Speech and Drama as Living Arts
By Séamus Maynard & Meaghan Witri
with contributions from Christopher Garvey, Ted Pugh & Fern SLoan
Twelve experiential and practical lessons with many exercises to integrate into an individual artistic practice. This practice will encompass speech exercises, movement exercises, imaginative exercises, study of the principles of the dramatic arts as well as contemplative exercises to orient and train oneself.
$450.00 AUD (~$300 USD)
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Deepening our understanding and ability to participate in realms of soul and spirit through the arts, serves in strengthening our relationship with the spiritual world and our surrounding community.
Course Overview
Inspired by teachings and indications from Rudolf Steiner and Michael Chekhov, among other speech and drama practitioners and teachers, this year-long course offers a foundation for training one’s soul capacities towards greater and more conscious participation within the evolution of the arts. Embodied and experiential artistic exercises, accompanied by inner development exercises, comprise the monthly lessons. Out of the wisdom of spiritual science and inspired by the muses of the arts themselves, working in these areas can support the inner and outer growth and development of the human being. Participants can begin any time and work at their own pace.
Course Inclusions
- 12 Written Lessons with video and imagery examples
- Tutoring
- Recordings of Past Webinars
- Certificate of Completion
Additions
- Short Workshops
- Apprenticeships in New York
For Waldorf teachers, artists and anyone who is interested in taking new steps to begin or further an artistic practice as well as those who wish to deepen their relationship to artistic activity.
12 Written Lessons
This course is designed to be experiential and practical with many exercises to integrate into an individual artistic practice. This practice will encompass speech exercises, movement exercises, imaginative exercises, study of the principles of the dramatic arts as well as contemplative exercises to orient and train oneself.
A Foundation in Speech and Drama Practice (2 parts)
Five Primal Archetypes of Will – The Ancient Greek Gymnastics
The Wisdom of The Ancients
Michael Chekhov’s Approach to Acting The Three Centers & Four Qualities of Movement
A Threefold Experience of Speech & Five Principles of the Dramatic Arts
Invisible Gesture in Language
The Three Styles Of Language
Keys for Speaking Spiritual Texts
The Task of the Arts in Deepening Inner Landscapes of Soul
Acting for the Stage Part I – The Art of Acting Part II – Stage Pictures
The Spiritual Origins of the Dramatic Arts and The New Mysteries
Receive Tutoring
The course is designed for self-paced and self-directed distance learning. Enroll at anytime.
Lessons are written in a sequential order that gradually unfold, and are available to work with at your chosen pace for meeting your capacity to absorb and integrate the content.
Along the way you have the aid of communication with Séamus and Meaghan, the course authors when you submit a diary sheet that accompanies each lesson. This engagement can become a support to helping understand and enliven the content in a way that your soul forces may reach further into the spiritual foundations of this content.
This is the first course that I have encountered in my years of study that takes into account the ‘consciousness soul age,’ places it in conversation with existing techniques and methods and actually considers how we as artists and human beings can orient ourselves towards the ‘spirit in matter’ and how we can strive to identify our individual inner/outer tasks in the act of creation.
Actor and WaldorF Early Childhood Educator
(participant of Speech & Drama as Living arts)This course supports the artist, actor, educator, and human being in their journey towards essential aspects of the dramatic arts: speaking, gesture, tableau, developing character, and perhaps most importantly, considering out of what place in ourselves we are speaking and creating. The course brings together various important techniques and methods while maintaining its connection to the deep inner work that work in/with speech and the dramatic arts requires and invites. This is the first course that I have encountered in my years of study that takes into account the ‘consciousness soul age,’ places it in conversation with existing techniques and methods and actually considers how we as artists and human beings can orient ourselves towards the ‘spirit in matter’ and how we can strive to identify our individual inner/outer tasks in the act of creation.
Neil Anderson
Actor and WaldorF Early Childhood Educator
Séamus Maynard
Séamus Maynard completed his degree in acting at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. While there, he studied speech, classical acting and Shakespeare with Patsy Rodenburg. Prior to that he trained intensively in the Michael Chekhov Technique for several years studying and performing with Ted Pugh and Fern Sloan who founded the Actor’s Ensemble based in Hudson NY. Séamus co-founded a two year acting training entitled Shakespeare Alive! which was based on the teachings of Michael Chekhov and Rudolf Steiner’s indications for speech and drama. Alongside Shakespeare Alive! Séamus studied speech formation with renowned speech artist Christy MacKaye Barnes. He then attended Artemis School of Speech and Drama in West Sussex England where he studied speech formation with Christopher Garvey. Currently, Séamus teaches the art of speech at Inner Work Path workshops and retreats (www.innerworkpath.com). Séamus also supports and facilitates the arts program on behalf of Developing the Self Developing The World (www.developingtheself.org).
Séamus has taught acting, speech and movement at Emerson College in England, Stephens College Missouri, California State University’s Summer Arts program, The New School NYC, Saint John’s College in Istanbul Turkey and is a faculty member for The Michael Chekhov School Hudson, as well as MICHA (the Michael Chekhov Association).
As an actor and musician Séamus has worked with Improbable Theatre (London), The Belgian National Theater, Triple Shadow (La Mama NYC), Heads Theater Company (NYC) and The Actors Ensemble (NYC & Hudson NY). Séamus is a co-founding member of Third Wheel Collective – a collaboration based theater company. As a musician, Séamus studied classical guitar and composition with classical guitarist and composer Ed Flower. Séamus composes for and co-founded Quiet In The Head, a music group that composes original, instrumental music for violin and classical guitar. He also writes and performs with an acoustic folk group called Living Roots. He is the author of the book Parzival A Journey of Initiation.
Meaghan Witri
Meaghan has worked with parents and families in a variety of capacities for over twenty years, including as an early childhood and parent-child educator and currently as the founder, main lesson teacher and mentor of a spirit-led education initiative in upstate NY. The Phoenix Initiative is dedicated to freedom for all in education. Meaghan also teaches and facilitates the Health and Wellbeing programs on behalf of Developing the Self Developing the World. This work has brought her to numerous schools across the country and in Canada where she teaches students in 4th – 12 Grades, and offers professional development training for faculty and school communities. Meaghan also works through consultation directly with parents and families in the home-setting offering practical support and understanding of child development from birth through adolescence, in the light of anthroposophy.
As an artist with a degree in theater, performance, and English Studies, Meaghan’s artistic work explores how music and story support inner and outer striving within the human condition. Meaghan has led singing, performance, and movement workshops in various contexts for children, teenagers, and adults. She is a contributing author of the Spirit-led Education for a Spirit-led Life subject course and the co-author of the EduCareDo subject course Speech and Drama as Living Arts.
