This week I’m teaching acting at a summer school at the University of Limerick. It’s organised by the Drama League of Ireland and I have a group of 22 adults who I work with every day until we finish on Saturday. It’s a well supported programme with 7 tutors and sells out in a couple of hours every year so you have to get in quickly.
Acting in local groups is a popular thing across the whole of Ireland, as is having a good time. Everyone knows Irish people know how to party, so apart from the classes there is also a quiz, a fancy dress night, a sing-song, and a barbecue so you soon get to meet people from other courses. A sort of family culture develops where everyone is keen to learn new skills but also meeting old friends and newcomers who like acting. Over lunch and dinner there’s plenty to talk about.
I find summer schools are great places to accelerate learning. It’s like being in a bubble separate from the rest of the world so you’ve nothing else to focus on and you can leave your everyday worries behind. The busy social programme alongside the classes causes the participants to let their hair down so they get tired after a few days but also exhilarated. That’s when they do their best work, their defences are down and you can take them so much further. Some of them are exhausted, especially those who have been up late talking or having a few drinks. You’d think they’d be useless in class the next day but the opposite in true, they work even harder. I think it’s partly because they owe it to the rest of their group and partly because tiredness forces them to find another level.
I’ve seen some wonderful work over the years, some truly magical theatre where the whole room is hushed and daren’t move a muscle. My approach is a bit unconventional so, for instance, I sometimes go up to an actor in a scene and whisper to them to leave the room. The other actor usually looks at me wondering what to do. I say nothing but I may open my palms and look at the door. Suddenly they shoot outside and I beckon to the rest of them to follow. There we see them doing the same scene but now in a changed space it has more intensity or urgency. It seems crazy but it alters something in them.
By the end of the week and after many unexpected experiences like this you watch the results of their work. For many of them their eyes are different, their pupils are dilated Sometimes it looks like someone has switched a light on in their head. The week has shifted the way they think about acting and it’s a real privilege to work with them.
It so happens that the annual Theatretrain Summer School is also happening in Ipswich this week. Young people work in a different way but it’s no less enlightening for them, they learn a lot. I wish them well and look forward to hearing how it went. And I know that those who enjoyed it will be the first ones to sign up for next year.
Themes
Theatretrain Artistic Director Kevin Dowsett introduces the new annual theme, Dreams and Realities. Exploring the fascinating space between imagination and the everyday world, Kevin reflects on how theatre creates manufactured realities, dreamlike moments and sudden comic interruptions. With stories from West Side Story and the original London production, he considers how this rich and versatile theme could inspire Theatretrain companies when the new term begins in September.
