What does facial expression primarily communicate in performance?

Facial expression primarily communicates emotional states in performance. This is because the human face has an incredible capacity to convey a wide range of feelings, from happiness and sadness to anger and confusion. In the context of drama, an actor's facial expressions help the audience understand and connect with the character’s emotions, enhancing their overall experience of the story being told.

While physical actions, story pacing, and dialogue delivery also play important roles in a performance, they do not have the same direct impact on conveying emotion to the audience as facial expressions do. Physical actions may illustrate what a character is doing, but they do not necessarily indicate how the character feels about those actions. Story pacing might affect the rhythm and flow of the performance but does not convey specific emotions. Likewise, dialogue delivery focuses on how lines are spoken rather than the emotional undertones that can be expressed through facial cues. Therefore, facial expressions serve as a vital tool for portraying and communicating a character's emotional landscape, making them essential for delivering a powerful performance.