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Thread: Jedi Academies

  1. #31
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    Singapore’s The Force Academy

    Quote Originally Posted by GeneChing View Post
    ...what with the Force Awakens on the horizon.
    I got a bad feeling about this....

    Singapore’s Jedi Academy: Real World Sword Fighting Skills With Lightsabers Because Yes
    by Jessica Lachenal ( ) Monday, August 31st 2015 at 3:54 pm



    If you’ve ever found yourself needing stunt fight training with a little bit of flair, you can get yourself down to Singapore’s very own The Force Academy, a sword fighting academy focused on teaching real-life combat techniques with… lightsabers. Yeah. You can see for yourself in the video of one of their dueling sessions that they’re quite fun and that they move pretty darn quickly. No, nobody loses any limbs or anything (that might be for the advanced class), but judging by everybody’s faces, it looks pretty fun.

    The Force Academy follows on the heels of other lightsaber/sword fighting combat classes, including one in San Francisco, the Golden Gate Knights. While these classes have drawn the judgement and ire of a lot of people, it’s nice to see folks defying the “sedentary nerd” stereotype by indulging themselves in some exciting training.

    Here’s the million dollar question: if one of these was near you, would you sign up? If so, what would your saber color be? Because mine’s totally purple.

    Back off, Windu.
    Star-Wars-The-Force-Awakens
    Star-Wars-Rogue-One
    Gene Ching
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  2. #32
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    Pool noodles? Srsly? Couldn't get real toy light sabers?

    I was going to run a story on our ezine on our local Jedi Academy for The Force Awakens. I even had one of our writers look into it. But with the overwhelming media blitz, it wasn't even worth coat-tailing upon, like shining a light saber at a sun. So I went to Spain instead.

    Martial arts studio trains future Jedi at winter camp


    Integrity Martial Arts in Moore co-owners Kevin Listen, left, and Bridgette Crocker show off their lightsaber skills at the dojo’s Jedi Martial Arts Winter Break Camp.

    Posted: Saturday, January 2, 2016 7:15 am
    By Sidney Lee Community News Content
    Posted on Jan 2, 2016by Randy Mitchell

    MOORE — The Force is strong with Integrity Martial Arts in Moore.
    A three-day Jedi-themed day camp kept children entertained and productive during winter break this week.
    Children played a variety of Star Wars themed games and participated in some basic self-defense training during the camp. They also learned how to use a lightsaber.
    Don’t worry, no hands were lost during the camp as the lightsabers were made of pool noodles and different colors of tape for the handle.
    While the sabers might not be exactly like those in the popular films, the training is based on curriculum for weapons training at Integrity Martial Arts.
    “It’s a lot easier for kids to grasp when they’re holding a lightsaber than an escrima stick,” said Kevin Listen, one of Integrity Martial Arts co-owners. “It’s something safe so they can have fun with it.”
    Listen ended the second day of camp with students dueling each other with their lightsabers. Each bout was ended when a student managed to score a hit on their fellow camper.
    Bridgette Crocker, one of the other co-owners of the school, said they see weapons as an extension of the body so students of the dojo do not begin weapons training until they have mastered a certain level of control of the rest of their body.
    This was reflected in the camp as well.
    Even though the children were only using modified pool noodles, they spent the first day learning basic blocks and strikes without a saber. On the second day, they began using their sabers and on the third day they learned how to block blaster fire, or Nerf gun bullets, using their sabers.
    This classic Jedi ability is often seen in the Star Wars universe.
    All of the campers enjoyed the lightsaber training, but Listen said they seemed to enjoy the different games as well.
    One of the games was called “Sith Raid.” The variation on Red Rover makes students sneak across the room and try to avoid the “siths” in the middle.
    Crocker said they also had a Jedi obstacle course and had different training exercises like Yoda led Luke through in the original trilogy, with army crawling and side kicks.
    The camp also had an hour of self-defense training that follows their school’s curriculum so those who are students get points toward their goals.
    Crocker said they hope to do other camps in the future and plan to do a summer camp again this year.
    Lee writes for The Moore American.
    Gene Ching
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  3. #33
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    And then there's this...

    Lightsaber Weapons Competition, USA Winter Internationals, January 30, 2016, Westgate Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV. http://usainternationals.com

    This is way up there in the 'Why didn't I think of that for our competition?' column...
    Gene Ching
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  4. #34
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    Slightly OT

    If they used traditional metal lightsabers instead of those plastic wushu lightsaber toys, they'd get a better workout.

    This made the New Yorker no less...
    JANUARY 11, 2016 ISSUE
    Sabers Up
    BY CORA FRAZIER

    At New York Sports Clubs’ Chelsea branch one recent Tuesday, employees were rushing to remove toy lightsabers from their plastic packaging. Amira Lamb, an exercise instructor, took her place in a brightly lit mirrored studio and explained that instead of her usual cardio-kickboxing class she would be leading a “Star Wars” workout, which she’d designed at the behest of Disney and Lucasfilm. Lamb, who is petite and has dark eyes, had her crinkly hair pulled back with two clips. She has a devoted following and is beloved by her mostly female students for her distinctive playlists and her efficient full-body approach.

    Many regulars seemed confused about the new workout, which was called Awaken Your Inner Force. One young woman said that she wasn’t really a “Star Wars” fan.

    “It’s still cardio,” Lamb explained. (She had designed a movie-themed workout before, in 2012, for Disney’s animated film “Brave.”)

    Lamb made sure the twenty or so exercisers had the right equipment: one yoga mat; two Frisbee-shaped “gliding disks,” for sliding along the floor (these, she said, were “a nod to the ice planet”); one toy lightsaber. A latecomer with a tattoo on his calf ran in. “I need a sword!” he cried.

    An electronic dance remix of the “Star Wars” theme started. Imitating Lamb, the class began with wide-legged plié squats, lightsabers held aloft. When they pulled the lightsabers down in front of their faces, the toys unexpectedly lit up and emitted tinkly battle sounds. “Oh!” Lamb said. Smiles spread around the room, in recognition of the universal truth that it’s really fun to wave around a long stick.

    The names of the rapid cardio sets, each lasting about sixty or ninety seconds, were written on the mirror in blue and red marker. They included Light*saber Leaps, Skywalker Press, Jedi Jacks, Padawan Pushups, and “Help Me, Obi-Wan!” A few were variations of Lamb’s usual exercises. (The Chewbacca Chop, in a non-“Star Wars” context, is the Wood Chop.)

    “I’m still kind of new to this whole ‘Star Wars’ thing,” Lamb admitted. “I watched all the movies within, like, a week.” She had not yet seen the new film when she designed the workout, but “ran to the theatre” as soon as it came out, she said. “I changed some of the names of the exercises after I saw it.”

    Lisa Hufcut, the director of P.R. for the company that owns N.Y.S.C., said that the partnership is ideal, because Disney “is looking for a way to incorporate their brand into the fitness demographic.” She added, “We’re seeing people come in who may not be regular exercisers, but who love ‘Star Wars.’ ”

    In the studio, Lamb led the group into Lunge Like Luke. The exercisers assumed the lunge position, light*sabers held high, then brought their back knees forward while lowering their sabers, and reassumed the lunge, light*sabers lifted, as fast as they could. Between exercises, the class did plié squats, guided by breathing. “I think of the Force like Chi,” Lamb told them.

    The music transitioned into a remix of “Starships,” by Nicki Minaj. The group dropped the lightsabers on the floor and jump-squatted over them to perform Lightsaber Leaps. For the Skywalker Press, the participants assumed a downward-dog position, moved into a plank, brought the left leg forward, returned to a downward dog, and then repeated the sequence with the right leg.

    Lightsabers clattered against each other, and one knocked over a water bottle. Even the regulars had trouble keeping up with Lamb. The playlist was punctuated by sound bites from the “Star Wars” movies, such as R2D2 beeping and Leia calling out, “Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi!” The class divided into two groups and faced off, in an approximation of the dark and light sides of the Force. Lamb said, “At some point, switching to the dark side is allowed!”

    By Saber Push/Combat Burpees, many in the class were breathing heavily. The exercise involved jumping with both arms in the air, rolling along the floor, then standing and jumping again. To motivate the huffing stragglers, Lamb said, “If you feel like you’re dying, just think about the breath. The breath is the Force.”

    The class ended with a cooldown move called Yoda Flow, which Lamb said was inspired by Tai Chi. Afterward, a regular named Katherine Huala pronounced the new workout much harder than the usual cardio kickboxing. She is a “Star Wars” fan, but doesn’t love the more recent prequels. “Too much C.G.I.,” she said.
    This ‘Star Wars’ themed workout has very little to do with ‘Star Wars’
    In News by Jordan Freiman / January 9, 2016



    The marketing behemoth we know as the Star Wars franchise (now somehow even larger after being acquired by Disney) will not rest until every conceivable aspect of your life has some sort of official Star WarsTM variant, and not even exercise classes are safe.

    Since December, a New York Sports Club location in Chelsea has been offering a class called “Awaken Your Inner Force” which is, in the loosest sense of the term, Star Wars “themed.” This isn’t the work of some random instructor. This was apparently specifically requested by Lucasfilm — the idea presumably being that maybe they could squeeze out a few more dollars by subliminally weaving the idea of Star Wars into the brains of people who enjoy exercise but were maybe somehow on the fence about the concept of a new movie from one of the most successful film franchises of all time. The NYSC, on the other hand, figured maybe they could rope in a few Star Wars fans who were similarly on the fence about the concept of exercise.

    The program was designed by Amira Lamb, who is the woman on the right of the photo up there. All of this is fine and harmless, the only issue is none of these exercises really have anything to do with Star Wars. Check out these descriptions provided by The New Yorker:

    In the studio, Lamb led the group into Lunge Like Luke. The exercisers assumed the lunge position, light*sabers held high, then brought their back knees forward while lowering their sabers, and reassumed the lunge, light*sabers lifted, as fast as they could. Between exercises, the class did plié squats, guided by breathing.

    I don’t ever recall Luke doing anything that looked remotely like that description other than holding a lightsaber.

    The group dropped the lightsabers on the floor and jump-squatted over them to perform Lightsaber Leaps.

    OK, see, again, this is just exercising in the vicinity of a lightsaber.

    For the Skywalker Press, the participants assumed a downward-dog position, moved into a plank, brought the left leg forward, returned to a downward dog, and then repeated the sequence with the right leg.

    Now we seem to have abandoned all pretense of this having anything to do with Star Wars.

    Both this article and one in Men’s Fitness assure the reader that regardless of its association with Star Wars, it’s a pretty intense workout. That’s great, but don’t you think a Star Wars workout should have a little more to do with the movies than just “occasionally you hold a toy lightsaber”? I sure do. Since I feel so strongly about this, I’ve taken the liberty of concocting my own Star Wars routine. Check it out! (Ed. note: the creator of this routine has not exercised in nine years and has no idea what he’s talking about).

    1. Empire Back Strikes
    Despite its name, this exercise has nothing to do with hitting or your back. It just sounded vaguely fitnessy. In any case, find a weird cross-shaped pole and hold yourself up on it. First using just one hand, and then eventually transition into an upside-down hanging position hanging on only by the back of your knees. Try not to pass out or fall.

    2. Yoda Runs
    Find a baby, strap it to your back, and go on a jog through a very dense forest. If available, swing from as many jungle vines as possible. Try a running front flip every now and then.

    3. Vader Choke Lifts
    Try lifting a fully grown adult male up over your head using only one arm and grabbing by the neck.

    4. Chewbacca Pulls
    Play a game of Risk. Lose. Rip your opponents arms out of their sockets.

    5. Solo Sprints
    Grab a gun and start chasing people. Scream at the top of your lungs the entire time. If the people you’re chasing turn around and start chasing you, that’s perfectly fine. Just run away from them. Never stop screaming.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  5. #35
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    Still trending

    MartialArtsMart.com should have added hooded Jedi cloaks. We've already got the basic robe.

    Lightsaber Academy melds ‘Star Wars,’ martial arts
    By RYAN TRARES rtrares@dailyjournal.net
    Daily Journal staff writer
    First Posted: January 15, 2016 - 7:45 pm
    Last Updated: January 15, 2016 - 7:48 pm



    The red glowing sword came slashing in from the left, a diagonal blow aimed at my torso.

    Using the training I had received, my own blue sword came up to meet it crosswise. Attack blocked.

    “Good,” said lightsaber instructor Brian Hartz, before making his second attack horizontally across my right side. Alas, my Jedi skills couldn’t defend quick enough. I was done for.

    Thankfully, this was only practice.

    Inside the spacious practice area of the Indy Lightsaber Academy, trainers have melded the fantastical world of the “Star Wars” universe with authentic sword-based martial arts.

    Participants learn to attack and block from varying angles and situations. Led by southside resident Michael Tucker, students employ fighting concepts that are hundreds of years old, all while using a weapon inspired by what Luke Skywalker used.

    “Even if you don’t like ‘Star Wars,’ who doesn’t like a sword?” Tucker said. “The biggest thing is, in my heart, I’ve always loved swords. I’ve always loved the idea of a knight. If you think of one weapon that encapsulates human history, it’s the sword. The lightsaber is essentially a futuristic sword.”

    At the academy’s first class since the release of “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” close to 50 Jedis-in-training worked on their attacks and parries. Men and women, older adults and young children all gathered waiting for their first lesson.

    Tucker and his team were profiled in GQ magazine in December, and the result has been a massive spike in people wanting to learn to use lightsabers.

    Acting out dreams

    Some had been to class before and had their own flashy models to practice with. They lit up in shades of red, yellow, green and blue, with some making the signature “whoosh” like in the movies.

    Other people used the more basic weaponry provided by Tucker and his staff — wooden training swords for adults, padded versions for children.

    The Force was strong among participants.

    “You spend so much time growing up watching lightsaber fights, thinking that is so cool,” said Taylor Cox, a student and Indianapolis resident. “Now, you can actually do it.”

    Cox, an actor from Indianapolis, found out about the class from Hartz. When he checked it out, he loved the depth of instruction that ran parallel to his fandom of the “Star Wars” universe.

    “I like how it takes something that’s super-fantastical, something you see on the screen and read about, then takes a practical application to it,” Cox said. “Everything is based on real martial arts and a real application of the fantasy aspects that you see.”

    The academy was born in late 2014, when co-founder Doug Trefun posted on Craigslist his idea to start a lightsaber academy. He was a huge fan of “Star Wars,” as well as a certified exercise physiologist and health coach.

    But he needed an expert in stage combat to help lead the training. Tucker, who has extensive training in sword-based martial arts and stage fighting, contacted him about the idea.

    “I was confident it would go over pretty well. But I never thought we’d be where we’ve gotten today,” Trefun said.

    ‘A cool alternative’

    By early 2015, they had a small group of devotees and started attending events such as Indy Comic Con to garner attention. With enough people, they moved to a small training space in Irvington.

    In less than a year, the academy has grown large enough to move to bigger locations. The group’s new home is the Circle City Industrial Complex, a massive open area with room for dozens of people swinging lightsabers.

    The instruction is good-natured but serious. Tucker and his team demonstrate each move before asking students to do it themselves. They go person to person, making sure each one’s form and stance are correct.

    Tucker assembled a program borrowing from martial arts around the world, distilling them into seven forms, Tucker said.

    All participants in the academy start with what is called Form 1, Tucker said.

    Based on the ancient art of Shii-Cho, it helps teach control of the body and blade. The twin components of a powerful attack and a stable defense help lay the foundation for other more complicated fighting forms.

    “It’s a cool alternative to going to the gym,” Trefun said. “It takes a few classes to do it right, but you can get a good workout especially when sparring.”

    Participants who stay in the academy long enough move their way up though three levels of initiate status, eventually becoming a padawan — signifying they have the fundamentals and are ready for more complex lessons.

    At the highest rank and mastery of the concepts, students become Jedi masters.

    ‘Can’t lose control’

    The idea is to create an atmosphere of amusement and learning, and the people who come to classes are obviously amped up to start slashing away.

    But the academy trainers are serious about safety. Everyone has to sign a waiver to take part. They take great care to make sure people aren’t wildly swinging their lightsabers, have everyone stretch before the classes and work individually with each student.

    “I know this is fun, I know this is goofy, I know this is something you don’t do every day,” Tucker said. “But you can’t lose control.”

    For many of the participants, the academy is a chance to live out their science-fiction dreams.

    Indianapolis residents Diana Cox and Kobi “Kobi-wan” Walden found out about the class on Facebook. The two are huge “Star Wars” fans and were among the many who packed theaters on opening night for the new film.

    With the chance to do something so closely related to their fandom, they couldn’t wait for new classes to start up.

    “We want to be Jedis,” Waldron said.

    The pair got their friends Jadrian Berry and Kasey Schwartz to join them.

    “When my sister and I were kids, we wore out VHS tapes of ‘Star Wars,’” said Schwartz, also an Indianapolis resident. “It’s always been something that I’ve loved.”

    Katie Angel has worked with Tucker, Trefun and the other members of the academy through events with her performance group, Angel Burlesque.

    For the fun of it

    Watching them work with lightsabers, she wanted to try it herself. Her husband purchased a five-class pass for Christmas.

    “I’m tired of sitting and watching cool things. I wanted to stand and do,” she said.

    With the growth, the academy has tried to become entrenched in the central Indiana community. They staff currently is sponsoring a food drive, with every participant who brings five cans of food getting to take a class for free.

    The group has also worked with Indianapolis Public Schools to offer scholarships to its students, giving them an after-school extracurricular at a steep discount.

    “Our biggest thing now is using all of the momentum we have with the release of the new ‘Star Wars’ movie,” Trefun said. “We’re using that popularity to springboard into other things.”

    Throughout my first full class, my form was ... poor. A Sith lord would make short work of me.

    But making cross-body blows with a glowing sword was still exhilarating. With each new move gained, it was easy to get lost in a potential science fiction fantasy.

    And that’s the whole point, Tucker said.

    “It’s not just for ‘Star Wars’ fans, but for swordplay fans, fitness fans, people who want to do something unique,” he said. “It’s supposed to be fun.”
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  6. #36
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    Slightly OT

    Not quite a Jedi Academy, but it looks like you can get lightsaber lessons on board...

    Star Wars Day at Sea aboard Disney Cruise Line
    Register Profile



    One Epic Day, 8 Select Sailings
    Whether you're a Jedi-in-training or the Jedi Master of the family, you're in for an out-of-galaxy experience when you sail on the Disney Fantasy in early 2016!

    Occurring one day during each of eight Disney Fantasy sailings, Star Wars Day at Sea will transport you to a galaxy far, far away — in the Western Caribbean. Departing from Port Canaveral, the seven-night Western Caribbean itinerary includes Cozumel, Mexico; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands and Disney's private island in the Bahamas, Castaway Cay.

    Star Wars Day at Sea marks the first official appearance of the heroes and villains of Star Wars aboard the Disney ships. The Event features a full day of Star Wars celebrations for the whole family, including:

    Force-filled Fun for Everyone

    Darth Vader, Chewbacca, Boba Fett, Stormtroopers and other characters from across the Star Wars galaxy will be onboard for scheduled meet and greets, as well as roaming on deck and elsewhere around the ship. You're also are encouraged to dress up in your own stellar costumes!

    A shipboard version of the popular Jedi Training Academy experience invites young Jedi hopefuls — known as "Padawans" — to learn lightsaber moves from a Jedi Master. They can then use the Force and face off in a final test against the evil Darth Vader.

    Kids and families enjoy friendly competition during Star Wars trivia games, covering fun facts from the film and television sagas.

    For Younglings, Star Wars-themed arts and crafts, games and activities will be offered throughout the day in Oceaneer Club and Oceaneer Lab youth clubs.

    In the evening, adults entering the night club will feel like they stepped into the Mos Eisley cantina scene. Characters and cantina music set the mood as Star Wars-themed specialty ****tails are served.
    Film Screenings and Celebrities

    You can watch the first six Star Wars films and follow Darth Vader, Obi Wan Kenobi, Luke and Leia along their epic journey.

    Also showing will be episodes of the new Disney XD animated series, Star Wars Rebels.

    On each of the special sailings, celebrities and insiders from the Star Wars galaxy will share their experiences, meet fans and sign autographs.
    Star Wars Deck Party and Fireworks

    There's intergalactic fun when the Star Wars deck party blasts off to an exciting evening filled with music, dancing and games.

    Star Wars characters converge on the deck stage for a celebration of the Star Wars saga in a show featuring special effects and Guest participation.

    The deck party culminates in a spectacular display of themed pyrotechnics, lighting, sound effects, lasers and Star Wars music.
    Sail Dates:

    Star Wars Day at Sea will be available only aboard the Disney Fantasy on select Western Caribbean sailings, January through April in 2016. Star Wars Day at Sea is available on:

    January 9
    January 23
    February 6
    February 20
    March 5
    March 19
    April 2
    April 16
    The Star Wars Day at Sea is scheduled to be the 'At Sea' day following Grand Cayman.
    Gene Ching
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  7. #37
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    Jedis everywhere

    There are even nerf swords being marketed by a major martial arts distributor now that are lightsaber-like (careful not to tread on any royalty-demanding copyrights).

    The force awakens in Springfield martial arts class
    By GREGORY J. HOLMAN - Associated Press - Friday, March 11, 2016

    SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) - In “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” Luke Skywalker gave up on training new Jedi knights, but closer to home, Theron Sturgess is just getting started.

    Sturgess told the Springfield News-Leader (http://sgfnow.co/1RBv6pd ) that he’s taught martial arts like jiu-jitsu and kenpo for 30 years, but his effort to teach Star Wars-style martial arts, Springfield Jedi Arts Academy, is “brand-spanking new.”

    Academy sessions - including free monthly events for kids and families and paid sessions - are held at Dynamic Edge Martial Arts, where Sturgess is lead instructor.

    The academy blends fitness, Star Wars movements like lightsaber fencing, with philosophy and meditation.

    “It’s kind of growing faster than I’d even hoped for,” Sturgess said. About 80 people came to one of his first free events, he said. He’s taught kids as young as 5 or 6 years old up to adults in their 60s.

    And despite old stereotypes of Star Wars fandom, the academy is not a boys’ club: Sturgess guesses about 40 percent of the latest round of attendees were girls and women.

    He also does private lessons in Star Wars-style martial arts, with coaching much like that of a personal trainer at a gym, he said.

    Friday afternoon, Sturgess coached Springfield resident Jamie Diamond in a private lesson. Diamond said she’d practiced a variety of martial arts before, but this was her first encounter with lightsaber basics and the three basic pillars of Jedi studies (which are, per Sturgess, the Force, knowledge and self-discipline).

    There are also group “intensive” lessons. A two-hour Feb. 28 event, “Academy Force Focus Intensive,” cost $25 and included meditation, exercise, stretching, fundamental stances, strikes and blocks, fight choreography, stage combat punching and Jedi combat rolling.

    If it sounds intense, Sturgess keeps it light during lessons. “What’s the biggest room in the world?” he asked Diamond during her session. “Room for improvement!”

    He said his Jedi academy is really about connecting people with fitness and mindfulness.

    “(Lightsaber training) is not quite as hard-core as some of the Olympic fencing, or the Japanese sport of kendo,” he said.

    “This is for people nervous about trying actual martial arts or jumping into a fitness routine,” Sturgess said. “I like to say, they go from playing the video games to living the video games.”

    Some of Sturgess’ students are using Jedi martial arts to work through obesity issues, he said, finding it a “legitimate form of exercise.”

    Along with exercise and meditation, Sturgess said the “third tier” of Springfield Jedi Arts Academy is “community.” Participants have helped raise funds for National Public Radio and other causes, he said.

    He hopes to develop a group of “core members” who will demonstrate and even teach Jedi arts. He’d like to put on tournaments.

    “My personal time is limited,” he said. “But I hope to train the 10 Jedi that will train the hundred, and who knows, maybe the hundred that will train the thousand.”

    The next hour-long Springfield Jedi Arts Academy free event is March 19; potential attendees need a doctor’s approval for physical training.
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
    Author of Shaolin Trips
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  8. #38
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    Light Saber Team

    I crossed paths with the Light Saber Team at Silicon Valley Comic Con. I confess that I had to struggle to conceal a smirk when they described their light sabers as 'combat ready'.



    Saw a lot of cool light sabers tho...




    Gene Ching
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  9. #39
    boeder - Now that's a name I haven't heard in a long time. An elegant medium for a more civilized age.

  10. #40
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    Yet another...

    'Star Wars' themed martial arts class is perfect for young Jedis
    BY DAVINA MERCHANT
    1 day ago



    Working out would probably be more fun if we could do it with lightsabers.

    One martial arts instructor is now teaching kids how to be at one with the Force. Using a lightsaber to combine traditional sword techniques with the twirls and turns you see in the movie series, kids can now get into martial arts and become a Jedi, too.

    The kids can also design their own costumes, allowing them to get the full experience from a Star Wars-inspired martial arts class.
    I've heard the powers that be at Star Wars are now endeavoring to shut this sort of stuff down.
    Gene Ching
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  11. #41
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    Lightsaber martial art

    I was corresponding with Ben Judkins on a different matter entirely, when this came up. Ben gave me permission to share it.

    Is Lightsaber Combat a Martial Art? (Episode I)
    POSTED BY BENJUDKINS ⋅ MARCH 18, 2016


    A meeting of the Golden Gates Knights. Instructor Alain Block (right) leads a class. Source: Associated press, image by Jeff Chiu.
    ***This is the first half of two part article. However, readers may actually want to begin by reading my recent post What are “martial arts,” and why does knowing matter?***

    “It [Ludosport] started in 2006 in Italy. A few friends got some lightsabers as gifts and being into martial arts and re-enactment fanatics they decided to see if there was a way they could make it into a sport, and they did. They spent hundreds of hours consulting many different martial artists and fencing coaches to make sure that they got a really good sport.

    It’s not a martial art. We’re not trying to teach people how to cause physical harm, in fact that’s exactly the opposite of what we’re trying to do. We want something that’s fast and fun, that people can enjoy.”

    Jordan Court, Instructor of the Ludosport England, Lighstaber Combat Academy in Bristol (UK) as quoted in the Bristol Post, January 29th 2015.

    “[Flynn:] People laugh at us and say, “That’s not a real martial art!” I say, why don’t you pick one up and try.

    [Damon Honeycutt:] They can say all they want…you know what I mean. But the fact is we are practicing and they are not.”

    “Flynn” and Damon Honeycutt. Reclaiming the Blade, DVD2. Bonus Feature: New York Jedi. 2009. Min. 4:14.

    Introduction: What are Martial Arts?

    Is lightsaber combat a martial art? This seemingly odd question may have important implications for how we understand critical concepts within the field of martial arts studies. It also promises to shed light on the fundamental processes by which the traditional martial arts have been revived, reimagined and invented in the modern era.

    As both a relatively new and radically interdisciplinary research area, martial arts studies is currently enjoying a period of rapid conceptual development. Nowhere is this more evident than in attempts to define the term ‘martial art.’ While it is in many ways synonymous with the field, only a minority of the foundational texts in our literature have attempted to define this concept or to explore it in ways that would point to new avenues for research. Nor has the existing literature coalesced around a single definition.

    In a previous post we saw that researchers have adopted at least three discrete strategies when attempting to craft their understanding of this concept. The first, and most widely used, might be referred to as the “sociological strategy.” It simply accepts the social or cultural consensus on the question as it has arisen within a tightly focused research area.

    Given that everyone in 21st century Japan simply “knows” that kendo, karate and aikido are martial arts, there may not be an urgent need to further explore the matter when discussing some aspect of Japanese martial studies. This is especially true as so many works currently being produced adopt an “area studies” approach which calls for a deep examination of the historical, social or even linguistic forces affecting developments in only a single region or state. It may seem beyond the bounds of a given research project to deeply explore what characteristics make both kendo and karate “martial arts” given their many historical differences. The existing consensus is simply accepted as a social fact.

    Nevertheless, future theoretical development within martial arts studies requires a greater emphasis on comparative case studies. This research strategy often necessitates comparing practices that have arisen in very different times or places. For instance, what makes both capoeira and kendo martial arts, and how can both be understood in light of the economic, political and social changes that swept the globe in the 19th century? In cases such as this it is no longer possible to avoid definitional discussion. For better or worse, classification and categorization are at the heart of the comparative enterprise.

    Towards this end scholars have attempted to define the martial arts in at least two different ways. First, they have advanced short “universal” definitions meant to identify those activities deemed to be “martial arts” within the broader category of all social practices. Further, most of these authors have attempted to advance relatively abstract definitions that can be applied to any society, time or place.

    As we saw in our previous post, such efforts can be challenging. And while identifying “martial arts” in the abstract, most of these discussions provide no way of knowing where one style ends and the next begins. Are wing chun, weng chun and white crane three different styles, or simply three interpretations of the same regional fighting tradition? Scholars need a concept that can help us to address questions such as this.

    A second group of authors have developed definitions that seek to classify the wide range of observed martial arts along different metrics. Some authors, such as Donn Draeger, sought to separate the truly “martial” from the “civilian” fighting systems. Unfortunately his system seems to be based on a now dated understanding of Japanese military history. And in any case, it is not always possible to draw a clean distinction between the military and civil realms.

    Other students have looked at the specific goals motivating individuals to practice the martial arts. Perhaps the most common division in the literature is a three part typology separating the competitive combat sports, traditional arts (focused on self-development and health) and self-defense or combat arts. While this cuts to the heart of the ways in which the martial arts are often discussed in popular culture, this approach has trouble dealing with the huge amount of variation found within any single tradition. In China it is not that hard to find Wushu coaches who approach the Taiji forms as competitive sports, while some of their students will go on to teach similar forms as traditional health practices.
    continued next post
    Gene Ching
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    Continued from previous post

    Lastly, Sixt Wetzler has proposed that we move away from efforts to definitively place certain practices in one conceptual box or another. He argues that we should instead acknowledge that the martial arts owe much of their popularity to their fungiblity. The fact that a single set of practices can play many social roles in a student’s life gives them great practical utility. The social functions of a children’s afterschool Tae Kwon Do class might be very different from those pursued in the adult Saturday afternoon session of the very same school. It is precisely this multi- vocality that allows these hand combat systems to function as central organizing symbols in the lives of their practitioners.

    Wetzler suggest that the best way to understand what a martial art is, and to compare various schools or approaches, is to examine their impact on five dimensions of social meaning. Briefly these are:

    1. Preparation for violent conflict
    2. Play and Competitive Sports
    3. Performance
    4. Transcendent Goals
    5. Health Care

    Unfortunately this is more of a framework for analysis than a traditional definition. And Wetzler freely admits that future researchers may find it necessary to add additional categories to his list.

    Nor does his approach solve the problem of sociological relativism. The flexible nature of Wetzler’s concept opens the field up to a wide range of activities that not all researchers might be willing to accept as martial arts. For instance, would realistic combative movements learned from a video-game count as a “martial art” if their practitioner claimed them as such? What about the many apps currently on the market to help students learn taiji or wing chun? Is this simply a novel way of teaching an old art, or is it something very different? Do we simply accept as a martial art anything that claims to be one?

    The problem of relativism can also be seen on the other end of the spectrum. Because the martial arts are often seen as somewhat “odd,” “eccentric” or “socially marginal” some individuals may try to evade the label all together. Students taking a “boxing essentials” or even kickboxing class at the local YMCA might claim not to be studying a martial art, even though any martial arts studies conference will include multiple papers on participation in amateur boxing and kickboxing activities.

    It would seem that self-identification might be a poor metric to judge what activities qualify as a martial art, or how we as researchers should structure our case studies. Indeed, this has always been a potential weakness of the “sociological approach.” Lacking a universally agreed upon definition, how should we move forward?

    This puzzle is a useful one in that it helps us to clarify our goals. When we ask “Is lightsaber combat a martial art?” we must be clear that this question does not intend to establish a value hierarchy in which the researcher draws on their expertise to offer a binding opinion on what does or does not qualify as an authentic combat system. Nor are we even asking whether a given activity is worthy of consideration in martial arts studies as a research area. After all, our interdisciplinary literature routinely tackles a variety of topics and sources (including novels, films, community festivals and public rituals) that are not the product of any specific training hall.

    What this question really points to is the relationship between our object of study (in this case Lightsaber combat) and the theoretical toolkit that we have developed to explore these sorts of systems within martial arts studies. Put slightly differently, do we expect that our core concepts and theories will help us to make sense of lightsaber combat in the same way that they might be useful when thinking about the rise of judo or wing chun? And if they fail in this specific case (as theories often do), will the lessons learned improve our understanding of the traditional martial arts as well?

    Within the social sciences progress rarely comes from theoretical development or empirical observation in isolation. It is the triangulation of approaches that is the most likely to lead to the development of a successful research program. Do all martial arts arise from authentic combat activities? Must they be historically grounded? Can an activity be a martial art even if its students and teacher do not claim it as such?

    Ultimately these are all important questions as they help us to expand the borders of martial arts studies, and demonstrate the broader utility of our field. They are also the sorts of issues that deserve to be empirically examined rather than simply accepted or dismissed by definitional fiat.


    Concept art by Ralph McQuarrie showing an early version of the lightsaber.

    Getting a Grip on the Lightsaber

    Towards that ends, the current post investigates the case of lightsaber combat. Any attempt to define these practices as an authentic martial art will face a number of obvious objections. The typical lightsaber class usually introduces students to some combination of forms training, practical drills, competitive fencing and stage combat/choreography. The emphasis on each activity varies from school to school and depends in large part on the goals of the instructors.

    Yet the lightsaber is not a historical, or even a real, weapon. The idea that one might be able to systematically study “lightsaber combat” is a relatively recent notion inspired by a successful film franchise. In that sense we are dealing with a “hyper-real” martial art. By this we mean that it is an “invented tradition” that everyone acknowledges is based on a fictional text rather than a more or less accurate transmission of some historical practice.

    Lightsaber combat presents students of martial arts studies with a set of theoretical fighting systems coalescing around the image of a (wildly popular) fictional weapon. Nevertheless, many of the individuals working to develop lightsaber combat programs are traditional martial artists with extensive training in both Eastern and Western fighting arts. Their historically grounded skills are being married to the mythos and world view of the Star Wars franchise and then marketed to the public. Finally, the resulting synthesis is presented to new students in classroom environments that practitioners of the traditional martial arts would find very recognizable.

    Nor is the practice of lightsaber combat limited to a few isolated individuals. The renewed popularity of the Star Wars franchise following first the release of the prequel films in the early 2000s (Episodes I-III), and the Force Awakens (Episode VII) in 2015, has given rise to a dramatic increase in demand for “practical” lightsaber training. With a number of additional films already in the works, we may be well positioned to watch the birth of a substantial new hyper-real martial movement. But are these systems true martial arts?

    What does the answer to that question suggest about the various ways in which the older and more established systems can also be understood as “invented traditions?” Should this change anything about the way we view the relationship between media portrayals of violence and the creation (or practice) of actual combat systems? How will our understanding of the relationship between the martial arts and the historical forces of ethno-nationalism and culture need to be adjusted when we see individuals turning to hyper-real martial arts to pursue their need for self-development or transcendence?

    continued next post
    Gene Ching
    Publisher www.KungFuMagazine.com
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    Continued from previous post

    Using Wetzler’s five dimensions of social meaning I explore the various ways in which lightsaber combat functions as an authentic martial art for its practitioners. Some of these may be obvious, others will be less so. Ultimately this discussion suggests that a set of activities functions as a martial art not because of their historical authenticity or connection to “real-world” combat. Rather, the martial arts have always been defined primarily through their modes of social organization and the individual, group and systemic roles that they play. At heart they are social institutions rather than collections of isolated techniques. More specifically the modern martial arts are a social project by which individuals hope to secure multiple aspects of their personal and social destiny, and not simply their physical safety.

    This should not be understood as a new development. We see this same pattern at the very moment of the genesis of the Asian martial arts. Japanese warriors did not need formal sword schools organized as ryu-ha to ply their trade or survive on the battlefield. They had succeeded in these tasks quite nicely for hundreds of years without them.

    Rather, as Alexander C. Bennett has cogently argued, these social institutions were created as a means of demonstrating social sophistication and self-discipline when Bushi warriors found themselves transitioning to political roles in urban areas which brought them into direct contact with Japan’s highly cultured aristocracy. The original Japanese swords arts functioned just as much as a source of social legitimization as martial capital. These schools again saw massive growth under the later Tokugawa government, a period of protracted peace in which they once again served mostly social, cultural and economic functions.

    While history is not unimportant (indeed, we will see that it is deeply implicated in the creation of even hyper-real martial arts) researchers may ultimately wish to pay more attention to how ideas and beliefs about the martial arts, as a social project, are created and transmitted from one generation to the next. Nor is this set of conclusions unique to the world of lightsaber combat. Instead the existence and rapid growth of hyper-real martial arts requires us to reevaluate what we think we know about the invention of the traditional martial arts more generally.



    Luke receiving his fathers lightsaber in Episode IV: A New Hope (1977). Its interesting to compare Luke’s lightsaber in this shot to the original concept art above.

    Creating the Seven Classic Forms of Lightsaber Combat: A Very Brief History

    While various 20th century science fiction stories had mentioned weapons like the lightsaber, the image of this now iconic weapon seared its way into the popular consciousness in 1977 with George Lucas release of his first Star Wars film (Episode IV: A New Hope). Luke Skywalker igniting his father’s arctic blue lightsaber (“an elegant weapon for a more civilized age”) in the presence of the mysterious Obi-Wan Kenobi became a symbol that defined the hopes and aspiration of an entire generation of film goes.

    They too wished for an adventure that would allow them to take their first steps onto a broader stage. What better weapon for the knight-errants of the quickly dawning technological age than the lightsaber. It captured the romance and esoteric promises of our half-remembered, half-imagined, collective past, while pointedly reminding us that it was an “artifact” from the distant future. The symbolism of the lightsaber seamlessly combines a weapon of truly fearsome destructive potential with the promise of spiritual renewal. Once seen it is an image that is not easily forgotten.

    The lightsaber’s strangely hypnotic blade has now gone on to colonize the imagination of multiple generations, spawning countless novels, comic books, video games, collectibles, sequels and most recently, entire combat systems. It goes without saying that in the absence of the Star Wars film franchise, and the immense marketing empire that surrounds and supports it, there would be no lightsaber combat training today. Our first conclusion must be that media generated images of lightsaber combat led directly to the creation of later combat systems, albeit with a somewhat puzzling delay.

    I strongly suspect that the first fan-based “lightsaber duel” was probably performed with broom sticks the day after Lucas’ original vision was revealed to the public in 1977. Yet I have found very little evidence of organized attempts to institutionalize and spread specific ideas about what lightsaber combat might look like until the early 2000s. Systematized lightsaber fencing, as it currently exists, dates only to the middle of that decade.

    This presents us with our first challenge. Given the immense popularity and huge cultural impact of the initial three movies, why did lightsaber combat organizations emerge only in the 2000s? More specifically, what was their relationship to the less popular, and critically reviled, prequel trilogy chronicling the Clone Wars and the rise of Darth Vader?

    The answer to both of these questions can be found in the complex mix of materiality and mythos that lies as the heart of the Star Wars enterprise, as well as the efforts to market its merchandise to the public. After all, what is more powerful than a myth whose relics can be held in one’s own hands…for a price.
    continued next post
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    Continued from previous post


    The Ultrasabers display at the 2012 Phoenix Comicon. Ultrasabers is one of the largest manufactures of stunt sabers intended for use is lightsaber combat. Source: Wikimedia

    It is a proven fact that if you put replica lightsabers in the hands of any two normal adults, they will immediately try to beat each other about the head with them. The impulse to attempt to use a replica lightsaber seems to be an inescapable part of human nature. This actually makes replica and “stunt lightsabers” (simple sabers without elaborate sound effects created by third party vendors for the express purpose of dueling) somewhat dangerous. On the one hand their metal hilts and heavy, glowing, polycarbonate blades provide the same sort of psychological gratification that comes from handling any other sort of weapon.

    At the same time, the fact that we all know that these replicas are “not real” can lead to problems. While not actually filled with jets of hot plasma, the purely kinetic energy that a rigid 1 inch polycarbonate blade can deliver is roughly equivalent to any wooden stick of similar length. It is certainly enough to cause pain or injury if full contact dueling is attempted without some basic safety equipment. In short, corporate liability issues may have initially limited the creation of licensed replicas of these iconic weapons. The fact that large costuming groups, such as the 501st Legion and Jedi Council, have a no combat/choreography policy would also have diminished the demand for more durable prop replicas.

    There would have been technical issues to consider as well. Most sabers today utilize LED technology to “ignite” their blades. These can withstand more forceful blows than delicate incandescent bulbs and they do not burn out. Integrated circuit boards with motion detectors can also be added to provide sound effects or special lighting effects. By the early 2000s the technology to mass produce convincing replica lightsabers became cheap enough to make the project economically viable while at the same time a new generation of (now adult) fans was in place to spend hundreds of dollars on each new model.

    I hypothesize that it was the appearance of relatively high quality replica (and later stunt) sabers which sparked the sudden boom of interest in practical lightsaber combat. These marketing efforts were also supported by the expansion of other aspects of the Star Wars universe. In October of 2002 Dr. David West Reynolds (the holder of a PhD in Archaeology from the University of Michigan who went on to write multiple Star Wars reference books) published an article in Star Wars Insider (#62) titled “Fightsaber: Jedi Lightsaber Combat.”

    While the movies themselves say almost nothing about the details of lightsaber training, Reynolds, drawing on his academic background, wrote an essay outlining the “Seven Forms” of lightsaber combat as taught within the Jedi Order. He provided each numbered form with a short description outlining its philosophy as well as its strengths and weaknesses. Later resources augmented these with exotic sounding names (such as “Shii-cho” or Form I), associated them with mythic creatures from the Star Wars universe in ways that seem to intentionally mimic the use of animal imagery in the Asian martial arts (Shii-cho is “The Way of the Sarlacc”). They also concocted increasingly complex backstories. While Reynolds is an archaeologist rather than a martial artist, he set in motion a story-development arch which created a rich body of invented lore around the seven forms, giving them an alluring feel of verisimilitude.

    By the early 2000s Star Wars fans had been given access to both a steady supply of replica lightsabers, a new trilogy of films which featured many iconic lightsaber battles, and an increasingly complex system of invented traditions explicitly designed to create a history for lightsaber usage that would feel “realistic.” While the Star Wars franchise has always emphasized the role of merchandise, the situation for would be Jedi and Sith acolytes was more favorable in the 2000s than it was in the 1980s.

    The next major step forward took place in 2005. Inspired by some short fan-films in which lightsabers had been digitally recreated, “Flynn” a founding member of the group NY Jedi, bought two Master Replicas lightsabers, took them to the roof of his New City apartment building at night, and began to duel with a friend.

    The resulting enthusiasm on the part of his neighbors was great enough that he then decided to bring a larger group of sabers to the 2005 Greenwich Village Halloween parade where their demonstration was again met with great enthusiasm and numerous inquiries as to where one could go to learn to fight with a “real” lightsaber. The group NY Jedi was formed shortly thereafter, and has offered weekly lessons taught be a variety of martial artists, choreographers and stage combat coaches.

    The simultaneous worldwide dissemination of the newly created mythos and marketing of replica sabers makes it difficult to reconstruct a single linear history of lightsaber combat. NY Jedi raised the profile of the practice and inspired the creation of a number of other similar groups all along the East Coast of the United States. Some of them emphasized costuming and performance, others attempted to focus on the creation of a “pure” martial art.

    Only a few months later three friends in Italy (all trained martial artists) brought a bunch of replica lightsabers to a birthday party. They were impressed with the technical flexibility that this new training weapon allowed. Almost immediately they started to develop their own martial system (Ludosport) based on the physical characteristics of replica lightsabers as well as elements of the Star Wars mythos.

    Most lightsaber groups seem to combine multiple elements in their training. While NY Jedi mixes traditional martial arts training with a heavy emphasis on stage combat and performance, Ludosport instead emphasizes the development of lightsaber fencing as a type of competitive combat sport. They have since opened branch schools across Europe and organized a system of international tournaments and rankings.


    A match at the Combat Saber Tournament held in Singapore at Liang Court, on 20 Nov 2015. Source: http://www.thesaberauthority.com

    One of the most interesting things about the recent spread of lightsaber combat has been its diverse and global nature. Clubs and schools dedicated to promoting the practice have been opened in the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia. Indeed, much of the early development of the art was taking place nearly simultaneously in the United States, Italy and South East Asia (where such groups have proved to be popular in the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.)

    These organizations approach lightsaber training with a variety of goals and methods. They also have a variety of opinions on whether or not what they do can be considered a martial art.

    As the introductory quote suggests, Ludosport appears to have distanced themselves from the claim that lightsaber fencing might be considered a “martial art.” In their vernacular terminology, an activity only qualifies as a martial art if it is aggressive in nature and focused on causing harm. Thus for their own marketing purposes they seem to have decided to emphasize the athletic and competitive aspects of their practice.

    Other groups, such as the Terra Prime Lightsaber Academy, have instead emphasized the degree to which lightsaber fencing is, and should be thought of, as a martial art. After all, the fight choreography that influenced the development of the Star Wars films was highly influenced by a variety of traditional martial arts including kendo, kali and historic European practices such as longsword fencing.

    Many of the instructors teaching lightsaber combat today also bring their own background in the martial arts to the table. For them the challenge is to find a ways to recreate the “Seven Forms” of lightsaber combat outlined in the Star Wars mythology using historic techniques, concepts and strategies. Drawing on their individual training, and the unique physical properties of commercially available stunt lightsabers, they have attempted to “recreate” effective and historically grounded systems of lightsaber combat which are still true to the texture of the movies and the Star Wars mythology. All of this has then been packaged in a way that it can be taught to succeeding generations of students in something that very much resembles a standard classroom environment. Some instructors even see in lightsaber combat a possible tool for promoting, preserving and disseminating traditional types of martial knowledge.

    If you enjoyed this discussion be sure to read the second half: Five Social Dimensions of Lightsaber Combat as a Martial Art (Episode II)


    A choreographed reenactment of the final duel in Episode III: Revenge of the Sith. Public performances like these have helped to popularize lightsaber combat. Photo by Jenny Elwick. Source: Wikimedia.
    But wait...there's more!
    Gene Ching
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    Part 2

    Five Social Dimensions of Lightsaber Combat as a Martial Art (Episode II)
    POSTED BY BENJUDKINS ⋅ MARCH 21, 2016



    ***This is the second half of our exploration of lightsaber combat as a martial art. Reader who have not yet read Part I are strongly encouraged to do so before going on. In the last essay we considering some of the basic strategies that scholars have adopted in defining the “martial arts.” Following that discussion we briefly reviewed the emergence of the current lightsaber combat community. In this post we attempt to test Wetzler’s theory of the “five dimensions of social meaning” as a strategy for understanding the martial arts by using it to explore various aspects of lightsaber fencing. Enjoy!***

    Five Social Dimensions of Lightsaber Combat

    While it helps to ground our discussion, the preceding historical exploration does little to resolve the theoretical question of whether we should consider lightsaber combat to be an authentic martial art. At best we are thrown back on the statements of various practitioners. Some look to their own backgrounds and goals to assert that they are in the process of developing and teaching a martial art. In their view the media driven origins of these practices should have no bearing on our classification of the resulting institutions. What is important is the nature of the techniques used and taught.

    Other individuals, even those deeply involved in the lightsaber community, are not so sure. Some see “combat sports” and “martial arts” as mutually exclusive categories. And given the degree of cultural discomfort that still follows the traditional martial arts, a few groups may have decided that it is economically more feasible to market lightsaber combat as a sporting, fitness or recreational activity.

    Nor would it be difficult to find practitioners of more traditional sword arts who might claim that lightsaber fencing simply cannot be a martial art at all. So many of the small details that are critical in traditional forms training or cutting practice (e.g., edge control) simply disappear when we begin to discuss fictional all cutting plasma blades. For them the potent symbolism of a futuristic sword cannot displace the historically grounded reality of the blade.

    This sort of indeterminacy has always dogged both the sociological and universal strategies for defining the martial arts. The current essay seeks to move beyond this impasse by empirically examining the practice of lightsaber combat in light of Wetzler’s theory of the “five dimensions of social meaning.” This will provide us with an appropriate baseline from which to explore whether the fictional origins of lightsaber combat alters the sorts of social roles that it plays in the lives of its students. It should also suggest something about the utility of the existing martial arts studies literature in making sense of these practices. As such we will briefly consider how lightsaber combat ranks on each of these five dimensions.


    Early concept art by Ralph McQuarrie showing a Storm Trooper holding a lightsaber. In the Star Wars mythos a hero may well have to rely on the lightsaber as a means of self-defense.

    Preparation for violent conflict: When interviewed, new students of the martial arts often claim that they have been inspired to join a school by a need for self-defense training. Indeed, there has always been a strong linkage between (some) martial arts and the perceived need to prepare oneself for the reality of violent conflict. Yet at the same time students of martial studies have noted that many of the sorts of techniques that are commonly used in these systems lack an element of “realism.”

    Students of Japanese military history have noted that high-school kendo training did a poor job of preparing Japanese military officers to actually use their swords in the field during WWII. Practitioners of the Mixed Martial Arts often complain about the lack of “realism” in more traditional styles. Yet weapons are a sadly common element of actual criminal assaults and they are banned from the octagon. Indeed, one cannot escape the conclusion that the ways in which the martial arts attempt to prepare their students for the future cannot simply by reduced to “violence simulators” of greater or lesser degrees of accuracy. Equally important has been the building of physical strength, mental toughness and a tactical tool kit in environments that are quite different from what might be encountered in an actual attack.

    Lightsaber combat also has a complex relationship with Wetzler’s first dimension of social meaning. The chance of an individual being called upon to defend themselves from an actual lightsaber attack today is only slightly less than the probability that they will encounter a villain wielding a traditional Chinese three meter long spear in a dark alley. Which is to say, few people take up traditional weapons training (such as swords, spears or bows) because of their great utility “on the street.”

    Yet in a kendo class one will be called upon to defend against a mock (but still very spirited) sword attack. Likewise, in a modern lightsaber duel fencers will be called upon to defend themselves against a determined attacker who has been systematically trained in a variety of techniques. A failure to do so (especially if proper safety measures are not observed) might result in injury. In that sense lightsaber students are preparing themselves for combative encounters. All of this also contributes to the creation of a degree of physical and mental resilience.

    Many forms of traditional weapons training have become functionally obsolete in the current era. Spears, swords and bows are no longer encountered on the battlefield and they play a limited role in any discussion of self-defense. While lightsabers can be placed further along the continuum of abstraction, these are fundamentally differences of degree rather than kind.


    A Sportlight Saber League Tournament held in Paris, France. Source: http://www.themalaymailonline.com

    Play and Competitive Sports: There can be no doubt that for most students the fundamental appeal of lightsaber combat is to be found in its recreational value. Indeed, the central mythos and symbolism of the exercise derives from the realm of film and commercial entertainment. Of course in the current era what most of us know about past military battles and personal duels is also heavily mediated by media representations rather than firsthand experience.

    Even in Hong Kong in the 1950s-1970s, a supposed golden age of traditional martial arts practice, wuxia novels and martial arts films were the medium by which most individuals were introduced to, and developed an interest in, the martial arts. While not as frequently discussed, the traditional martial arts have always been closely tied to the worlds of physical recreation and story-telling.

    The very nature of lightsaber fencing has also contributed to the development of a strong sporting impulse. Whether in the form of Olympic fencing or Japanese kendo, in the current era the sword arts have come to be seen largely as combat sports. Students of lightsaber fencing will approach their new practice with an already well established set of ideas about what a “proper” match will look like. Inevitably this includes safety equipment (eye protection, fencing masks, armored gloves, other protective gear), one or more judges to call points, a transparent scoring system and a limited number of timed rounds. All of these practices come from previous innovations in other arts, but they are immediately available to lightsaber fencers. The end result is that for many students lightsaber combat is primarily thought of as a faced paced, highly enjoyable, combat sport.

    As I have interviewed various instructors in the field, some have pointed to these sorts of matches as sites for “technical research.” A few have asserted that the traditional martial arts might benefit from a “neutral” platform where students of western, Chinese, Japanese or South East Asian systems can come together to compare techniques with those whose training is different from their own. The physical simplicity of a stunt saber (which is essentially a smooth polycarbonate tube), and the ease with which it can be used by a variety of styles, has even led to some discussion of whether lightsaber combat might develop as a type of “mixed martial art” for swords (albeit one with a very different world view). While this possibility is not what attracts most new students to their local lightsaber combat group, it is certainly a possibility that is being considered by key teachers and promoters of the practice.
    continued next post
    Gene Ching
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