All workshops involves a fair amount of physical activity as the work is based in physical theater. That being said, I have worked with people in their 80's as well as young strong bodies; there are no acrobatics or back bends, participants are encouraged to only do what is comfortable. All workshops allow for focused exploration of fun and funny emphasizing your ability to inform it with both your maturity and your innocence. All workshops offer opportunities to explore in a light hearted, safe non-judgmental arena that is often filled with concentrated levity.

Specifics

-The physical theater components of movement come from Taoist Health Exercises ( Qi Gong), Monica Pagneux's take of Feldenkreis, Mime and Butoh Dance.
-Verbal Expression is explored (Roy Hart style voice work), the use of the voice is encouraged as an expressive tool, however verbal language not much...
-the clown/humor development is evolved from Richard Pochinko's methods (working with expressions but not masks)
-There is a strong emphasis on active improvisational explorations, in solos, duos and trios. There are performance improvisations, and walkthroughs in solo, duos and trios.
-The focus is on experiential learning, more through the activity than through observation.
- From the butoh world, work with connection with space, allowing for exploration of humor at a slower velocity without losing any of the intensity or spontaneity. This largely enriches the tableau of expressive opportunities.

Additional Specifics for Professional workshops

1. Creating/Developing Personal Clown Character based on personal energies & humoristic impulses
-Performers use walks, body shapes, and impulses to music to shape emotional expressions that compose the vocabulary of the Performers Clown world.
-Developing the Dynamic Range of these expressions from most subtle to most dynamic.
-Developing physical and vocal gesture and movement vocabulary stemming from expressions.

2. Develop Listening Skills in Audience and Performance Partner Relationships. Working within the framework of the clown’s relationship to audience, performers use improvisation to develop ability to build humorous expression in relation to audience response.
-There is focus is on developing rigor: responding to the impulse yet limiting one’s generosity.
-Developing Connectivity . Working in duos and trios to find unity in movement/walks/actions

3. From the butoh world, work with connection with space, allowing for exploration of humor at a slower velocity without losing any of the intensity or spontaneity. This largely enriches the tableau of expressive opportunities.

4. Developing performance material & clown turns for solo, duo/trio and groups through improvisation, workshop performance, developing elements of story, work with objects.