BERG STUDIOS WORKSHOPS
Our workshops are designed to both stand on their own and to compliment the classes and technique taught at the studio. The lessons taught in the workshops are immediately implemented and expanded on in classes. Workshops are either taught by Berg Studios instructors, or guest artist teachers invited to host workshops for our students.
Dynamic Physicality – Dynamic Text: A movement workshop at Berg Studios in May!
On May 24th and 25th, we are thrilled to welcome master movement instructor Stephen Buescher to lead a movement intensive called Dynamic Physicality – Dynamic Text!
Workshop Description:
A physically dynamic Actor is one that is actively responsive in any given moment and in direct relation with the text. This training is a collision between the active body and the active word. The ‘moment’ can demand that the physicality takes major focus while the text plays in minor. At other times the text plays in major and the body follows. At all times the physical body and the body of text must be in concert. It’s jazz. It’s classical. Dynamic spontaneity meets crafted calculation.
Through exercises, improvisations, and text-based work we will explore the senses of the Actor, including: the sense of rhythm, tension, timing, balance, force, play, opposition, space, scale, and escalation.
We will work partially in silence, with black fabric masks that strip away the Actor’s expressive point of focus, forcing the Actor to commit all communication to the body. Every impulse, thought, and point of view must be articulated physically. From silence, the work will develop into textual and physical phrasing. Finally, the creative capacity of the body meets the vigorous text. We will explore what it means to be in dynamic relation with the body and the text simultaneously
About the Instructor:
STEPHEN BUESCHER currently serves as the Head of Movement for the graduate acting program at the University of California, San Diego. He has also taught movement
at the American Conservatory Theater, Brown/Trinity Repertory, The Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theater, the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, and the Yale School of Drama, among others.
Some notable past students include Jerrie Johnson (Harlem), Adrianna Mitchell (Crutch, Snowfall), Louis Ozawa Changchien (Pachinko, Hunters), Miriam Silverman (The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), and Artemis Pebdani (It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, The Croods:Family Tree).
Stephen’s choreography has been seen at various regional theaters including the LaJolla Playhouse, The Shakespeare Theater Company, American Conservatory Theater, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, Center Theater Group, Arena Stage, Seattle Repertory Theater, Old Globe Theater, Lorraine Hansberry Theater, Long Wharf Theater, Trinity Repertory Company, and the Sundance Film Festival. He has had the pleasure of working with various theater artists, including Matthew Broderick, B.D. Wong, David Strathairn, John Douglas Thompson, Bill Irwin, Michele Shay, Carl Lumbly, and Melody Butiu.
Stephen has been collaborating, as a Director, with York Walker (FBI, Covenant) on his current play Soul Records that has been workshopped at The Roundabout, The Vineyard, and The Manhattan Theater Club. He is also set to direct a stage adaptation of the film Le Bal for Trapdoor Theater in Chicago.
Stephen is a Graduate of California Institute of the Arts and the Dell’Arte International School of Physical Theater. He also trained with Lume Theater Company in Brazil and John Rudlin in France.
Workshop Details:
May 24th and 25th
Saturday and Sunday
10 am to 5 pm
Cost:
$300 students / $350 non-students
In order to secure the student rate you must be enrolled in a scene study class at our studio for the month of May.
Alexander Technique in Acting with Kristof Konrad
In June, due to popular demand, we will once again be offering the opportunity to study with one of the foremost instructors of the Alexander Technique, Kristof Konrad, in a two-day in-person intensive called “Alexander Technique in Acting”.
We are keeping the number of students to 16 so there are very limited spots for this exciting workshop. Signups are on a first-come, first-served basis.
Kristof teaches Intensive Acting in Film and Alexander Technique Workshops in New York, Los Angeles, Milan, Berlin, Toronto, and Vancouver and at his studio here in Los Angeles, Alexander Techworks. In the U.S., he has taught at the Larry Moss Studio, the Howard Fine Studio, (LA and Melbourne, Australia), and recently worked with the artists of the Royal Shakespeare Company and the Cirque Du Soleil. Past and current students include Forest Whitaker, Kenneth Branagh, Cobie Smulders,
The study of the Alexander Technique is required at the finest drama conservatories around the world, including the Yale School of Drama, The Juilliard School, ACT, the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
The Alexander technique is a gentle approach that aims to re-educate the mind and the body through a series of movements so the body uses muscles more efficiently. Actors trained in the Alexander Technique consistently feel more confident and free — physically, vocally, and creatively — to do their best work. The physical and imaginative freedom that can be discovered through the Alexander work can be a vital part of the actor’s craft.
WORKSHOP DESCRIPTION: Alexander Technique in Acting
All communication starts with the body. It is the point of origin for the voice, emotional life, and physical activity. It also creates and communicates meaning to the audience – our physical actions and responses are interpreted by the onlooker –and performers need to be in charge of this process.
In this workshop, actors develop an awareness of their psychophysical habits that cause tension and interfere with performance. By using principles of the Alexander Technique you will deepen the connections between your body, breath, and voice. Movement inspires this dynamic relationship by integrating all the parts of the actor’s instrument.
COURSE CONTENT:
Connecting to the body through awareness with the Alexander Technique (getting out of your head)
Freeing impulse and response patterns
Finding the breath and rhythm of the character
Recognizing the force of habit
Improving breath coordination and vocal quality
Improving our movement by learning to organize body relationships
Understanding Means and Ends
Making clear choices of intention
Infusing direction in our thinking and movement
Applying the Alexander Technique to monologues, sonnets, songs, and scenes
Learning to develop characters physically (if I believe your body, I’ll believe your character)
ABOUT THE INSTRUCTOR: KRISTOF KONRAD
was born in Poland, trained as an actor at the National Dramatic Academy in Warsaw, Poland, the Fersen Studio in Rome, Italy, and Larry Moss in the U.S. While in Poland, he studied and worked with theater and film masters JERZY GROTOWSKI and ANDRZEJ WAJDA. In the USA he worked with directors FRANCIS LAWRENCE, KENNETH BRANAGH, RON HOWARD and ROLAND EMMERICH. His credits include HOMECOMING, HOUSE OF CARDS, RED SPARROW, INTELLIGENCE, ANGELS AND DEMONS, HOTEL CALIFORNIA, INDEPENDENCE DAY, SCORPION, NIKITA, SCANDAL, BURN NOTICE, OPERATION SAMUM, ALIAS, THE AGENCY, JAG, E- RING and many others. Kristof has taught for the BERLIN INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL, GENERATION CAMPUS – MOSCOW, VERBIER FESTIVAL& ACADEMY in Switzerland and UBS VERBIER ORCHESTRA. He is teaching Intensive Acting in Film and Alexander Technique Workshops in New York, Los Angeles, Milan, Berlin, Toronto, and Vancouver. In the U.S., he has taught with Jean-Louis at the LARRY MOSS STUDIO, HOWARD FINE STUDIO, LA and Melbourne, Australia, and recently worked with the artists of the ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY and the CIRQUE DU SOLEIL. Past and current students include FOREST WITAKER, KENNETH BRANAGH, COBIE SMULDERS, JOBETH WILLIAMS, ERIC DANE, and SHARON LAWRENCE.
When:
Saturday and Sunday
June 14th and 15th
10 am to 5 pm
Where:
Berg Studios Annex
3273 Casitas Ave, #105
Los Angeles CA 90039
The Annex is our second space, just half a block from our main location!
Cost:
$300 student price (you must be currently enrolled in a scene study class to receive the student discount)
$350 non-student price
There are limited spots available. Please call or email the office if you are interested in signing up.
Sign-up period extended! Yat Malmgren returns to Berg Studios! With James Kemp in May!
We are thrilled to welcome back former London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) instructor James Kemp for beginner/advanced workshops of Yat Malmgren movement psychology!
James was selected by Yat Malmgren himself to teach this work and taught alongside him at the famed Drama Centre in London. He is recognized internationally as the leading instructor of this technique. James’s past students include Rebecca Ferguson, Daniel Francis, Michael Fassbender, Tom Hardy, and Emilia Clarke.
This work is generally taught at institutions abroad like LAMDA, the Drama Center in London, and the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Australia. A partial list of actors trained in the Yat Malmgren technique includes Anthony Hopkins, Cate Blanchett, and Gwendolyn Christie.
We are very proud to be one of a very small number of institutions in the United States currently offering this discipline.
There is a lot I have to be grateful for as an actor
but I would not have much if not for the inspirational
teaching of James Kemp. His use and teaching of
the “Yat Method” changed my view of what acting could
be both as an observer and a participant
– Emilia Clarke (Mother of Dragons)
Here is a brief video with James discussing the technique: https://vimeo.com/159617145
About the Yat Malmgren Technique:
This work is based upon the work of two pioneers of 20th-century performance research: Rudolf Laban and Yat Malmgren. In these classes, you will be introduced to a theory and practice which breaks down all expressive movements into their constituent parts and links them to the deep-seated psychological impulses which underpin them. From these building blocks ‘character’ can be constructed, either from scratch as a creative act or from a close analysis of an already existing script as an act of accurate and imaginative interpretation.
This work provides an accurate and complete way of describing human behavior and its dramatic representation, giving a practitioner the tools to transform their bodies and minds at will into the shape, form, and thoughts of a new character, either subtly or profoundly. It provides a way to create nuanced and detailed characterizations, and to access inner sensations ripe for use in dramatic circumstances, and otherwise hard to stimulate.
Workshop Description: Character Analysis & Movement Psychology/The Yat Malmgren Technique
Beginner’s Workshop:
At the heart of the work is the concept that we think with our bodies. Our bodies are revelatory of our inner workings, our psyche, thoughts, and feelings. Therefore if we could learn to harness and manifest our inner sensations and express them through our bodies we would be able to share every inner desire, want, thought, or emotion with a watching audience. And in turn that audience would be able to ‘read’ our thoughts, and character, and be thoroughly engaged in our dramatic lives.
By the end of the presentation, you will be looking at the world through new eyes, being able to ‘read’ the movements of those around you for meaning and to create physically expressive characterizations that both excite the imagination and serve the writers’ intentions.
Advance Workshop: (Prerequisites: April’s Beginner’s workshop at Berg Studios, attendance of a previous Yat Workshop at Berg Studios, or equivalent training from another institution)
In this course, you will begin to apply the theory of the work practically. You will create ‘Near Exercises’, structured improvisations exploring character creation, tempo/rhythm, and dramatic composition. You will apply the theory onto text. You are invited to use language from Shakespeare to modern drama or even contemporary film. You are invited to use pieces that you already know that you would like to explore through the additional lens of this work, or you can work on new text. Both the Near Exercises and text work will give you the chance to explore, enhance, and embed the theory into your craft and practice with detailed feedback. You will apply all the work from the Beginners workshop to a full ‘realistic’ text.
About the Instructor:
James Kemp trained at Drama Centre London and subsequently pursued an acting career that encompassed a number of long-running West End shows. In 1998 James was invited back to Drama Centre London to work alongside and assist Dr. Yat Malmgren in the teaching of Movement Psychology (inspired by the pioneering work of Rudolf Laban), and upon the retirement of Dr. Malmgren in 2001 he inherited his work and further developed this field of study and practice through workshops for Stage Centre, Israel; the International Workshop Festival; Caravanserai Acting Studio; Beit Zvi School Of Performing Arts; Beit Lessin Theatre, Tel Aviv; LAMDA and as ‘Laban Consultant’ at the Young Vic.
His many successful students have included: Rebecca Ferguson, Daniel Francis, Michael Fassbender, Tom Hardy, Emilia Clarke, Santiago Cabrera, Stephen Wight, Jaime Murray, Gwendoline Christie, Morven Christie, Damien Molony, Tamla Kari, Jodie McNee, Lucy Briggs-Owen, Bradley James, Ruta Gedmintas, Rolan Bell, John Dagleish, Lily Cole and many others. His students have won acting honors from BAFTA, Venice International Film Festival, British Independent Film Awards (BIFA), Laurence Olivier Awards, London Evening Standard Film Awards, London Evening Standard Theatre Awards, London Film Critics Circle Awards, Los Angles Film Critics Association Awards & National Board of Review Awards, amongst many others. Their Nominations have included European Film Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards & Golden Globes awards and many others.
Workshop Details:
Beginner’s Workshop
DATES: May 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th. 10 am to 5 pm each day.
FEE: $400 students / $450 non-students
LOCATION: Berg Studio’s Annex space
(just up the street from our main studio space!)
Advanced Workshop
(prerequisite April’s Beginner’s workshop at Berg Studios, attendance of a previous Yat Workshop at Berg Studios, or equivalent training from another institution)
DATES: May 10th and 11th 10 am – 6pm
FEE: $250 students / $325 non-students
LOCATION: Berg Studio’s Annex space
Combat and Violence Techniques for stage & on-camera: March at Berg Studios
In March, Berg Studios is excited to welcome back veteran actor and fight choreographer Bo Foxworth for another in-person workshop on Stage Combat and Violence!
One of the tools any well-rounded actor should have in their back pocket is the ability to perform stage violence. Nothing worse than seeing a good Hamlet through 5 Acts only to have him be laughable in the climactic fight scene. Having the basic knowledge and vocabulary of combat means that you can audition for, and accept more highly physical roles, and add those skills to your resume. When you find yourself up for a physical role, you can go into the audition with confidence, and when you accept the role you can tell a story rather than just perform a “fight”.
This class will explore the basic tools that actors should have when faced with a physical altercation in a play or film and is called Combat and Violence because most of what you will be asked to perform won’t necessarily be “combat” but could be falling down the stairs or ripping off your festering toenail.
Understanding how our bodies react to violence and where that strength and power comes from is what we’ll begin to learn. To fall, tumble, slap or be slapped; that is the question. In this class, we’ll learn techniques and perform hand-to-hand combat moves with precision and control yet with strength, power, and the fully committed intention of the character.
We’ll also begin to learn the basics of swordplay, focusing on movement, footwork, and because we all want to be able to do every show 8 shows a week or multiple takes on set, our focus will always be safety first.
Bo Foxworth: His combat work started while at UCLA where he was a competitive fencer on UCLA’s Saber team ranking 6th in the conference. During that time he began to study with fight coordinator and weapons expert Anthony Delongis learning weapons ranging from swords to bullwhips. He studied with swordmaster Greg Michaels and Broadway fight coordinator Rick Sordelet and had the privilege to workshop with the renowned fight choreographer B.H. Barry. In Los Angeles, he has been the fight choreographer for numerous productions at The Geffen, Antaeus, Theatre of Note, Shakespeare Orange County, and Pasadena Playhouse where he received a 2018 Ovation nomination for fight direction in the production of Belleville.
He is a graduate of UCLA and received his MFA at the Yale School of Drama.
As an actor, Bo has worked in numerous theaters throughout Los Angeles including I.C.T., South Coast Rep, The Pasadena Playhouse, The Fountain Theatre, Shakespeare Orange County (Board Member), The Skylight Theatre, Ensemble Theater Company, La Mirada, Laguna Playhouse, The Geffen, Disney Hall, LATheatreWorks, Boston Court Pasadena, The Hollywood Bowl and A Noise Within where he received two Ovation nominations. He is a proud member of The Antaeus Theatre Company performing in many productions including Cloud 9 in which he was an LADCC and a Stage Raw Best Actor recipient and The Crucible (Ovation nomination). New York and Regional theaters include: The Hit Off-Broadway show As Bees in Honey Drown at the Lucille Lortel, The Century Theater, HERE, The Pearl Theater; The Shakespeare Theater D.C., Vienna’s English Theater, The Long Wharf, Baltimore Center Stage, Playmakers Rep, The Old Globe, The Yale Rep, and many others. He has numerous film and television credits including Law & Order SVU, Criminal Minds, Castle, Modern Family, VEEP, and the HBO movie All The Way with Bryan Cranston
WORKSHOP DETAILS:
When:
Wednesdays and Fridays 2 to 5 PM
March 19, 21, 26, 28.
Where:
Berg Studios Annex
3273 Casitas Ave, #105
Los Angeles CA 90039
The Annex is our second space, just half a block from our main location!
Cost:
Student Price: $250
Non-Student Price: $300
Please note, to qualify for the student price you must be enrolled in a Berg Studios scene study class for the whole month of March.