Acting and Dancing

I have been thinking about the differences between acting and dancing, performing and presenting, constructing and being. I think that dancers work with their own selves a bit more readily than actors do, and then go to a symbolic level, where they can be safe in performance. In really physical dance, the 'character' ends up being a really good dancer, dancing safely first and foremost, and often the choreographer tries to lead the performer into different movement states that elicit an emotional trigger in the performer- so they don't have to construct one.

At the same time, a dancer's performance state involves self-witnessing: Where is the front? Is it safe to jump now? Am I on cue with the music? Did I just fluff that move?  Those constant self-assessments can get in the way, but as an improviser, that is part of the brain space that needs to be active and able to judge the situation accurately in order to make the next split-second decision. For me, it is part of the fun.