Drama as a Path of Inner Development
A One-year Course led by Laurie Portocarrero
with David Anderson, Benedicta Bertau, Laura Geilen,
Ted Pugh, Fern Sloan and Michael Steinrueck
The basis for any true art is our ability to live . . . in the World of Imaginations.
— Michael Chekhov, To the Actor
In The Art of Acting, students use movement, imagination, speech and language to uncover and give expression to that elusive and greatest gift of the human being: the creative individuality. Using imagination- and movement-based dynamic exercises drawn from the wisdom of Michael Chekhov, Spacial Dynamics, Speech Formation, and others, students access their (and their character’s) inner core by generating an experience of the whole human being. Through training the body, voice, and imagination, students develop a healthy, flexible soul life and a soft, permeable physical body.
Where other acting techniques compel the actor to tap the limited pool of personal emotional experience, the insight of actor and teacher Michael Chekhov (1891-1955) was to draw upon each student’s vast store of healthy inner resources. Chekhov was deeply inspired by Rudolf Steiner, and his exercises have a surprising and exhilarating power to help the student access his core individuality by generating an experience of the whole human being. We learn to direct and express our feeling life, not by manipulating our emotions or attempting to think our way into them, but by inviting our soul to move in the way chosen by our larger creative self. The result: a challenging, supportive, playful, soul-stretching opportunity to explore the foundations of human character and self-expression.
Not for actors only, The Art of Acting is a rewarding experience for any adult seeking deeper self-awareness. Led by Laurie Portocarrero, classes present a unique blend of movement, gesture and speech. The art of speaking is enhanced with regular sessions with Michael Steinrueck; workshops on improvisation and clowning and a master class are led by distinguished guest faculty. In ten weekend workshops, participants journey on a path of movement and gesture through which we explore the healing and creative spaces between Me and the Other, Me and the World, and Me and My Self. At the end of the year, the course culminates in a performance/sharing for the community.
No acting experience is required — only a desire and willingness to play and explore!
Course Faculty
Laurie Portocarrero trained in the Chekhov method under Fern Sloan and Ted Pugh in 1995, and studied speech, movement and drama in the US, Switzerland and Australia. She is a long-time member of The Actors’ Ensemble and Walking the dog Theater, appearing in many of their productions. Most recently she has been seen in The Little Prince, Under MilkWood, and Rudolf Steiner’s The Portal of Initiation. Laurie tours the United States and Canada in The Green Snake and the Beautiful Lily, Aeschylus Unbound, and the widely acclaimed Gospel of John. She directs a summer program for children, Drama for the Little Folk and the Middle Folk, teaches adult workshops, and offers drama to special needs adults in New York’s Hudson Valley. Laurie is Waldorf-educated, holds a BA in Theatre Arts, and also trained at Sunbridge College and Rudolf Steiner College.
David Anderson is a founder and Executive Director of Walking the dog Theater (www.wtdtheater.org). He holds a post-graduate degree in Waldorf Education from Emerson College, England. He studied Speech and Drama at Threshold Theater in Christchurch, New Zealand, and has performed throughout North America, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand.
Benedicta Bertau trained as a Waldorf teacher at Emerson College, England, and holds a BA in Dance/Eurythmy from Helicon College in The Hague. She also trained in Physical Theater in Chile, the Chekhov Acting Method in Berlin, and Clowning in the Netherlands. Her extensive credits include teaching acting, dance and clowning, directing, and acting.
Laura Geilen trained in dance at the Boston Conservatory of Music, has a BA in Human Services from Lesley University, and is a graduate of the Spacial Dynamics Institute and the Camphill Social Therapy Training. She is a member of Walking the dog Theater’s OFF LEASH! Improv Theater Ensemble, and a Clowning Facilitator with Nose To Nose of North America.
Ted Pugh, a professional actor since the early 1960s, was a founding member of the Long Wharf Theatre in New Haven, CT under the direction of Jon Jory. He has appeared on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in regional theatres in the US. He trained at the Michael Chekhov Studio in New York City, and was certified as a teacher by Beatrice Straight and Dierdre du Prey in 1983. A co-founder and co-artistic director of The Actors' Ensemble of New York, Ted has taught workshops throughout the US, Europe and Russia.
Fern Sloan, an actress for over 30 years, is co-founder and co-artistic director of The Actors' Ensemble of New York. She was certified by the Michael Chekhov Studio in NYC to teach the Chekhov technique, and served on its faculty; she has performed and taught the Chekhov technique in the US, Canada, Ireland, and Europe. Fern was co-director of the Speech and Drama Program of Sunbridge College, and has played leading roles in numerous regional theaters and Off-Broadway.
Michael Steinrueck is speaker-in-residence with Eurythmy Spring Valley, teaching eurythmy trainees and performing with the ensemble. He founded Creative Speech Spring Valley, which offers seminars and conferences, performances, and private coaching. Michael completed the four-year training in Creative Speech in Stuttgart, Germany in 1984, worked as speech teacher and therapist at the Karl-Schubert Schule in Vienna, and toured Europe with one-man recitation programs.
Join the Art of Acting!
Click here to apply to the 2011-12 course.