International Summer Academy

Schule für Schauspiel Hamburg 

and Michael Chekhov Europe Training present: 

CHEKHOV WORLD THEATRE

July 7-13, 2022 in Hamburg, Germany

hosted by Ulrich Meyer-Horsch

with

Jessica Cerullo, Michael Chekhov Association (MICHA), USA 

Sandhya Suresh, Chowk Dance Company, Singapore 

Burcu Halaçoğlu, Istanbul Bilgi University, MCE & Michael Chekhov Istanbul, Turkey  

Hugh O’Gorman, California State University Long Beach, USA 

Freddy Sabimbona, Compagnie Buja Sans Tabou, Bujumbura, Burundi 

Olivia Rüdinger, Schule für Schauspiel Hamburg (SfSH), Germany 

Ulrich Meyer-Horsch, Schule für Schauspiel Hamburg and Michael Chekhov Europe (MCE) 

Michael Chekhov Acting Technique meets: 

Body Mind Centering  

Traditional & Contemporary Odissi dance (India & Singapore)

Physical theatre with masks from Bali

Organic breathing 

Community engaged theatre in Turkey, Burundi & USA 

Welcome to our International Summer Academy “CHEKHOV WORLD THEATRE” 

This new intercultural encounter aims to bring performance and training approaches from different backgrounds and continents into a practical exchange. You will intensively study the Michael Chekhov Acting Technique, and at the same time you will be in dialogue with other artistic traditions and performance techniques from around the globe. The overall topic is COMPOSITION and SILENCE. We hope to open new perspectives on Acting, Improvisation, Breath & Movement, Style, Body & Space. 

There will be three different workshop tracks in the morning and afternoon, followed by showcases and open classes in the evening. The daily training sessions can be combined so you will get a sense of each of the offered forms. The Summer Academy includes Michael Chekhov Europe’s Training module 6: ”The Architecture of Performance”. 

www.sfsh.de/chekhov-international

THREE WORKSHOP TRACKS 

WORKSHOP TRACK 1: 

THE ARCHITECTURE OF PERFORMANCE

Improvisation as Art is the core of the creative process. It includes curiosity to take risks, to open up for the unknown as well as the skill to shape the given material – may it be text, movement or space. Creating and rehearsing a play or a scene needs a strong sense for rhythm, tempo and composition. This Feeling for Composition creates contours and gives the expression of ideas and dialogues a deeper meaning and a visible form. 

This track will offer a physical approach to theatre, including intensive work with neutral masks and masks made in Bali. 

Improvisation – Composition in nature and art – Tempo-Rhythm – the Pause – Jo-Ha-Kyu – Style – Archetypes – Text, movement, masks – Scene work 

WORKSHOP TRACK 2: 

FROM SILENCE TO MOVEMENT 

This track will focus on body awareness in movement and performance, addressing alignment, control, gaze and coordination. You will learn the basic techniques of Odissi dance and Chhau theatre, both originated in North-East India. Exploring the core elements of Silence and Motion, participants will enter the realm of contemporary dance and choreography. They will experiment with the traditional forms on their own through the medium of improvisation. 

The training will be supported by a series of explorations and long forms that embrace the essential qualities Michael Chekhov sought to cultivate in every artist: ease, form, beauty, and entirety. 

 Silence – listening – the pause – movement – contemporary dance & choreography – physical expression – feeling of ease, form, beauty, and entirety 

WORKSHOP TRACK 3: 

THE BREATH OF THE WORLD  

This track starts with the perception of the Breath. We will explore the breathing cycle, the breathing impulse, the inhalation, exhalation and the breathing pause. The focus is on natural, organic breath and its connection with thoughts, movement and gestures. Participants will work on the liberation of muscular and emotional blockages and improve the coordination of breath and movement. The aim of this track is to strengthen artistic personality and creative individuality. It will be supported by the somatic approach of Body Mind Centering and contemplative art-making practices. 

Lightness – rhythmic ability & spontaneity – repetition–  sensual perception – expansion and contraction – voice – text – improvisation – the creative world of the artist

EVENING EVENTS 

In the evenings, there will be offerings of open classes, performances and special events including a sharing on community engaged theatre in Burundi, the US and Turkey. A full schedule of events will be released a few weeks before the summer academy begins. 

 If you wish to receive help to find accommodation, please contact chekhov@sfsh.de!

Please note our COVID-19 policy: 

At our school, we have a strict hygiene plan to make sure you feel free in your artistic work. Our working spaces are big enough for physical work in a safe environment. 
Participants need to meet one of the following three conditions: 

• Proof of a completed Covid-19 vaccination within the last 6 months or
• Proof of a completed Covid-19 booster vaccination (3rd jab) or
• A medical certificate that you have recovered from Covid-19 within the last 3 months 

In addition, you will need to show a negative Covid-19 test (not older than 24 hours) before entering the working space on day 1. (There are many test centers in the city and near the school.) 
Please verify this information by showing us the relevant documents and your passport or ID-card! We regularly evaluate the pandemic situation. In case of any changes or adjustments we will inform you immediately. In the unlikely case that the workshop has to be cancelled by us, you will get back your full tuition fee. 

 Discount for graduates of the SfSH: ChekhovSummerSfSH2022