Body Learning Part 1

The life of Alexander!

The oldest of eight children, Alexander was born in Tasmania, Australia in 1869. He suffered with respiratory problems which caused him to be taken out of school to be educated privately. His main love and focus in life was theatre and by the age of twenty, he decided to become and actor and reciter. Unfortunately, being in this profession was a problem for Alexander due to his respiratory problems once again. This affected the quality of his voice during his recitations and he began to get very frustrated. Doctors would tell him to rest, but Alexander realized that resting was not the cure at all. He had no problems with ordinary speech, but only had problems while he was reciting and acting. Ignoring the doctors, Alexander took matters in his own hands to find out what the problem was. One day, he stood in front of the mirror and observed himself reciting lines. He noticed how he stiffened his neck, depressed his larynx, and sucked his breath with a gasp. He realized that this is what caused his respiratory problems and that he needed to somehow change them. With lots of focus, he was able to connect the mind and body and have these problems come to a cease. His technique began to travel around the world and people admired it while some did not understand. He died on October 10, 1955 from a short illness. Alexander may not have been the easiest man to work with, but he will always be remember for discovering a technique that may help actors of today. 

Use and Functioning, The Whole Person

Before beginning the process that led to Alexander's discovery, he believed, "the mind and body were separate entities" but this was false. Alexander taught people to use their body as a whole in a mindful manner. Separating the mind and body causes conflict with our emotions. He argued that, "all training must be based on the understanding that the human organism always functions as a whole and can only be changed fundamentally as a whole." Not only has Alexander's techniques allowed us to use our body better in everyday life, but it has also effectively helped actors on stage and has prevented diseases.