Everything Old is New Again

“… these rituals deploy action—movement, gesture and song—to achieve their objectives. These actions are thus, in an important sense, descriptive. In other words the design of the ritual is strictly practical and is choreographed intuitively… stamping dance steps [are] a frequent feature… Among the most striking examples of this process is the death, revival, and resurrection of a god or hero…” – A History of the Theatre~ Glynne Wickham

Was Wickham taking about Human video? The description seems so similar. Meaningful gestures, songs, the death and resurrection of Jesus; surely this is a description of Human Video?

“The plays often call for rapid motion or strong gesture: characters are said to kneel or beat the breast or throw themselves on the ground.” H.C. Baldry~ The Greek Tragic Theatre

As I am sure you realize by now, neither of these quotes is about Human Video. The first is about tribal and ritual dramas (which in some cases pre-date Greek theatre) and the second is about Greek theatre.

Why then do they sound SO much like a description of Human Video? Wasn’t Human video only “invented” about 15-20 years ago? Isn’t it a new form of drama? The simple straightforward answer is no. No one from our century “invented” Human Video. They may have popularized the name, and had friends suggest the addition of lip sync (letting someone else do the singing rather than doing it themselves as the ancients did), or by using a formal gestural language (ASL) to aid in the choice of meaningful gestures, but it is not, in any way new.

So what does this mean for human video artists? Does it mean that because our previous views of the “reality” of Human Video’s advent are felicitous that we, being disillusioned, should resign Human Video to the grave of illegitimate theatre? By no means! This should give us all the more hope. Human Video is not new, but we can make it new again. By studying its true origins; by studying it’s predecessors, we can revitalize it.

Greek theatre, tribal rituals, classic mime, American Sign languages, even modern music videos all have something to teach us about the proper performance of Human Video. To become a good Christian, you have to study not only Jesus’ words, but also the words of great Christians, Peter, Paul, Augustine, Origen, Martin Luther, William Dunbar, Oswald Chambers, C.S. Lewis, and Billy Ghramn all have something to say about the life of a Christian. We can study their words in conjunction with the Bible to enhance our Christian walk.

What does that have to do with Human Video? Everything! This means that instead of rigidly adhering to the words of one person, we can study the great masters of theatre to enrich our dramatic performances.

SO, go out! Study the old stuff. Everything Old is new again, don’tchaknow?