Introduction to Acting: Present, Play, Perform

Course goals

After this course, students are able to

1. Understand and demonstrate key acting techniques.
2. Develop awareness towards performative elements of voice and speech.
3. Demonstrate a good sense of timing.
4. Develop skills and competencies pertaining to self-reflexivity necessary for collaborative work.
5. Develop awareness of bodily posture, spacing and physicality necessary for communication.
6. Demonstrate presentation and rhetorical skills.

Description of assignment	Weight	Assesses which learning goals?
Creative input during class Practical Assignment Written Reflection	30 % 35 % 35 %	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 1, 4, 6

Content

In this course you will play and experiment with ways of presenting your ideas, your work and your points of view, and learn how to direct and draw attention and sensibility to the present moment or situation in which you find yourselves in. In our everyday communication and live or online exchanges it is not only the information that counts, but also the tone, the attitude, the voice, the rhythm, the body posture and our relationship to space, when any kind of information is presented and performed. A number of acting techniques have been developed, which you will learn in the course, aiming to become more aware, observant and sensitive towards ways in which you interact and communicate with each other. Against the background of ecological and economic crises, how we relate to each other and with our environment is crucial, and acting techniques can help us with that by heightening attentiveness and responsiveness. When is a good moment for silence? What are possible ranges of tone and of physical postures in a presentation? How do the changes in my delivery of a monologue impact the effect that it has? These questions will be practically addressed in this course.

Format 
The teaching will consist of practical workshops, which will be structured and organized in a way that can create a safe space where students can practice and experiment with each other. Each class will start with a voice warm-up and will continue with specific exercises that will be done individually and in groups. There will also be assigned time to discuss the texts that provide the necessary context.

Teacher
B.Mullaney http://www.billymullaney.com