A day-long masterclass in Devising and Collaborative Playmaking, led by Dr Brian Rhinehart, Professor of Directing at The Actor Studio Drama School, New York.
Sunday 8 September 2024, 10.00 – 17.00
OR
Thursday 12 September 2024, 10.00 - 17.00
Combining play, improvisation, physical theatre, and a bit of brain science, this masterclass will explore Devising and collaborative storytelling techniques based on an approach developed by Dr. Brian Rhinehart.
What is Devising? The simplest explanation is that Devising is the creation of original performances through a collaborative process that is often independent of the playwright. In practice it’s about encouraging the actor (and any other participants) to return to a childlike sense of play. Devising cannot exist without play, which nurtures participants' creative thinking and encourages the development of unique ideas, original concepts and a keen dramaturgical awareness.
Using an approach to collaborative storytelling known as Trackwork Devising, we will override the brain’s instinctual predilection for unoriginal choices and force it to create something singular and new. We do this by engaging it simultaneously with disparate forms, ideas, concepts, texts, songs, movement, etc., and depriving it of the use of reason and logic. By forcing the brain of each participant to combine multiple forms, actions and events into a short performance in a very limited amount of time, we can create completely unique and original works of art.
You choose your preferred date:
Sunday 8 September 2024, 10.00 - 17.00
OR
Thursday 12 September 2024, 10.00 - 17.00
Please note that you must have significant experience as an amateur actor or be a professional actor/dancer to participate in this Masterclass. If you are not sure if you are the correct level, feel free to email us to check! This workshop is only open to those aged 18 and over.
Chaussee de Forest 83, 1060 St Gilles
In lieu of payment, participant may also barter rehearsal work for a forthcoming theatre project by Brian Rhinehart and artist Trong Gia Nguyen.
In September, Brian Rhinehart and Trong Gia Nguyen will be at the Boghossian Foundation / Villa Empain as artists in residence. The two are collaborating on a forthcoming theatre project titled THE LEAVERS, written by Nguyen. Brian and Trong are seeking actors to rehearse and physically create various fragments of the performance, using some of the techniques learned in the workshop. Interested masterclass participants agree to commit to 3 rehearsals (flexible) with the following schedule:
Masterclass Session 1 / Rehearsal Commitment: 9, 11, 13 September, 9h-13h
Masterclass Session 2 / Rehearsal Commitment: 16, 18, 20 September, 9h-13h
If you are interested in this option, please email info@thebridge.brussels
Brian Rhinehart is a freelance actor and director, and an Associate Professor at The Actors Studio Drama School in New York City. Working primarily in devised and site-specific theatre, the productions he has written, directed and/or acted in have been seen in seven countries and all over the U.S. He has given many workshops and masterclasses on acting, improvisation and devising in theatres and universities across the U.S., Europe and Asia. Brian is a TEDx and Fulbright teaching scholar, is the recipient of numerous international and national grants for his work, and is co-author of a book on comedy acting, titled Comedy Acting for Theatre: The Art and Craft of Performing in Comedies, published by Bloomsbury/Methuen. He holds an MFA in Directing from the Actors Studio Drama School and a PhD in English from the University of Florida.
https://www.brianrhinehart.net/
Conceived by Brussels-based, Vietnamese-American artist Trong Gia Nguyen, THE LEAVERS examines the plight of the immigrant experience as a prism splintering into surreal yet parallel spaces. Emphasis is placed on a fluid reckoning of history, where the wilful ignorance of the present meets a faulty memory imposing its sense of revisionism on the past. The project incorporates theater, movement, and new media to weave a narrative of seemingly unconnected fragments –family archives, modern newsreels, 'TedToks', extremist protests, sportswashing, and old Renault car ads. Mining the relatable and warped experiences of the forced migrant and refugee, THE LEAVERS conflates personal narrative with sweeping societal conflicts. The base material comes from recorded video footage made 10 years ago of the artist’s family, when he and a friend interviewed the remaining members of his large family that left together on the last day of the Vietnam War, yet never spoke of it again. The work expands into a broader story within the Vietnamese diaspora and beyond, framing a universal struggle where the affliction of “RE-colonization” and institutionalized violence come home everywhere to root, from an overcrowded boat to the weekend sports arena.
https://www.trong.be/theleavers
The Bridge Productions ASBL
Siege Social (not the location of the theatre): Boulevard Anspach 170, Brussels 1000
VAT: BE0764.409.884
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Join us this September for a special one-off masterclass from our visiting New York-based practitioner.