On regular basis there will be various workshops and classes in the Ventilator cinema and/or bar. Some will be orgnaised by Amsterdam Alternative, some by other organizions. On this page you’ll find an overview of all the workshops and classes that are going on at the moment.
If you are interested in renting the cinema and/or bar for your workshop or classes then please contact us at ventilator(at)amsterdamalternative.nl.
Leila Gray
Meisner technique foundation course
The next daytime Meisner technique foundation course starts Thursday 21st March in the Ventilator cinema. There is one session a week for ten weeks, with no class on 2nd May. The course finishes on Thursday 30th May.
Class runs from 10:00-13:00 hrs.
The course introduces you to the three pillars of the Meisner technique (repetition, emotional preparation and improvisation) and will teach you to follow your impulses, to pay attention to what's really happening in the moment and to craft your work from authentic emotions and a rich imagination.
About
British actor and certified Meisner teacher Leila Gray teaches weekly Meisner technique courses, from foundation through intermediate to advanced level. She has taught the technique in Berlin and Amsterdam and started Meisner Studio last January. She is always looking for collaborators so if you are an acting teacher of another kind and would like to create a workshop that combines Meisner technique with what you do, get in touch.
Meisner technique
American actor and teacher Sanford Meisner's definition of acting was “living truthfully under imaginary circumstances”. Meisner believed that to achieve compelling acting, the actor must first learn the ability to engage in truthful behaviour while immersed in an imagined reality. This means stripping everything back to its essentials and learning to really listen, really observe and really do.
“Act before you think – your instincts are more honest than your thoughts.”
Acting classes and directors often put so much emphasis on text work that actors can become stuck in their heads. This results in disembodied actors who are unable to simply listen and respond to either their fellow actors, their own instincts or even the text.
Meisner's exercises are designed to get you out of your head and into your body. You will learn to unlearn the socialisation that teaches us to ignore our first impulses and to trust them instead. In other words, you'll learn how to be free, spontaneous and playful – and to connect.
Acting is about revealing, not hiding.
Even though Meisner's ideas come directly from the granddaddy of them all, Konstantin Stanislavsky, his method is very different to other such methods, such as that of Lee Strasberg. The key difference between his method and Strasberg's is that instead of using your memories to bring you to life, you use the reality of the moment to connect to your own, unique imagination in a way that doesn't shut you off from the other person. This makes Meisner a safe and sustainable way to work. Having said that, it still requires you to be your full, authentic self. You must be prepared to show up with your fears, flaws and vulnerabilities and to trust that, when you add all this to imaginary circumstances, a beautiful and unique alchemy will occur. As Oscar Wilde said "Be yourself. Everyone else is already taken."
I truly believe that if you are an actor who is committed to making your dream a reality, Meisner technique is the best place to start - or start again.
More info
Contact: meisner.studio.amsterdam(at)gmail.com
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