dima

  • open nature – physical theatre training and improvisation in Lycabettus [participation] 2014

    research-workshop, training leader Angela Delichatsios
    September - November 2014. Athens, Lykavittos hill // facebook
    photos G. Doukas
    We invite you to a research project about the relationship between physical theatre and nature, which will take place over a series of eight sessions in the “small canyon of Lykavittos hill”. In these sessions, we will train in physical theatre practices from the lineage of Polish theatre influenced by Grotowski. We will also base our training in techniques of meditation and improvisation from Barbara Dilley’s Contemplative Dance Practice, and we will work with text using selections from the poems of George Seferis. The development of Contemplative Dance Practice in a natural environment is a product of the Geopoetics doctoral research practice of Anna Tzakou (Nisyros, 2013).
    The workshop is a continuation of research and training Angela Delichatsios undertook while developing her work-in-progress performance “Entering the Canyon”, which was shown in June 2014 in Lykavyttos, with the collaboration of Andriana Alexiou. The themes of the work-in-progress, and also of the current research, are related to the following questions:
    - what is missing for us from nature when we live in the city?
    - can we make up for some part of this “missing piece” through theatrical meetings in nature?
    - can you build a future performance where the audience and the performers both experience restoration and connection in nature?
    At each meeting, the first part will be made up of training, so that the participants can develop a common vocabulary with which to improvise in the second part. Angela Delichatisos will lead the training, and she will hold the space during the open improvisation time, meaning she will operate as an ouside observer, in order to provide feedback to the participants and to observe the development of the research.
    The research workshop is open to actors, dancers, musicians, and performers with an interest in physical theatre and nature. The workshop is also open to people who are interested in deepening their contact with their bodies, with nature, and with their expressive potential. All that is asked is that the participants offer their full presence.
    We hope to see you in the Canyon! May the forest be with you!