MetaPLATFORM:
CLOWN (142h)
MetaPLATFORM is an educational concept where the participants have the possibility not only to learn the basics but also to dive deeper and to start an artistic project during the long period of the workshop. At the end of the workshop, there will be an encounter with the public.
The director of the workshop and the midwife for the clowns is Soile Mäkelä.
See the photos from the starting workshop of the summer
AIMED FOR
MetaPLATFORM is aimed for professionals and students of performing arts who wish to get some boost for their physical expressivity. For some participants the workshop might be the first touch for the theatre clownery, for some it might be refreshment of the skills and awakening the creativity.
DESCRIPTION
MetaPLATFORM will dive into the core of theatre clownery, where the clown is born of the personal ridicule of the actor and where the stories are dealing with all the colours of the life, also the dark ones. This long clown project will take the participant to the source of tragicomic humanity, there where all the homo sapiensis, year after year, find themselves stupefied in front of the universal miracles of life.
The process of searching one’s personal clown is not only an individual trip, but always a very intensive group process. The clown does not exist without audience. In MetaPLATFORM, the group is a test audience and great support for each other during the whole process.
From the point of view of developing as a clown (and human being), it’s interesting how our own idea of what is ridiculous in us is often very different than how the others see us. The clown process is great fun, above all, but it needs also courage! Courage to face your imperfections, accept them, play with them and one day... perhaps love them a bit.
The purpose of the education is not to do therapy sessions with the red nose, but to develop our personal material and transform it to the universal level with acting techniques and meet the audience.
TEACHER
Soile Mäkelä is a theatre teacher, performer and director, who has worked with masks since 1996. She works as a freelancer in various institutes or theatres in Finland, i.e. Teatteri Metamorfoosi, Helsinki Summer University and Turku Arts Academy. In addition she does artistic projects, teaches and leads the education and mask making departments in Teatteri Metamorfoosi which she co-founded in 2005.
Soile graduated from University of the Arts Helsinki, Theatre Academy from department of theatre pedagogy in 2008. She studied physical theatre in France and Italy based on pedagogy of Jacques Lecoq 1999-2002. Before that she graduated from Metropolia, Helsinki University of Applied Sciences/ Performing arts as a drama instructor 1999. In addition she has participated numerous mask and clown workshops around Europe ‘cause she likes to put herself in “trouble” and keep on learning all the time. The most significant teachers and inspirations during her clown trip have been Giovanni Fusetti, Mario Gonzalez and Pierre Byland.
STRUCTURE AND THE TIMETABLES
SUMMER (72h)
JULY-AUGUST
Week 30: Mon-Sat 26.–31.07. (36h)
Week 31: Mon-Sat 02.–07.08. (36h)
Daily working hours are 10-17:00 (including 1h lunch break)
MetaPLATFORM starts with two weeks intensive investigation of personal ridicule of each participant and introduction to the group of loveable losers and their endless flops.
Technically speaking, we will learn about our own movement qualities with neutral masks and other physical theatre means from Lecoq-pedagogy and Mario Gonzalez training and mask techniques. After the preparation we will witness the miracle of the birth of the clowns and their holistic ludicrous.
During the second week we will go deeper to personal stories by improvising. From that material we will start to create clown numbers either solos or in small groups.
After the summer workshop the group will get some tasks to prepare for the next meeting. There will be also online direction available 1h/ group before the next meeting, if needed.
AUTUMN (70h)
During the autumn the clown voyage will continue in the Teatteri Metamorfoosi’s rehearsal room. We will have four meetings to take further the acting techniques and develop the clown numbers under direction. The group will play an important role as a test audience for the clowns.
During the weekend workshops there will be one hour lunch break each day.
SEPTEMBER
Week 38: Sat-Sun25.–26.9 at 10-18:00
OCTOBER
Week 43: Sat-Sun 30.–31.10. at 10-18:00
NOVEMBER
Week 45: Sat-Sun 13.–14.11. at 10-18:00
Week 46: Sat-Sun 20.–21.11. at 10-18:00
Week 47: Sat 27.11 and Sun 28.11 (lights etc.)
Week 48: Tue 30.11 CLOWN SOIREE at Circo/ Solmusali at 19:00
In November we will move into the performance venue and the participants will present their clown numbers for the public in the form of solo performance or 2-3 persons combinations, depending of our creation.
Maximum length of each performance will be no longer than 15-20 min. The theatre technique will remain in the modest level, but we hope to compensate that with depth of the shows and the excellence of the actors ;).
LANGUAGE
Teaching will be in Finnish, except if some participants do not speak Finnish, then the teacher speaks either Finglish, English, Italian, French or Onomatopoeia.
You can perform in any language you wish, even in silence.
VENUES
WORKSHOPS:
Teatteri Metamorfoosi /Point Fixe
Suvilahdenkatu 10 a 4th floor
00500 Helsinki
Metro: Kalasatama or Sörnäinen
Map
THE VENUE OF THE CLOWN SOIREE on 30.11 at 19:00
Circo/ Solmusali
Kaasutehtaankatu 1 (Rakennus 8, Kojehuone)
00540 Helsinki
PRICE
Early Bird 890€ (deadline 10th of June 2021)
Regular price 940€ (deadline 24th of June 2021)
HOW TO APPLY
Please read through the information and timetables well and check out that you can fully commit to the whole education project.
APPLICATION
1) Make an informal application (max 2 pages) including personal info (name, postal address, email, telephone number) and short description about your background and your motivation to join the workshop.
2) Include your cv with a photo
3) Please send your application to Soile (soile(at)metamorfoosi.com) by 31st of May 2021.
ANSWERS
We will take 8-10 participants, after reading through the applications.
The decisions are made by 6th of June and the info will be sent to all applicants. Those who are accepted to the workshop, confirm their participation by paying the fee by the deadline (Early Birds 10.6/ regulars 24.6.)
The workshop will be confirmed by 28th of June, one month before it will start.
CONDITIONS OF THE WORKSHOP IN CASE OF CANCELLATION
Please note: Once the the workshop is confirmed, If the participant must cancel his/her participation (regardless of reason, including illness), the reimbursement is given only if there is someone in the waiting list who can take his/her place.
Do not hesitate to contact the teacher, if you have any questions (soile(at)metamorfoosi.com).
(All rights reserved for changes by Teatteri Metamorfoosi)