In support of his show at the Pit, Eric Davis (the Red Bastard) is giving a workshop in bouffon clowning techniques. If you haven’t studied bouffon, Eric is one of the world’s leading practitioners, and is an excellent teacher. Here’s the info for the workshop: Wanna fool around? Release your inner mischief! Don’t miss this unique opportunity to take a […]
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SPYMONKEY CLOWN MASTERCLASSES in NY & LONDON We’ve featured Spymonkey classes here in the past, but they’ve mostly been in NY or London. They’ve added an L.A. class this year. (y’hear, West Coast– you’ve got your chance!) 11-15 Nov 2013 London ( led by Petra Massey & Toby Park) 6-10 Nov 2013 New York 12-16 Nov 2013 Los Angeles Here’s the US details: ================== Spymonkey […]
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The applications for Clown Conservatory’s 5 Week Intensive, Clown: The Physical Comedian, are now online. You’ll find the program and scholarship / financial aid applications, and updated info on all Clown Conservatory’s pages of the Circus Center website. This 5 week workshop in Clown & Physical Comedy features a mixture of training in Slapstick, Solo & Partner Acrobatics, Improv, Circus Skills and Creating an […]
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Two groups will be teaching their clown workshops this summer in NY. They don’t conflict, so you could actually take both if you want. (And why wouldn’t you want to?) NY GOOFS CLOWN SCHOOL- AUG 2-7 This summer marks the 15th anniversary of the NY Goofs Clown School in NYC. Join them for a week of total immersion in all […]
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Stanley only teaches these a couple of times a year, so if you want to learn to make a Leather Clown Nose, this is your chance. Leather Clown Nose making workshop July 9th & 10th 6:00 PM Includes all material, tools and supplies which you get to keep plus an extra piece of leather to make a nose on your […]
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You have an exciting opportunity this summer at Amherst’s Ko festival to study with Daniel Stein. I took a month long version of this workshop in 1997 and it really changed my thoughts about how to make interesting theatre. Daniel is an excellent teacher, and although his work is not strictly about clown (it’s based in corporeal mime) there’s a […]
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Mark Lonergan and Joel Jeske of the Physical Theatre company Parallel Exit are teaching a Comedy Academy. Open to all levels, the classes (8 in number) will give students practical knowledge and technique that will make them funnier as they develop and perfect their own performance, material, character, and style.Classes are mix and match (you can go to all 8, […]
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Audrey Crabtree, one of the coordinators of the NY Clown Festival at the Brick, is teaching a last minute workshop in Bouffon. GET YOUR BOUFFON ON! A quick and dirty Bouffon workshop! WHEN: Friday March 29th 7-10pm AND Saturday March 30th 10am -3pmWHERE: CaveArts in Williamsburg 58 Grand st, btwn Wythe & Kent COST: $100 CONTACT: [email protected] for Info and Registration! Friday night […]
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I’ve featured Spymonkey Classes here before– this is the latest iteration. They’ve got 2 weeks in NY and 1 week in London. If you haven’t taken a workshop, check it out! LONDON 28th Nov – 2nd Dec 2011 People Show Studios, Pollard Row, London E2 6NB Spymonkey Clown Masterclass A five-day workshop with Aitor Basauri, Spymonkey co-founder and one of […]
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Stanley Allan Sherman, well-known maskmaker who contributed an excellent guest post to our Commedia Month series, will be teaching a 3 week commedia intensive from June 12-July 1 in New York. The workshop will feature over 128 hours of instruction. Here’s some of the details: RCCU 2011 RCCU is beginning its 10th anniversary year teaching Classical Commedia dell’Arte. Students will […]
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I spend a good deal of time on this blog speaking about commedia and commedia mask styles, but relatively little on what is the basis of most mask work (and the acting work that mask work often accompanies): The Neutral Mask. Learning to be neutral- to display an action separate from character, to divorce yourself from the acting- is incredibly […]
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PLAYING COMMEDIA A Series of Classes on the Comic Tradition for Teachers, Actors, Undertakers… facilitated by Clint Bolster and Ben Cornfoot from Lightwire Theatrical Productions When: 6.30-9pm, Thursdays March 17, 24, 31 & April 7. Where: Ithaca Church Hall, 80 Enoggera Tce Red Hill/Paddington (Boys’ Brigade Hall), AUSTRALIA! Cost: $85 for all four classes, $70 for students/unemployed (Earlybird discount price […]
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Audrey Crabtree, one of the motivating forces behind the NY Clown Theatre Festival, is teaching two workshops in Mexico City in March. The workshops, about developing material through improvisation and about clown duos and trios, will take place in March. I believe the classes will be taught in Spanish (or in translation) The workshops are sponsored by ClownMeIn and GABRIELA MUÑO. […]
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I was going through some old stuff I’d written, and came across this “Advice For the Director” that I’d written in 2002 on a discussion list for theatre about somebody tackling a commedia project for the first time with newbie actors as well. I think it sums up my take on acting in physical comedy and commedia dell’arte plays very […]
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At one of my alma maters (The Dell’arte School) , one of the school’s rehearsal mantras when a scene or a play isn’t working right is to rehearse it “Italian style.” By this they mean to perform the scene or the play as loud and as fast as you can, and with as much energy as you can muster. Pedal […]
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Since yesterday we talked about not playing subtext while playing commedia, the question naturally arises- what should you play? Or how are you going to sustain and continue to improvise a heightened expressive character? There are several theories about the best way to play a commedia character, and basically, I subscribe to all of them. What I mean by that […]
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