Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Chekhov, Michael'

This thesis charts the brief history of the theatre studios run in England between 1935 and 1965 by Michel Saint-Denis (1897-1971) and Michael Chekhov (1891- 1955). They were the London Theatre Studio (1936-1939), run by Saint-Denis; The Chekhov Theatre Studio at Dartington Hall (1936-1938); The Old Vic Theatre School (1947-1952), initially part of the proposed Old Vic Theatre Centre, whose directors were Michel Saint-Denis, George Devine and Glen Byam Shaw; and the RSC Studio (1962- 1965), run by Saint-Denis. All of these studios were dedicated to combining training and experimentation in the development of ensemble companies and were therefore liminal spaces combining elements of a theatre and a theatre school. An introductory section briefly situates the practice of theatre studios in the context of wider narratives of work, craftsmanship and artistry in the period and traces their development from the Moscow Art Theatre Studio of 1905, as well as sketching some significant parallels between Saint-Denis and Chekhov. The first two sections of the thesis then explore the period from 1936 until 1952, looking first at Chekhov’s and then at Saint-Denis’ studios, placing them in the context of the traditions of training and exploration from which they emerged, and examining their practice and their legacies. The final section of the thesis explores the direct impact of their practice on the Post War British Theatre, focusing particularly on the Royal Shakespeare Company whose Studio was run by Saint-Denis, and where Paul Rogers (one of Chekhov’s students) was a leading actor. A short concluding section applies the principles of Chekhov’s and Saint- Denis’ work to the practice of training and experimentation in 2012 and looks to the future, to ask whether the studios whose work is explored in the main body of the thesis have a role to play in the future development of the art of the theatre.

Referred to by Constantin Stanislavski as “My most brilliant pupil,” Michael Chekhov’s approach to acting is founded in an understanding of the artist as a whole being whose thoughts, feelings, desires, voice, and physical body are intimately interwoven. The Michael Chekhov technique trains these aspects jointly while encouraging the actor to fully explore and utilize his or her unlimited, rich, and fertile imagination. I have seen the powerful benefits of this technique as an actor (which I have been utilizing for 13 years) and as a teacher and director (for almost 10 years). In my thesis, I will firstly describe the technique, its principles, tools, and philosophies. I will then delve into the application of the technique in the classroom (utilizing information gathered during my Introduction to the Techniques of Michael Chekhov course taught at Virginia Commonwealth University, Spring 2009, Fall 2009, and Spring 2010), and on the stage (utilizing information gathered during the two VCU Shafer Alliance Laboratory Theatre productions I directed of And Sometimes We Just Listen to Each Other Breathe in Spring 2009, and La Bête in Fall of 2009).

The Michael Chekhov Technique is a unique approach to acting that has been successfully used by professional actors for many years. This thesis explores finding a strong understanding of the technique as well as discovering ways to incorporate it into an undergraduate actor training program. The examination aims to further my aesthetic both as theatre teacher and practitioner. It includes training with master teachers in the technique, incorporating Chekhov exercises into undergraduate acting and movement classes and use of the technique on a production of Pride & Prejudice.

When it comes to actor training in higher education, there are many practitioners from which to choose. This thesis describes the teachings of Sanford Meisner and Michael Chekhov and the benefits of combining their techniques. This thesis further explores five elements deemed necessary to every actor’s training. These elements are approached through the techniques of Meisner, Chekhov and a combination of their teachings. These five elements are explored through a workshop and performance. During the workshop, I devised and taught new hybrid exercises to approach these elements through a combination of the teachings of Chekhov and Meisner. Responses from workshop participants are included. Finally, the combination of techniques is discussed through the performance of two roles in a Virginia Commonwealth University theatre production. This thesis hopes to serve as a guide to instructors and participants looking to explore the benefits of combining the methodologies of Sanford Meisner and Michael Chekhov.

A presente pesquisa visa disponibilizar a organização de um processo criativo teóricoprático situado na interação da experimentação dos princípios atorais desenvolvidos pelo ator russo Michael Chekhov e na apropriação das teorias e estética simbolistas propostas por Maurice Maeterlinck, adotando como base principal o conceito de \"trágico cotidiano\". Propõe-se uma análise-associação, enquanto proposição criativa, para a elaboração de cena teatral configurada a partir da individualidade criativa do ator e da procura de uma teoria como provocação dramatúrgica por meio de um processo com fins artístico-pedagógicos. Essa possibilidade busca ser, na arte da atuação, uma ferramenta de aprofundamento na qual o ator é quem descobre e desenvolve sua própria linguagem cênica, resultando, finalmente, numa experiência prática de criação cênica autoral do ator, que abre um possível caminho de reflexão em torno da formação e do trabalho do ator como artista criador.
This research aims to provide the organization of a theorical-practical creative process, based on the interaction of the experiment of the actor\'s principles developed by the Russian actor Michael Chekhov, and on the appropriation of the symbolist theories and esthetic proposed by Maurice Maeterlinck, adopting as main base the concept of \"tragic daily life\". It is proposed an association analysis, as a creative approach to making theater scene set from of the actor\'s creative individuality and finding a theory as dramaturgical provocation through a process with artistic-pedagogical goals. This possibility intends to be a tool for deepening the art of acting in which the actor is who discovers and develops his/her own scenic language, resulting, in the end, in a practical experience of authorial scenic creation of the actor, which opens a possible way of thinking on the training and work of the actor as creative artist.

This project investigates the previously unrecognised significance of the ways in which the Embodied Theatre practices of Suzanne Bing (1885-1967) and Michael Chekhov (1891-1955) utilised forms of what I term Embodied Play as a constituent part of their actor training processes. A methodology is developed in the introduction which draws on Foucault's notion of genealogy and Feminist approaches to historiography in order to trace and review accounts of these often marginalised play practices in order to re-configure the contributions of Bing and Chekhov in historical terms. It also challenges notions of authenticity and singular 'ownership' of technique by considering the importance of collaborative cross-fertilisation with other practitioners. This research includes a broader exploration of the literature, histories and discourses about the variety of practices that are often problematically classified as Physical Theatre in relation to the identification of the key components of Bing and Chekhov's pedagogy. The first chapter presents this mapping in tandem with the argument that McDermott's term of Embodied Theatre is more appropriate for Bing and Chekhov's practice. The second chapter further refines the frame of analysis to Embodied Play. Chapters three and four consider how Chekhov and Bing respectively used forms of Embodied Play. Chapter five considers how Bing and Chekhov extended their methods of Embodied Play in training which led to radical approaches to working collaboratively with text and writers. It concludes that this movement from the use of play solely for the acquisition of discrete skill or character creation to extended forms of Embodied Play enabled them to train actors to work as empowered creators of small-scale performance in their Schools/Studios, and ultimately to engage in devising processes for professional productions. Consequently, this helps to fill the gap in scholarship on the early experiments in devised Embodied Theatre. In conclusion the focus on Bing addresses the either inadequate, or absent, analyses of her practice in many of the existing historical studies which are dominated by the patrilineal narratives of Jacques Copeau and Michel Saint-Denis. The consideration of Chekhov's practice also challenges the current discourse on play centring on Le Jeu and presents the argument for an expanded term able to consider different artists not just those from the French male lineage. Concurrently, this focus on Chekhov's use of Embodied Play has added to the scholarship on his pedagogic and theatre-making practices.

Orientador: Inaicyra Falcão dos Santos
Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Artes
Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-05T01:38:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Varotto_Daniela_M.pdf: 2236720 bytes, checksum: 633e4a5ab3c584e3c5c8caa631b14fd0 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005
Resumo: Considerando o trabalho do ator como um caminho individual a ser percorrido, o que se propõe neste estudo é a investigação de como construir o corpo-mente orgânico. A partir da relação investigada entre as Danças Tradicionais Gaúchas e o trabalho proposto por Mikhail Tchecov ao ator, foram detectados dois princípios-chave considerados fundamentais para essa construção: a Fisicidade e a Imaginação. Realizou-se, então, um processo criativo no qual se estabeleceram procedimentos técnicos para desenvolver tais princípios. Com base neste processo foi criado um exercício cênico, o qual apresentava como pretexto para a sua criação determinados movimentos das danças e a lenda gaúcha "O Sacristão e a Teiniaguá"
Abstract: Considering the actor' s work as an individual path to be covered, it is proposed in this study the investigation of how one can build the organic body-mind. After the investigation of the relation between the Traditional Dances of the South of Brazil and the work proposed by Mikhail Thecov to the actor, there were detected two key-principles considered fundamentals for this construction: the Physicalness and the Imagination. A creative process in which there were established technical procedures to develop these principles has taken place. Based on this process a cenic exercise was created, which had as a pretext to its creation certain moviments of the dances and also the south legend "The Sacristy Assistant and the Teiniaguá"
Mestrado
Mestre em Artes

Esta pesquisa tem como objetivo apresentar o desenvolvimento do trabalho artísticopedagógico- teatral de Maria Osipovna Knebel (1898 - 1985). Focamo-nos na criação e no desdobramento de sua filosofia pedagógica, bem como analisamos e discutimos o monólogo interior. No Primeiro Capítulo, enfatizamos a relação de Knebel com Mikhail Tchekhov (1891 - 1965) e os caminhos que levaram-na a seguir a carreira teatral. Dentro desse contexto, fazemos uma breve análise sobre o trabalho improvisacional tchekhoviano e sua influência sobre a formação da diretorapedagoga. Em um salto, vamos da primeira classe de Knebel para o convite de Konstantin Stanislavski (1863 - 1938) para que ela fosse sua ajudante no Estúdio Operístico-Dramático. Procuramos situar a relação política e artística desenvolvida nesse local, dando relevância à renovação do \"sistema\" feita por Stanislavski. Igualmente, buscamos colocar em foco a questão da \'análise do papel durante a ação\', mais conhecida como análise ativa. Nesse ponto, verticalizamo-nos na prospecção pela inteligência e nos études. O Segundo Capítulo também está dividido em duas partes. Em um primeiro momento, discutimos o segundo plano na direção de Vladmir Ivanovitch Nemirovitch-Dantchenko (1858 - 1943). Procuramos salientar a irradiação do pensamento no trabalho ator-personagem e a maneira que esse elemento pode ser corporificado pelo intérprete no trabalho criativo da cena; principalmente no que tange aos momentos de silêncio da obra teatral. Esmiuçamos a visão crítica e o aprendizado sobre questões de direção que Knebel aponta em Nemirovitch-Dantchenko, na condução de Os Courantes do Kremlin de Nicolai F. Pagodin (1900 - 1962), em 1940. Pensando na ação prática da pedagogia knebeliana, levantamos o desenvolvimento de seu trabalho na GITIS (Academia Russa de Artes Cênicas), com apontamentos e referência ao Teatro Central da Criança de Moscou. Expomos a relação aberta de sua pedagogia com Aleksei Dmitrievitch Popov (1892 -- 1961) na verticalização sobre a necessidade de perceber primeiro a experiência no mundo e, posteriormente, traduzi-las sensível, crítica e artisticamente na composição cênica. Sempre numa condução pedagógica libertária e holística. No Terceiro Capítulo discutimos o conceito de monólogo e solilóquio, monólogo interior e fluxo de consciência, tendo como base os conceitos e terminologias da literatura e, posteriormente, do teatro. Ainda sobre o monólogo interior, debatemos a sua importância com os demais elementos do \"sistema\" e sua conjugação no trabalho de Knebel como diretora-pedagoga. Procuramos examinar as relações da criação do monólogo interior e a formação do pensamento na criação, segundo as teorias de Lev Semenivitch Vigotski (1896 - 1934), apontado para as questões sociais, políticas, culturais, ideológicas no desenvolvimento da obra teatral
This research has as objective to present the development of the artisticpedagogical- theatrical of Maria Osipovna Knebel (1898 - 1985). We focused on the creation and deployment of her Pedagogical Philosophy, as well as analyzed and discussed the inner monologue. On the first Chapter, we\'ve had focused on the relationship between Michael Chekhov (1891 - 1965) and on the ways that took her to follow the theatrical career. Inside this context, we did a brief analysis about the improvisational Chechovian and its influence on the Director-Pedagogue\'s formation. Taking a leap, we go from Keble\'s first class to the invitation from Konstantin Stanislavsky (1863 - 1938) for her to be his assistant of the Opera-Dramatic Studio. We\'ve tried to put the political artistic relationship developed in this scenario, giving relevancy to the system\'s renovation done by Stanislavski. Equally, we tried to put the \'analysis of the role during the action\' in focus, more known as active analysis. At this point, we deepen in the prospecting from the intelligence and etudes. The Second Chapter is also divided in two parts. At first, we have discussed the second plan, at the Vladímir Ivânovitch Nemirovich-Danchenko´s direction (1858 - 1943). We have tried to accentuate the radiation of the thinking on the work actor-character and on the way that its element could be internalized by the actor on the scene´s creative work; mainly about the theatrical work moments of silence. We went deep on the critical view and learning about the direction that Knebel point in Nemirovitch- Danchenko, on the conduction of Kremlin Courante by Nicolai F. Pagodin (1900 - 1962) in 1940. Thinking of the practical action of the knebelian pedagogy, we put together it work development at GITIS (Russian Academy of Theatre Arts), with notes and references to the Central Children\'s Theatre. We exposed the open relation on her pedagogy with Alexei Dmitrievich Popov (1892 - 1961), deepen about the necessity on notice, first the experience inside the world and after it, translate it in a sensible-critic-artistic way on the scenic composition. Always in a pedagogical emancipating and holistic leading way. On the Third Chapter we discussed the monologue and soliloquy concept, inner monologue and conscience flow, taking the concepts and literature´s terminologies and, after from the theater. Still on the inner monologue, we discussed its importance with other elements from the \"system\" and its conjugation on Keble\'s work as the director-pedagogue. We´ve tried to look over the relationships on the inner monologue´s creation and on the formation of the thought in the creation process, according to Lev Semyonovich Vygotsky\'s theory (1896 - 1934), pointing to social, politics and ideological on the development of the theatrical piece

Thesis (M.F.A.)--Kent State University, 2009.
Title from PDF t.p. (viewed Feb. 17, 2010). Advisor: Mark Monday. Keywords: Alba Emoting; Michael Chekhov. Includes bibliographical references (p. 36).

This thesis examines key concepts from philosophers Nishida Kitaro, Maurice Merleau-Ponty and Fredriche Nietzsche and applies them to elements of Michael Chekhov’s practice of acting. The three philosophers, in different ways, suggest an ‘optimal’ state, beyond a dualistic separation of the fictive from the real and the visible from the invisible, that challenges seemingly unbridgeable dualisms between inner and outer, subject and object, being and becoming and experiencer and experienced. The purpose of this thesis is to analyze and understand these selected ‘optimal’ modes of consciousness in performance and, therefore, open up new ways of thinking about Michael Chekhov’s acting processes; in particular the ‘Psychological Gesture’. The thesis asks the following questions: 1. How can the application of selected philosophical paradigms to the Psychological Gesture through theory and practice further our understanding of Michael Chekhov’s work? 2. How do selected aspects of the fields of phenomenology, post-phenomenology, cognitive sciences, consciousness studies and philosophy of mind, aid in developing an articulation and understanding of an ‘optimal’ state of consciousness as a necessary aspect of the actor’s performance in Michael Chekhov’s work and theatre practice? 3. How can this project develop the way we are able to talk about Michael Chekhov’s work and wider acting processes?

This thesis examines the implementation of an actor-training programme in the context of Spanish drama schools during 2004-2005. Reflecting through the student's practice as well as my own practice as a teacher, actor and director, I investigate how a bodymind training based on martial arts disciplines and designed by Phillip Zarrilli may contribute to understand the theory and the practice of an actor's use of the imagination as Michael Chekhov proposes it. Core questions arise from the evaluation of what is the professional knowledge that the integration of both systems of training brings to the students. The action of research is placed in how the process of learning such competencies take place and become informative of both the research and the acting practice. The concept of acting is being analysed by looking at the significance of the actor's imagination from a phenomenological rather than a psychological perspective. The discussion includes the challenge that developing a new pedagogy in a drama school brings up to a better understanding of contemporary paradigms of theatre practice and education.'Interpretación Gestual' is since 1992 an established branch in the Real Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático de Madrid (RESAD). Acting in physical (gestural) theatre conveys some problematic issues concerning its theory and practice within both professional and pedagogical contexts. Implementing a new and specific teaching programme for the preparation of professional actors in the context of the RESAD urges me to clarify inpractice certain issues about these two different approaches to actor training, as well as their presence in today's education within the curriculum of official drama schools in Spain.

Both theatre and drama were imported to Canada from European colonizing nations, and as such the canonical master-texts of European drama, particularly the works of Shakespeare, have always occupied a prominent place in Canadian theatre. This presents a challenge for living Canadian playwrights, whose most revered role model is also their most dangerous competition, and whose desire to represent the spectrum of contemporary Canadian experience on stage is often at odds with the preferences of many producers and spectators for the “classics.” Since the 1990s, a number of Canadian playwrights have attempted to challenge the role of canonical plays and the values they represent by appropriating and critiquing them in plays of their own, creating a body of work which disturbs conventional distinctions between “adaptations” and “originals.” This study describes and analyzes the adaptive dramaturgies used by recent Canadian playwrights to appropriate canonical plays, question the privileged place they occupy in Canadian culture, expose the exclusionary hierarchies they legitimate, and claim centre stage for Canadian perspectives which have hitherto been waiting in the wings. It examines how playwrights challenge, usurp, or exploit the cultural capital of the canon by “re-citing” old plays in new works, how they or their producers attempt to frame the reception of their plays in order to address cultural biases against adaptation, and how audiences respond. This study draws from and builds upon contemporary theories of adaptation and particularly (Canadian) Shakespeare adaptation, seeking an understanding of adaptation based on the motives, tactics, and efficacy of adaptation. Simultaneously, it challenges the dominance of “Shakespeare,” in critical as well as theatrical practice, by comparing appropriations of Shakespeare to appropriations of Chekhov which exhibit similar tactics and motives.