TRAINING ELEMENTS

Energies: earth, water, fire, air. Every human being acts on these elements. Not one single element for
one person, they function in correlation and feed one another. The elements trigger peoples behaviour.
Certain situations trigger different elements for each individual. What might bring fire in you, might
bring water for an other person.
Marlon Brando: Acting is not difficult. Everyone does it. All day long. When a person meets an other
person, he needs to act, he needs to play a role, otherwise he would not survive.
FIRE
The father. The need to do something. Heart. Smell. Up.
Everyone surrounding me is a possible enemy. One creates energy by kicking against opponents.
Make a fist, go boxing: RAH
Fire always attacks, no matter what.
Truth is hard and has its consequences. I am willing to accept these consequences and to put them on
others.
Fire functions from you and me (separate).
WATER
The mother. Listening. The navel, everything that is round of body. Hearing. Down.
Feel. Being open.
Make circle: PAH
Water will always try to negotiate in a conflict.
The truth is a hard thing and requests understanding and compassion.
Thinking from you and me as a unity: we.
AIR
Talking. The throat. Taste. To the left.
Eyes are constantly shifting. The intellect. One combines, connects, classifies, organises and
differentiates. These three people are voting for my proposal, these five people at the table wont.
How can I manipulate the ones that are most likely to change their opinion?
Like you are trying to get rid of lots of flies: TSA TSA TSA
Air will see how strong the enemy is in a battle, combines, connects, classifies, organises, differentiates
and calculates. Stays uncertain in situations of conflict: air makes conflict situations complex.
Advocate.
Truth has multiple sides.
Its you and me together when it is better for me, otherwise we are acting separate from each other.
EARTH
Observing. Tailbone. Looking (the eyes). To the right.
Just looking. When I would look at somebodys shoes, I would just look at the shoes. I will not
compare them with my own shoes or with shoes of other people. I will not think about if I find the
shoes ugly or not, I look at them in a objective way.
Putting something on the table: NAH
Earth will attack when the enemy is weaker; will retreat when the enemy is stronger. Earth likes to
make it simple.
This is the truth and it is like it is. When it rains and you dont have an umbrella, you become wet.
Does not think in terms of we and you and me.

Moniek leaves her husband Peter. Peter is really sad. How would Peter react according to the different
energies?
EARTH: It is a fact, no need to cry, shout or to get angry.
AIR: Looks at the situation from a lot of different sides, lots of words.
WATER: Puts a lot of feeling in it, it is the end of the world.
FIRE: Moniek is the enemy, immediately.
FIRE/EARTH do one thing at a time, WATER/AIR do multiple things.
Example: head in the mirror.
FIRE/AIR: purposeful. Example: the divorce.
THE CHAIRS
EARTH: calm, serenity, treat everything as a fact
FIRE: passionate. You have to do what I say because I am right.
WATER: open, vulnerable
AIR: flexibility of thought, to make things complex, quick, complaisant, imaginative thinking.
FIRE: Stop. You are unfair towards me. You dont understand what I mean. That is not who I am.
WATER: You are unfair towards me. Stop. That is not who I am. You dont understand what I mean.
AIR: You dont understand what I mean. You are unfair towards me. Stop. That is not who I am.
EARTH: That is not who I am. You dont understand what I mean. You are unfair towards me. Stop.
DE SCHUIF OPEN: after looking at the different sides of the situation from the perspectives of
earth, water, fire and air, the problem has grown much deeper than when it started. Then the state of
DE SCHUIF OPEN appears: it does not matter anymore on what chair you are operating, you throw
everything out. Let the elements stream freely through you body and let it fuel you as an actor on the
stage. Be earth, water, fire and air at the same time. See it as a warm up in four stages and eventually
you let it organically happen.
And now it is finished! What are we doing for goodness sake! You just deny to listen to me and I
wont accept that any longer!
FIRE: sit more to front, with hands on thights
WATER: trying to relax with back against the chair
AIR: using hands and arms
EARTH: sit calm in chair
Provocation: internal dialogue. Look at the problem from the perspective of the four elements.
THE FOCAL POINT = no opinion, no point of view, but a state in which I operate. A state that makes
me worry, that doesnt allow me to sleep or to concentrate.
From the focal point you can go into two different directions: either to express anger (FIRE) or pain
(WATER).
THE ULTIMATE CONFLICT:
Peter:

I dont want you to leave me!

Otherwise I will become extremely unhappy!
vs.
Moniek:
I have to leave!
Otherwise I will become extremely unhappy!
THE FOCAL POINT is the moment that water en fire fall over each other.
Examples: dad had a serious accident, mother has unexpectedly died, or partner leaves you.
Each character can be summarized by one sentence that holds a contradiction of water and fire. The
anger of the father vs the sorrow of the mother. Air to play it calm and objective: to regulate, to
civilize these emotions.
From the focal point one can enter a conflict with earth, then air, followed by fire and finally the last
weapon is water. It this all doesnt work then it might evolve in DE SCHUIF OPEN. After DE
SCHUIF OPEN the person is clean and empty. Take a short pause and then there are two sentences
running through your head:
I wont go
and
I go
Keep the sentences in your head for a few moments and then let one come through your mouth. It is a
simple, clean conclusion that makes every fight or discussion worthless and unnecessary. There is no
fight anymore, there is a fact. It has to come out as a surprise. You dont want to expect the outcome.
4 ROUNDS
FIRST ROUND: The reception room: first conversation that people have, in whatever situation.
Because of our western culture it relies on decencies. Element = EARTH. Sign of civilisation.
A:
B:
A:
B:
A:

Hello.
Hello.
How are you?
I am good. How are you?
Good.

Pause
A:

Hey (second round)

SECOND ROUND: The round table. Element is AIR. Transition from one into two is a sigh. Be precise
with your words, because saying something wrong will evolve into an argument and you know that!
Weigh your words, regulate. Talk the other person in a round. You dont want the other person to take
fire. The opponent holds the anger within.

THIRD ROUND: The territory of THE FOCAL POINT. Transition from two into three is taking fire.
Transition can happen totally unexpected. The battle field. Relations in this round are not controlled by
any hierarchy. It is based on equality. DE SCHUIF OPEN.
FOURTH ROUND: After DE SCHUIF OPEN one of the conflicting sentences is said, and then there is
no need to argue anymore. No winner, no looser, there is only the simple fact. Back to earth.
SECRETS
Society has its laws and rules to prevent chaos. From us is required that we adjust ourselves to this
order, however it is impossible for us to obey the codes and rules completely. We are no robots. Every
human being has therefore a non-conformistic part. That part of us does not want to conform or adjust
itself. We keep that part of our self secretly hidden from other people, it is our secret element.
THE EARTH-SECRET: other elements cause the image of a noisy fellow, however he can turn
suddenly in a closed off person. Within that there is the possibility that someone with an earth secret
might manifest a beautiful simple thing.
Within the front line of the other three elements there is also a structure:
The element of display: how you want to be seen by other people;
The element that coaches the display element: keep it down, no, I would not do that, dont
do these crazy moves with your hands;
The element of display and the coach are the so called communication team;
The private element: this element operates on an internal basis. It asks you questions and gives
commentary when you are alone and not surrounded by other people.
Examples: when somebody wants to be nice, he will display his water element, does he want to keep a
distance then he shows earth. When somebody wants to impress he will display fire, but with air as a
coach to make sure that he creates a clever image at the same time. At home and by himself he wants to
open himself for his emotions (water is private element). Earth is then his secret element.
THE AIR SECRET: For somebody with an air secret it is a scaring thought that things can be seen from
multiple sides, that you can love somebody and hate at the same time. He or she likes to make things
simple. Talk in normal language. No bullshit. The AIR SECRET will make its statement hard. You do
not seem to be able to negotiate.
When somebody is alone, his/her secret element is in dialogue with the private element. Would you
wake up this person from his/her personal thoughts than the communication team of display and
coaching element become alive.
THE WATER SECRET: Water secrets are really careful with showing emotions and feelings, because
they know that that can be destructive. They come across as very dry, cynical and overly ignorant.
Still waters running deep. Perfect job would be surgeon operating on a patient. However when the
water comes to the surface, they tend to sob. When you build a friendship with a water secret, after a
long time they might open the doors to their emotions and feelings. Then you will see something that
you have never seen before. I would appreciate if you would not tell anyone. You respond being very
moved: No of course not.

THE FIRE SECRET: Very soft. They tend to find everything fine, as long as they are being liked by
everyone. Want to keep the peace. Diplomatic. Takes everything in, might talk behind someones back.
Both water and fire secrets can appear as mysterious, having a hidden agenda. Earth and air secrets are
more direct and honoust. Fire secrets make conspiracy theories.
Peacemakers like Dalai Lama and Nelson Mandela. Knowing that fire can have destructive
consequences.
However, when fire comes to the surface, these people show an aggressive state of being.
From 7th till 21st personality is build. At home and at school your elements are arranged, with a special
focus on display and coaching. One of the elements is having a hard time in puberty as it is oppressed.
That element will show its anger in teenage years, after that period it will retreat to secret, from which
it will influence the personality. Then you are a grown up.
Theatre is a free place in which the elements can be used as display, coach, secret and private. You can
rearrange your own elements in a way that suits the character and the world of the play. Elements love
acting because they can come alive in a different way than in normal life.