenderness, or wonder why the children are alone, and so on. Even if you're very familiar with the card, just looking can allow a different reaction in the viewer.
Yes, I know you will rightly say that I haven't even got on to Sanford Meisner's technique in this post but, hey, you have to react to me too.
Deformed children? They don't look deformed to me. The scale of the drawing is a bit amateurish, but the kids look fine. Do you not like the boys hoodlet? LOL
ReplyDeleteWe're currently watching the Netflix adaption of Garbiel Garcia Marquez's "Hundred Years of Solitude", a book I read a very long time ago, but I remember liking it. The genre of writing is called Magical Realism, but I call it life. Seeing dead people is normal for me. It's really embarrassing when they insist I pass on a message for them in public. A young woman was looking at a box of pasta in the grocery store once and her Grandpa was pressing on my head to tell her he was proud of her and always had been. I finally relented and told her. She burst into tears and said, "Thank you." He'd died a couple of days before.
At any rate, I didn't mean to swerve into that topic, I wanted to say that there is a tarot reader in the book/show and anytime they show her reading cards for someone I think of you. I hope you'll get the opportunity to watch the show! You can judge her tarot reading skills. :)
I love magical realism and of course it's also the style of your life, like mine!
DeleteTo let you into a secret about this card, I hate this card. It's my least favourite card in the whole deck and all I can see is hideous children who are probably Siamese twins wrenched apart before being abused by the servant who is walking away on his way to beat their grandmother.
Perhaps I should try not verbalising the mad shit in my head. 😱
I love magical realism and of course it's also the style of your life, like mine!
DeleteTo let you into a secret about this card, I hate this card. It's my least favourite card in the whole deck and all I can see is hideous children who are probably Siamese twins wrenched apart before being abused by the servant who is walking away on his way to beat their grandmother.
Perhaps I should try not verbalising the mad shit in my head. 😱
Wow! It's interesting that you see so much in the cards and what they represent you! While I wish you a long happy and healthy life should you shrug off your mortal coil before I do stop by and say "Hi" after death. You can speak or you can be seen. I've never met anyone who had the energy to do both at the same time. I prefer the be seen with a smile or a small wave, it won't give me a headache and it would be nice to "see" you.
Delete