Breathing and The Voice Practices on Stage

In this article we examine breathing as a basic principle that lies in a better understanding of voice production both in art and in life. Breathing provides an essential key not only for our being, but also for our communicative function. Once we admit the breath in consciousness, we become aware that it is no longer just a psycho-physical phenomenon but it is a subject to social and cultural values. Therefore, the conscious use and management of breathing, especially in terms of an individual's ability to express himself, provides an essential key not only for our being, but also for our communicative function, which is fundamental in theater. Breathing is transformative. An actor's craft is not exclusively an art of breathing, but breathing is the basic action that supports the art of an actor who transforms for each role. Voice is significant to the theater in the same way that it is significant to life itself, and breathing is the relationship and a constant exchange between us and the world. Respiration, therefore, is the relationship of the experiential body to the world. Breathing is the fundamental element necessary to be conscious as an actor, as a human being.