Honesty of the Scene Weekend Intensive

2 Day Workshop: “Honesty of the Scene”

Join veteran improvisers, Paul Mone and Neil Curran, for a unique learning opportunity to develop your scene work and create deeper and more honest characters and connections on stage.

In this workshop, participants will learn to develop more authentic and honest connections in scenes, both between characters but also between the performer brain and character brain. Participants will practice authentic connections while learning to be more consistent with their behaviours and choices. These richer connections will allow for more thematically connected forms and structures, resulting in more satisfying performances for participants.

Participants will work with Paul and Neil individually as well as benefit from joint teaching. The workshop is strongly rooted in scenework. The 2 days will finish with a live showcase in a theatre.

Learning Outcomes:
* Expand the performer toolbox by identifying strong and weak behaviours in scene
* Ripen the performer/character brain, allowing for more authentic connections
* Build bold, dynamic characters in surreal and grounded environments
* Develop emotional viewpoints allowing for greater awareness of status, comedy and drama, and more engaging scenes
* Learn to relax - take the pressure off when improvising, notice more and stop the hamster wheel in your brain!

Next Course

Saturday 25th & Sunday 26th February - 10am to 4:30pm both days

The courses take place in the Teacher’s Club, 36 Parnell Square West, Dublin 1.

Course cost is €200.

Structure

Day 1: Part 1
Rooted in the Annoyance Theatre style of improv, participants will be challenged to identify what they believe are ‘good’ and ‘bad’ moves. Grounded in character, participants will develop their ability to be consistent with their choices regardless of how surreal or grounded a scene may be.

Day 1: Part 2
Authenticity is rooted emotional viewpoints. Without authenticity neither audience or performer can connect. Participants will develop authentic connections through scene work, and refine the ability to notice everything. Everything means something on stage, from the exhale of the performer to the nervous babble of words when the performer is unsure of the next move. We will slow it down to build it up again.

Day 2: Part 1
Working with both facilitators together, participants will build on day 1 by polishing and weaving scenes in to a structure, allowing themes to develop and mapping to occur.

Day 2: Part 2
Showcase! We then take what we have learned and perform it on stage!

About Paul
Paul is the founder of Belfast Improv, where he has taught classes and produced improv shows since 2017. Paul His workshops are influenced by his long-form training with Annoyance Theatre, Chicago, and his own constantly evolving improv class curriculum.

Paul believes that all forms of improv are equal, but musical monoscenes are more equal than others. Paul is a terrible improviser, but thankfully a very good coach.

About Neil

Neil has had a passion for improvisation from an early age and has been teaching and performing Improv for many years to adults and companies around the world. Founder and director of Improv Fest Ireland, assistant director of Improv Utopia International, and The Improv Playground. Neil is also a co-founder of No Drama Theatre.

Neil signature show, "Neil+1",has been performed in cities and festivals across Europe and the US, including Big City Improv Festival (CA), ImproFest (PL), BIGIF (ES), Unscripted Theater (US), Slapdash (UK), as well as having performed on stage in Second City (Hollywood and Toronto) and the PIT (NYC).

Neil is fond of tall tales and invented shoe laces.