embodied creation w/ Lesley Ewen​

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Saturday July 20, 2024
13:00 - 17:00pm*

£15  Book here: 

(*we'll begin at 13:00 as the Alexander session has been cancelled)

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Poetry is the music of the soul, and, above all, of great and feeling souls.― Voltaire

 

This session is open to Artists of all sorts; performers, writers, dancers, painters
…an opportunity to generate material via a mode different from the usual.

 

To create performance we often begin in the mind, with an idea or intellectual concept. But we sometimes get stuck, judge-y or frustrated. What if we began with the body, letting it lead us to a more authentic source - the imagination of the body - and from there generating spoken/movement performance material.

 

How might we discover differently?
How might we circumvent our usual cliches and glitches?
What new poetic languages might arise from deep within our selves?

 

By bringing our Presence into our body and letting it have its way with us, we allow our soul to speak…and the soul always speaks in poetry. Over the course of 4 hours Lesley will guide you through a series of practices resulting in your creating a short performative etude:

 

       You’ll learn "ujayii" breath, an effective yogic pranayaam practice

       for transcending more deeply into Self.
 

       You’ll bring your attention to your senses; signalling the body that you are           open to *it* leading *you* in exploration

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       By introducing a thematic idea, you lightly direct this exploration;

       then together you and your body will play,

       guided by your body’s authentic intelligence.

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       Eventually you’ll have space + time to write, without judgement,                           without end-gaming; employing your embodied poetic symbolism;       

       digesting this material into a short etude.

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With Lesley’s guidance you’ll emerge from the session with a short performance etude to share. The seed of something longer? An answer to a query? At the least, refreshed after time spent in communion with your own embodied creative energy.

 

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Lesley is a veteran performance maker with a long and very varied practice. As well as working as a film/tv/theatre/voice actor, creating live art, video and soundscape, she’s also a dramaturg, creative enabler and teaches at Rada and elsewhere in the world (devising, mindfulness + meditation and developing performance). She’s an award winning playwright and director and a certified meditation teacher. Her favourite practice is employing meditation to create deep performance, either solo or with others. Lesley lives in the Republic of East London. She can be found at mygenerallife.org

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