Boys who attend our Drama Society on Monday evenings were this week treated to a specialist theatre workshop run by the incredible actor and director, Guillaume Pigé from Theatre RE.
Theatre RE work regularly with schools to develop relevant training that focuses on devising and the ‘Corporeal Mime’ technique. The workshop, Acting Without Words, introduced the boys to this method of movement language, particularly how to use it within the context of acting.
Guillaume explained, “We’re about action, we’re about movement and we’re about the designs. The interaction of light and music is very important to us.”
The workshop helped to help give boys the tools to be able to create theatre from scratch and stimulate their thinking about how they could start from movement rather than starting from a story or theme. Sometimes it is hard to voice your thoughts and express what you want to say – it can be very daunting. This method starts with actions and so it does not matter if you do not know what to say. Guillaume went on the say, “This method tickles the imagination in a different way and boys are taught to move first and think next.”
Drama Scholar Charlie Eggleton said he was “looking forward to learning something new – a new approach to acting.”
After a vigorous warm-up, the boys got straight into the practical. Mrs Keylock, Head of Academic Drama said, “These boys are already very talented actors, but they are never complacent and are always hungry for new techniques and methods of acting to draw upon. We were very luck to have Guillaume in to teach the boys – he is highly qualified in his field and the boys were hugely inspired by him.”
