One of the most common audience complaints about theatrical violence is that the fight looked "fake" or "staged." Ironically, when they walked into the theatre or movie, every audience member already knew that all the fights would be choreographed and were pre-rehearsed. So what are they complaining about?

The theatergoer is seeing the effects of a couple of problems that they can't analyze or articulate correctly. Of course, the fights are staged; so is the entire play. A "fake" fight disrupts an audience's suspension of disbelief and removes them from the imaginary world of the play. Two common reasons cause this disruption:

1. "Cautious" fights
2. Fighters that look "ready" for the next move

Cautious Fights

When a fighting character (especially the aggressor) appears concerned for the safety of an enemy during a fight, it reminds the audience that both fighters are actors and don't want to actually hurt each other. The audience's belief in the world of the play is broken.

Ways to Avoid "Cautious" Fights:

Fully commit the body to the attack. Remember to include the illusion of impact (bouncing off the target, vibrations through the torso) and vocals or exhalations (to show exertion, anger, or pain). Make your attacks as ferocious as possible!

Fight fast. We live in a movie-based entertainment culture, and audiences expect to see super-fast fights. This does not mean that the rhythm or acting moments of a fight should change, or that the fight should speed up while you're still learning it).

Use proper techniques (such as the safety slash) to allow full-speed, vicious attacks while maintaining complete safety for the victim. Techniques causing you to "make sure you don't hurt your partner" during the execution of a move result in cautious fights

It goes without saying that fights MUST be absolutely safe for the actor. We are not advocating carelessness for your fight partner. Don't be a cowboy. As an actor, you must always maintain the safety of other fighters. If your character appears concerned for safety, however, the illusion of the fight is ruined.

Fighters that look ready

If an audience sees a fighter (especially a victim) who appears ready for the next move, they are reminded that they are watching choreography, and all the danger of the fight is gone. We see this on stage all the time: fighters who make clear eye contact, place themselves just so, and start a fight move. Some combatants tell you they're simply being safe. Your friends may not tell you it looks like crap, but we will.

Ways to Avoid "looking ready"

Hide your cues. Cues are vital to the safety and the illusion of a fight: if one person is not ready, the move will be dangerous or simply not look like it's supposed to. Cue hiding comes during rehearsal, through fighters talking with each other and setting up specific actions that indicate readiness at the very moment when the character looks completely unprepared for the next move.

Don't worship eye contact. Eye contact is certainly one way to cue readiness to your partner: keep it in your bag of tricks. But if you overuse it during your fight, the audience will be able to read your signals, and that's deadly to a realistic fight.

Keep acting. Often, a fighter will act during a move, but forget to act between moves. Don't let the audience see you setting up the next move. Find a character reason to justify the choreography and never let your character be caught doing nothing, even if you have no choreography at the moment.

The thing to remember is that cues are still present and are still important. Your attack should be launched the moment your partner is ready, even though he or she looks unready to those who don't know the cues. Don't start the next move until you receive the signal, but hide those cues so that George and Martha in the audience don't know they're even there. When you do it right, you and your partner will feel completely safe but people watching the show may warn you after curtain call about "how dangerous that fight was." Tell them "Thank You," because that's the reaction we want.