François Delsarte

…of the 19th-century French teacher François Delsarte, whose influence was widespread not only in France but also in the United States. Delsarte became dissatisfied with routine acting techniques. He observed their mechanical and stultifying character and realized that under the stress of natural instinct or emotion, the body assumes appropriate…

The Frenchman François Delsarte laid stress on a connection between mental attitude and physical posture and discovered that one’s emotional state is communicated through one’s physical appearance. Eventually Delsarte codified his observations in a chart of gestures, which was used as a guide for expression and characterization…

…one prepared in detail by François Delsarte, a 19th-century French teacher of pantomime and gymnastics who described the ingenious and complex language of contemporary face and body positions for theatrical purposes.

…of dramatic and musical expression François Delsarte. Yet, their efforts may also be seen as attempts to restore the voice to that entire language process which the page abstracted—as attempts to bridge the gap left in concepts of “natural” meaning by the decay of the oral traditions. Moreover, it is…