5 DAYS INTENSIVE

29^th Non-3^rd Dec 2010

physical expression in theatre

venue: FHSpace, Forest Hill, London.

These workshops are open to Actors, Dancers, Performers and Individuals interested in expanding their practical understanding of various approaches to physical theatre training. The aim is to enrich skills, working with movement, voice and imagination.

Grotowski&Chekhov: 29^th Nov-1^st Dec / 10-5pm

Krystian Godlewski, Artistic Director of the Bones Theatre leads this physical workshop over three days. He will be drawing from J.Grotowski and M.Chekhov, Butoh and Dance Training to explore a body based approach working with movement and voice. Participants will work on the “Lover” by Harold Pinter.

Laban: 2^nd-3^rd Dec / 10-5pm

A creative workshop investigating the Art of Movement based on R.Laban's holistic and universal approach. During the 2 days Dagmara Bilon will engage participants in movement improvisation; diving into the world of movement, exploring the body as an instrument of expression and a reciever of impulses. Looking at inner experience in relation to space, form and dynamics.

Grotowski meeting Chekhov

12^th-15^th July 2010

Grotowski meeting Chekhov – Exploring Physical Expression

venue: People Show Studios, Pollard Row, Bethnal Green, London.

This body-based exploration of how to be vividly alive and present on stage

will draw on elements from dance, butoh, mime, and martial arts.

The emphasis will be on exploring the natural and instinctive impulses of your body, discovering and working through any blockages, and gaining simple, practical, and physical techniques to free your body and voice.

You will be working closely with others and build an ensemble, which will lead to a short, presented piece to an invited audience of friends.

Contemporary Grotowski workshops

24th to 27th of May 2010

In the mornings Przemek Wasilkowski and Magdalena Tuka leads an actors physical “artistic” training using methods pioneered by Grotowski where energetic movement scripts are employed in awakening awareness and the release of inner action.

In the afternoons, building on the mornings training and exploring Grotowski’s “actions” builds performance scenarios working with text from "Attempts on Her Life" by martin Crimp.

“(…) Don’t mistake it for simple muscle training. It’s actors training. One's body should be ready to hold on in the most dynamic energetic moments of a role.

The actor’s job is hard physical work. Acting is also a profession; so one has to train ones instrument with diligence, as a pianist does. One has to train so that the body is complicit during the creative process, and dose not disturb or seek escape from doing.”

An actor can’t work without intuition; but to avoid becoming lost in the foggy intuitive world, one has to begin with the senses, which means with the body.

We need to use our mind as well in order to understand this 'Other Creature' we try to be on the stage. To be it, not to act it.

(Przemek: “States of Shock”)

Jerzy Grotowski (Routledge Performance Practitioners) - James Slowiak Jairo Cuesta

Written by two theatre professionals who worked intimately with Grotowski over the last twenty-five years of his life, this book fills a gap in the published writings about this master director and teacher.

In this book, the writers demonstrate Grotowski’s significance and how his frank rhetoric, his revolutionary theories, his landmark productions, and pioneering cultural projects continue to cause controversy and provide fertile topics for discussion and further experimentation in theatre studios, classrooms, and on stages around the world.

The book introduces Grotowski to a new generation of theatre students, outlining his contributions to twentieth century performance and placing them in context and in perspective.

Michael Chekhov workshop

Michael Chekhov with Sinead Rushe

The Michael Chekhov technique is a psycho-physical approach to acting.

It privileges the imagination as the actor’s source of inspiration and favours an impersonal, objective approach to characterisation. The work is intended to create a real and spontaneous connection between the actor’s physical body and psychology and prepare the actor for what Chekhov calls ‘inspired acting.’

The workshop explored

a) the psycho-physical exercises which form the basis of Chekhov’s work and

b) how to approach characterisation using imagination, qualities and atmosphere.

We draw on the text of Lorca’s Blood Wedding as source material

About Michael Chekhov: Michael Chekhov (St. Petersburg, 1891 – Beverley Hills, 1955) was the nephew of Anton Chekhov and considered by Stanislavsky as his ‘most brilliant pupil.’ He was known as one of Russia’s most outstanding and innovative actors. After his exile from Russia, he worked in Germany, France and England’s Dartington Hall before settling in USA where he worked as an actor and acting coach in Hollywood.

About Sinéad Rushe: Sinéad Rushe is a director and performer (www.sineadrushe.co.uk). She has studied the technique with Sergey Issayev (GITIS, Russia), Sarah Kane and Graham Dixon (Michael Chekhov Studio, London), Lenard Petit (Michael Chekhov Acting Studio, New York) and Jobst Langhans (Michael Chekhov Studio, Berlin). She teaches the technique to students on the BA (Hons) in Acting at Central School of Speech and Drama, London and her latest production, Out of Time, performed by Colin Dunne at The Pit, Barbican, has been nominated in this year's Olivier's awards.as a dancer-percussionist with Franco-Irish music band, D

Really good and intense work. If you will meet her workshop on your way definitely go! Highly recommended.

Bulgakov's Table: Etudes from Master and Margarita

Manchester Metropolitan University School of Theatre and Theatr Piesn Kozla - a work demonstration by the MA Acting students.

The demonstration uses a combination of song, movement and text and draws inspiration from the students expedition to Spain, exploring Gypsy culture and Flamenco, and their training with PiesnKozla.

www.theatre.mmu.ac.uk/demo/

Niamh Dowling

Head of Manchester Metropolitan University School of Theatre

Non pretensions, fresh, youth, enjoyable. I tried not to judge the adaptation of Bulhakhov and some style of Pisni Kozla training. That gave me a distance to be there and have fun. It wasn’t performance, but more sharing of work, when all actors was equal, without protagonist. Waiting for more such a AM.

MOON FOOL

I have seen MOON FOOL ( the last two shows) yesterday in LABAN with Anna-Helena McLean, Christopher Sivertsen, Peter Reynolds interesting work and good meeting afterward - after one year or more

FROM THE HEART

Choreographed and performed by Anusha Subramanyam Rich Mix, Bethnal Green, London

This choreographic work challenges notions of normal and abnormal, and draws inspiration from choreographer Anusha Subramanyam's therapy work with people with physical and mental challenges. The work presents a range of raw and sincere dances and uses the emotive and gestural grammar of bharatanatyam and combines it with movement that is both contemporary and classical.

Unfortunately this combination didn’t bring an interesting effect. The “contemporary” movement in confrontation with “classical” went weak and not complete, handicapped. The traditional forms/ code are so strong and eternal, that send you to another reality, world, perception. Is like to put symbol and everyday life movements together…

Laban Movement Analysis and Bartenieff Fundamentals

What:

Bartenieff Fundamentals is an approach to movement training that deals with patterning connections in the body, according to principles of efficient functioning, within a context which encourages personal expression and full psychophysical involvement.

The goal of BF is to facilitate the lively interplay of inner connectivity for efficient body functioning with outer expressivity. We work with the concepts of inner-outer, stability-mobility, function-expression and exertion-recuperation.

Exploring BF utilizes the entire framework of Laban Movement Analysis: Body, Effort, Shape, Space.

BF is incredibly supportive to anyone regardless of level of experience or profession/leisure activities. This work is particularly applicable and useful to dancers, actors and musicians as it bridges working functionally to moving expressively.

BF practice will lead into further explorations as the sessions progress. Participants are encouraged to bring questions and areas of their own practice they wish to explore which we can workshop in a safe, laboratory environment. For example, improvisation, partner work, handling objects/instruments, character development.

Who:

Dancers, actors, musicians, performers, body-work practitioners, and those curious about Laban/Bartenieff's work are encouraged to attend

Alexandra Baybutt

www.alexandrabaybutt.co.uk

www.firstpersontheatre.co.uk

She is young, but she knows what she is doing.