Friday, August 22, 2014

How To Choose A New York Theatre Workshop

By Deanne Shepard


New York NY is famous for many things. Aside from yellow cabs, pizza and being the fictional home of numerous superheroes one of the things the city is most known for is theatre. A lot of people enjoy attending shows in and around the Broadway area. However what you may not know is that you can also go to theatres and attend a New York theatre workshop.

A lot of developments in acting styles in recent years have come from New York. This was where Lee Strasberg studied the work of Stanislavksy. It was Strasberg who then perfected what we now know as the Method school of acting, so called because it makes an actor consider how they would react in the moment in a realistic way as opposed to a more theatrical style of acting that while powerful may be less naturalistic.

There may also be specific skills you want to improve. For example if you want to learn to be better at improvising then it is worth going to a workshop that is specifically about improvisation. People often associate this with comedy while in truth being able to improvise is also an excellent benefit for a dramatic performance as well.

Other classes may cover other aspects. For example improvisation is a tool that can be useful in both comedy and drama. While a lot of people associate improvisation with comedy it can also be used for dramatic effect. A classic example is the speech in Taxi Driver where the character Travis Bickle questions himself in the mirror.

You also have to consider your own individual performance. How you project your voice and how you move affect the character. While you want to project it should be realistic and not involve shouting and being over the top. There is also the issue of approaching the motivation of the character you play. The same line can be very different depending on the tone of the actor delivering it. A good teacher helps students to look at the subtext. This means looking at the intention behind the line as much as the line itself.

There is also the benefits in terms of group interaction. When people first start acting there is an impulse to show off and be the star. In reality acting is about being part of an ensemble and learning how to use your skills as part of a team as opposed to making yourself the centre of attention.

Workshops are also good in terms of improving communication skills. If you run a business you may want to consider a workshop in order to make it easier for your employees to interact with each other. This may sound strange but it can often be an effective tool in allowing people to communicate more effectively.

In order to do this effectively you should look for the right theatre and teacher. Check online for background information. As well as experience in acting and directing ideally the people running the workshop should have some form of teaching background or have been running workshops for a number of years. For more information and feedback use your regular search engine to find theatres in your local area.




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