"Chekhov Theatre Ensemble Announces Week-Long Michael Chekhov Acting Intensive"
1999-10-01 until 1999-10-02
Chekhov Theatre
New York, NY, USA United States of America

From October 11-16, the award-winning Chekhov Theatre Ensemble will sponsor a week-long intensive in the Michael Chekhov acting technique. Auditions/Interviews will take place on October1 and 2 from 1-9pm at Musical Theatre Works.

The classes, which develop the psychological values of the body, will be taught by master teachers Joanna Merlin (psychological gesture) and Chekhov Theatre Ensemble artistic director, Floyd Rumohr (basic exercises, text application). The Intensive will admit twenty five artists and five alternates.

The twenty nine hour intensive takes place at Theatre Row Studios and includes eight hours of work in psychological gesture. The workshops culminate on Saturday, October 16, with a twelve-hour immersion and application of the technique to material of the actor's choice.

Actors who are seeking to access and liberate their intuitive, imaginative impulses through the body are encouraged to participate in this Intensive, said Rumohr. The workshops are designed as an introduction to the work of Michael Chekhov for those who might have little to no exposure to his work, and as a playground for those who have more advanced experience.

Rumohr emphasized that the workshops will not be theoretical in nature, but hands-on and experiential. The actors will be moving and on their feet from day one. Michael Chekhov's lectures are available at Lincoln Center library and commercially through Applause Theatre Books for those who want a theoretical framework.

A five to ten minute audition/interview is required. Appointments and information may be obtained by calling 212-563-5315 twenty four hours/day. Actors need not come in with a finished audition piece. Instead, we're looking for actors who spontaneously respond to physical and imaginative suggestions, said Rumohr. The audition can be anything that demonstrates the ability or potential to work with and through the body.

Having won the 1999 OOBR (Off-Off-Broadway Review) Award for a production of King Lear that was Breathtaking, visually stunning, and remarkable, the Chekhov Theatre has distinguished itself as a rising star by the Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York from the 350 theatres it represents. The Ensemble produces classic world masterpieces and new works that penetrate into core experience of what it is to be human and improves the educational success and social well-being of children who are at risk for illiteracy, truancy, violence and poverty through theatre activities that inspire them to excel. This Intensive is not designed for children.

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