Directing: Art Picnic – exploring the boundaries between art and nature, reality and fiction.

About

Course for Directors, Drama Teachers, Theatre Pedagogues and Playwrights

Meet Jurij Alschitz and his International team of teachers

With its annual International Theatre Summer Academy, the World Theatre Training Institute opens the subject of self-preparation as a secret to success - hereby offering a supplement to drama school programmes. Both, students and professional theatre professionals find a unique opportunity for personal advanced training.

Self-preparation, which is closely related to self-education and ultimately self-creation, is the central tool for any successful person in today’s society, especially in the arts. Why is self-preparation still not taught at drama schools? The issue is largely neglected and is considered more of a “private matter”, which lends it a mysterious flair.

The International Theatre Summer Academy invites actors, directors, theatre pedagogues and drama teachers to intensively explore and learn the wide range of techniques and methods for self-preparation at the highest professional level. Each year we focus on a specific method for self-directed artistic work:

From the Energy of the Word to the Energy of the Scene.

This year’s academy will explore with you the relationship between the energy of the actor, the energy of words, the energy of performance, the energy of the stage, and the energy of the surrounding world. There is a famous quote by Oscar Wilde: “Nature is artificial, and art is natural.” But what if nature is really natural, and the actor is artificial? Or do they change places from time to time? What if the artificiality of theatre and acting is not a consequence of cultural context, but the very essence of human nature, striving for expression and playful transformation of the world?

Our academy takes place in the heart of nature, surrounded by forests and mountains. There will be no familiar stage frames or scenery. Not only will nature become our space for research, but works of art will also become the subject of our work. We will work with elements of theatrical expression, literature, music, and painting, trying to discover how nature can become an active participant in the creation of a theatrical image, and the actor an integrated part of this world.

The course for directors and teachers will explore the possibilities of energy sources in stage situations and atmospheres. How do I open and work with the energy of the scene? You will learn valuable methods and techniques for the director’s self-preparation.

A lot of practice awaits you: the directing students will work on scenes with the actors from the parallel course about the profound interaction between art and the world around it. We will have the opportunity to hear, feel, and see how the energy of theatrical performance can energise the surrounding world and nature, and how the energy of nature can inspire actors to new forms of self-expression.

This course includes joint training for actors and directors

Course leader

Dr Jurij Alschitz, Artistic Director of the World Theatre Training Institute AKT-ZENT/ITI Research Centre, is an internationally renowned director, teacher and researcher of new teaching methods. Author of theatre textbooks

Target group

advanced directing students, emerging and experienced directors,
theatre teachers, drama teachers, acting and directing teachers, students (graduate, postgraduate) of these subjects.
playwrights
What makes it special: Learners of all ages study together

Course aim

Methodical foundation for professional artistic preparation as a director, especially for the art of leading actors.
Participants experience “training as a method” and receive the necessary tools for their own teaching and rehearsal practice.

Fee info

Travel and accommodation are not included.