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Clowning: in the art of improv


  • FMP1 1 Franz-Mehring-Platz Berlin, BE, 10243 Germany (map)

WEEKEND WORKSHOP

This class is for improvisers, actors, clowns, comedians or anyone who wants to get to the root of funny.

Robert Rodgers (formerly an acrobat and clown in Cirque Du Soleil) is teaching a weekend course on clowning. In this safe and fun environment, Robert will transform you and your (newly discovered) clown into a whole new level of performance. Have you ever wondered why Charlie Chaplin is so watchable and still so beloved? It’s the complete sense of honesty in movement and voice.

We will work on finding the essence of you and what makes you funny. Everyone is funny in different ways. We all have a voice. Sometimes we think we know what the funny is, but if you show yourself, who you truly are, we get to the individual truth of what is funny through your eyes... A clown is someone who finds the innocence of a child or the nativity to the world while balancing the contradictions of who we are individually. If you understood or grasp the notion of this, you can tackle anything and it will change your way of any artistic work that you trying to convey whether through improv, acting, clowning or even life. Through simplicity, physical grace and honesty you will set the foundation to grow in a new way.

This 12 hour workshop will be split up into two days.

We will cover:

White and Red clown roles

Master servant roles

Baffoonery

Contradictions in clown character

How you are perceived

Finding the loser in you

Your Lovely thing

Physical eloquence

Getting into trouble

Creating chaos

Listening to the audience

Take this opportunity to learn the power of clown and how to apply it to improvisational work, plays, screenplays or clown routines!

Details:

This weekend workshop will be on July 29 and 30, 2023.

From 11-6 Saturday
11-4 on Sunday

The class is at FMP1, Franz-Mehring-Platz 1, 10243 Berlin.

This course will be taught by Rob Rodgers, and costs 190 EUR. Early Bird special is 175 EUR if paid before July 19th. payable to:

Robert Rodgers / Berliner Sparkasse / DE13 1005 0000 1068 0212 30 / BELADEBEXXX / Finanzamt & Steuernummer: Pankow 31, 495/00 232

Please put “Clowning workshop” in the transfer note so I’m aware which workshop or workshops you’re paying for.

Please email robert@scratchtheater.com to let me know you have paid, as sometimes the payment can take a couple days to go through and I want to be sure you get your spot in the course! Also, let me know if there are any questions.

I’m looking forward to meeting you!
Rob


Biography: Robert Rodgers, founder and director

Robert is the founder of the Scratch Theater Improv School in Berlin and has trained players in a new way of performing, some new to improv and some looking for something different. A method based on emotion, rich characters, and narration that provokes the audience.

Scratch Theater was created in 1995 to explore long-form improv and to take it beyond what audiences have come to expect. Robert Rodgers trained at B.A.T.S in San Francisco as well as L.A.T.S in Los Angeles. He also trained under Rafe Chase from “3 For All” for years in the Bay Area and was part of the advanced training under “True Fiction Magazine” where he was guided under Barbara Scott, Regina Saisi, Tim Orr, Steven Kearin, and Rafe Chase. He has also trained under Keith Johnstone.

Taking his knowledge from improv theater, Robert also applied his knowledge of acting skills from where he was trained at A.C.T in San Francisco and also the S.F. Circus School where he studied movement, clowning and acrobatics. Robert has performed in repertory theaters, and a variety of circuses around the world, including Cirque Du Soleil. In 2005 Robert was asked to join L.A.T.S to perform and teach at the Amsterdam Improv Festival, which led him to return to teach both in Amsterdam and Paris numerous times. He then went on to direct many shows around the world where he used his improv skills, circus training and acting ability to actually create shows that inspire audiences to think differently about theater. His main focus has always been on how to bring forth the voice of each actor to rise above their own ego and lead everyone into stories that are imprinted in the audience’s memory.


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19 June

Intro to Improvised Theater (7 weeks)

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5 August

Character work: how to play everything and have fun doing it.