Written in the Body is back this Spring, a space to transform your artistry as a performer/actor/creator. All we need is your human presence, openness and readiness to work (and an internet connection). 

In this dynamic workshop series, we use embodied movement practices to train your subtle creative muscles to connect the dots between physical, cognitive and artistic processes, and to reconnect to the creative source of your lived experience. This journey will lead you through interdisciplinary movement, writing, drawing and creative tasks that will invite you into the vast creativity of your subconscious and your memories, to share your inner world through your work. Each workshop will culminate in the creation of an original piece of text, physical score or performance.

Our focus is not on a specific aesthetic or form, but rather on enhancing the integration of your imaginative, physical, and mental instruments.

You can sign up for one of the workshops, each of which will focus on a specific aspect of performance making. If you come to all 3 workshops, you will be able to build on the learnings and materials developed in each session, which will build up to the creation of an original piece of performance (with a text/subtext, a visual identity, physical actions), that can be documented on video.

“Powerful work is being done in a new time/space.
‘Written in the Body’ reached across the miles and moved us inside and out. … Everyone can benefit through this work!”

-Tina Kronis (Testimony for Written in the Body 2022)

SESSION 1 TEXT/SUBTEXT

Facilitated by Matej Matejka and Elisabeth Gunawan

February 11-13, 2024
Sunday – Monday 7pm – 9pm UK; Tuesday 7pm – 9.30pm UK
€75 / £65

In this workshop, we will focus on the early part of creation, by disarming and preparing you to discover stories from your embodied experience. Text, whether it is spoken and performed, or silently planted as subtext, is a crucial and essential tool for creating performative physical actions and captivating stories.

Drawing inspiration from a wealth of ‘stories’ (including poems, essays, letters and songs), we will return to foundational questions of how humans communicate their experiences with words, and how shared meaning-making happens between the speaker and the audience.  

Each session will begin with a physical warmup and exploration to loosen the body and the creative muscles, and eventually transition into free drawing and writing, journaling and prompted writing exercises. At the end of the three days, you will have the opportunity to share your original (work-in-progress) writing and receive feedback. 

This workshop is for anyone with a desire to create original performative work or autobiographical work, even and especially 1) those who want to integrate the process of writing with movement research & physical devising, 2) ‘non-writers’, who feel lost in a traditional writing class and would like to gain exciting approaches into working with text.

SESSION 2 ACTIONS

Facilitated by Matej Matejka

March 3-5, 2024
Sunday – Monday 7pm – 9pm UK; Tuesday 7pm – 9.30pm UK
€75 / £65

This workshop will focus on movement research, exploring exercises and tools for creating performative actions based on text, subtext and story. Drawing from Matej’s experience and research in physical theatre—deconstructing beyond a Grotowskian lineage to incorporate multiple contemporary movement, dance, martial arts and well-being practices—we will explore presence, tension and release, improvisation and various tools to shape and develop visceral performative actions. 

Taking advantage of the online format of the workshop and the privacy of your own space, we will go deeper into self-led and reflective individual practice, which are crucial for any physical practitioner or performer.

As a starting off point, participants will bring in text and a visual moodboard to explore throughout the practices. Each session will lead you through physical warmups, into different exploratory and creative tools for developing a physical language that is unique and authentic to the narrative worlds you are inhabiting and the stories you are telling.

You will have the opportunity to create short physical etudes, and to receive individual feedback on how to continue developing the piece and your own skills.

SESSION 3 CREATIONS

Facilitated by Matej Matejka and Elisabeth Gunawan

April 21-23 & 28, 2024

Sunday – Monday 7pm – 9pm UK; Tuesday 7pm – 9.30pm UK; Sunday (April 28) 6pm – 8pm UK

€90 / £77

Building on the tools and skills from previous workshops, we will challenge you to go further in your individual journey through a process of creating, shaping and integrating:

• Physical actions
• Text and subtext, whether it is self-written or adapted/drawn from existing work
• Costumes and performative objects
• Visual style and genre
• Your autobiography and point of view as an artist

We will hone these details towards creating a rough draft of a short film/video of performative actions. WE will give feedback along your journey of continuing to develop this piece. Although most of the work is individual, there will be opportunities for collaborative discussions and to connect with other creators and performers in the cohort.

You can take part in this workshop even if you haven’t done the first two, but you would get the most out of this session if you already have some performing/movement research experience.

About the Facilitators

works from our artistic process