Posted by Open Heart Surgery Theatre
This intimate online workshop series will journey playwrights through a unique exploration of dramatic text through a movement perspective; inspired by the teachings at Ecole Jacques Lecoq.
Playwriting in Movement: Creating 3-Dimensional Characters focuses on how to develop dramatic texts and create electric characters that jump off the page. MacPherson journeys participants through exercises that bring writing into movement. How do we make our characters authentic? How do we find their voice? These will be questions guiding the workshop series.
Inspired by the Lecoq tradition, Coleen Shirin MacPherson, writer and theatre maker, will lead the workshop with the goal of inspiring writers, theatre makers and creative individuals to capture the world in words.
This 6-hour workshop series is divided into three parts across three weeks and involves real-time Zoom conference calls, student-led conversation and guided movement exercises to stimulate the writing practice. It is recommended to do each workshop with enough space to move and to have a good internet connection.
Participants are encouraged to bring work to share to the group with the goal of deepening one’s writer’s practice and writing in community.
Workshops are 2 hours long, with a short break. As part of this workshop series, each participant will have a 40 minute one-on-one dramaturgy session with Coleen. This dramaturgy session is unique for each paricipant and will focus on an aspect of the writer’s work.
This workshop is recommended for both the veteran and the curious closet writer, and is a great way to dive into 2025 with a weekend ritual of writing. It is also a great gift for friends and family!
Coleen Shirin MacPherson is an award winning director, playwright and artistic director of Open Heart Surgery Theatre. Her play, Erased recently had a sold out run at Theatre Passe Muraille and had critics raving; deeming the show ‘unmissable’ and ‘the year’s most gutsy and original new play,’ (Joshua Chong, Toronto Star) to championing its “poignant ambiguity that […] really succeeds in firing up the audience’s imaginations” (Ryan Borochovitz, Intermission Magazine).
After studying at Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris and taking part in the UK’s Off-West End Arcola Theatre’s Writers’ Group and attending workshops led by playwrights James Graham (National Theatre) and Michel Azama (Bled, The Life and Death of Pier Paolo Pasolini), MacPherson has developed her own approach to writing for the stage to provoke the imagination and develop each artists’ unique voice. Her plays have appeared at Camden People’s Theatre, Mimetic Festival (London, UK), Falaki Theater (Cairo, Egypt), Plateau 31 (Paris, France) and The Theatre Centre (Toronto). Her play This Is Why We Live toured to New York City’s La MaMa (Off Off Broadway) and Poland (Krakow and Katowice) to be part of the Miłosz Festival of Literature at Nowy Theatr. She has worked and toured to China, UK, Northern Ireland, Spain, Egypt, USA and France. Coleen has worked with many theatres in Canada including FuGen, Factory Theatre, Why Not Theatre, Theatre Direct, Cahoots Theatre, Canadian Stage and more.
Her company, Open Heart Surgery Theatre creates original and devised theatre that is often multilingual and stretches borders and experiments with form. The company recently created Wild Women Podcacst with Martha Ross and premiered Erased at Theatre Passe Muraille. Coleen is also Creator in Residence at Cahoots Theatre and is part of the Post Modernists Experimental Theatre Troupe with Modern Times Theatre alongside playwrights: Jeff Ho, Rafeh Mahmud and Luke Reece. Coleen recently was part of the Langham Directors’ Program at the Stratford Festival.
Coleen’s joy in teaching is also a joy gained from the desire to collaborate and develop relationships with working artists in Toronto, and to stimulate new methodologies of devised theatre creation with her company Open Heart Surgery Theatre. She has taught Musical Theatre Lab, devised theatre at Randolph Academy for the Performing Arts; Playwriting I at the University of Toronto and has taught at Sheridan, Brock University and Hairpin Arts in Chicago.
www.openheartsurgerytheatre.com
@OHsurgery
Workshop Breakdown
Part 1: The Concrete and Observation
We will explore the concrete in our writing through a series of exercise that provoke the writer’s imagination. Beginning in neutral we write purely through observation, searching for specificity and doing ‘field work’ as writers. We will work with the principal of beginning from neutrality, working on the body in space and the search for a state of essentializing action. These weeks are spent connecting to the body, to breath and developing a deeper connection to our subconscious voice, while also writing character from pure observation.
Part 2: Points of Departure: Image, Music and Sound
During this part we will be inspired by paintings, imagery, music and sound to stimulate the development of character, voice and ultimately write monologues and/or scenes. We look at the dynamics of movement in painting and music and see how this can be transposed to the stage. Who emerges from the painting? What space and mood? What voices emerges?
Part 3: Knowing Your Character Fully & Developing Story
This is the week we deepen our practice and our understanding of our characters’ motivations, dreams, drives, needs and wants. We begin to go deeper into Action and how story is constructed on stage through a character’s desire. We explore monologue, dialogue and scene structure and begin to develop and understanding of story and the play we wish to write. The final minutes of the last session will be devoted to participants sharing their work.
Part 4: Dramaturgy Meeting: Going Deeper into Story
This portion of the workshop is about refining and editing our work, taking in feedback and doing the real work of the writer: editing, shaping the clay. Meetings will be set within each participant’s schedule and a short submission will be asked to be sent. From here, dramaturgy a session will occur where each participant will get feedback on their unique explorations.
Student Testimonials (in-person workshop):
“With Playwriting in Movement you go on a journey with a talented inspiring insightful teacher who combines my two earthly loves the Body and Word. Anyone who knows movement knows it is more than mere entertainment, but rather a profound meaning-maker, will benefit in this writing workshop.” (Student Testimonial from August 2017 workshop)
“It allowed me to see what I do in my writing and to kickstart what I couldn’t do on my own” (Student Testimonial from February 2018)
Limited spaces are available as this workshop does not function with too many students!
This workshop is aimed at theatre creates, industry professionals, writers and anyone eager to learn the craft of devising theatre.
Cost
$230*
*fees and taxes are included
Schedule
Saturday January 18th 10:00-12:00 pm EST (Toronto)
Saturday January 25th 10:00-12:00 pm EST (Toronto)
Saturday February 1st 10:00-12:00 pm EST (Toronto)
PLUS a 40 minute one-on-one Dramaturgy Session via Zoom; to be scheduled with each participant
***There are limited spaces, so do sign up soon as spots do fill up quickly!***
We are always working towards making sure workshops are accessible.
Limited subsidies are avilable and please contact Coleen MacPherson for more information: coleen.macpherson@gmail.com
Where
Zoom Link Provided
For more infromation please contact Coleen:
Photo: Dahlia Katz