The question: why study devising as a theatre artist, actor, creator or playwright will be explored in this blog post. And as always “the mask” will be discussed as the vehicle driving the learning process and leading the student/artist toward understanding a deeper creative product. The current climate in today’s performance practice, on the surface, […]
Since man appeared on the timeline, masks have represented characters in theatrical performances. Primitive man used them. All indigenous cultures have mask traditions. In Greece, the significance of theatre masks increased from ritual to ritual-drama. Theatre masks have gained immense popularity with the passage of time. In the Middle Ages masks were used in the […]
The Question of Masks in Devising I was recently speaking with a colleague about a devising workshop that we are planning and he asked me, “why use masks?” This prompted a lot of thought, which led to a lot of questions and then to a lot more thought. Here are some of those thoughts shared. […]
This blog post is going be all over the place so be warned. It has been hard to focus my thoughts on any one aspect of what I do given the events in the world at large. I spend my days caught between the world I live in and the world that is being imposed […]
This past summer 15 artists from eight states, Canada and UK gathered in the studio spaces to create new work using theater masks. The theme of the workshop was The Rise and Fall of the Other. The intention was to create story that reflected the cycle that plagues humanity as concerns the ostracizing of those […]
The following is a sequence in which theater masks provide the cornerstone as concerns understanding and integration of physical principles for the actor. Several movement classes are listed and theater masks play a role in some as well as physical classes that are intended as preparation for the mask work. The sequence is designed to […]
The phrase: “the mask reveals,” takes our discussion of masks and their important presence in performance, training, ritual and celebration in many directions. This post will focus on how the theater mask acts as an agent connecting the past and the present as if they existed together in the moment with a sense of immediacy […]
There has been a recent resurgence of interest in theater masks and masking as well as the use of masks in today’s theater practice. The importance of the mask throughout human history is significant and for our contemporary audiences it is a powerful tool in the telling of stories. The theatre mask inspires through the provoking […]
Devising Theatre through exploration of cultural masks of the world.
Perhaps the mask can be part of the ever-changing cultural landscape in America and be an agent of change as we navigate a world increasing ruled by technology.
Welcome!! Jonathan Becker offers on-site workshops in partnership with The North American Laboratory of the Performing Arts, a small institute dedicated to a broad cultural exploration of the performing arts, the creation of new works, the exploration of fundamental principles and inspiring artists to be agents of change.
The MansionA workshop for performers, students and teachers. Explore one of the most effective methods of actor training through Neutral, Larval and Character Half Mask. the mask tangibly reveals to the actor the intricacies of the art of performance, directing and an application of understandings to all styles of acting.
This workshop explores the entire process and understandings necessary to create an expressive form, a mask that appears to change expression as it moves through space.
