CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT FOR ACTORS

Character Development for Actors

with Jason Stevens & Graham McDonald

WEDNESDAYS, 7-9:30pm, June 26 – July 17, 2019

This intro/intermediate course will familiarize actors with the core concepts, principles, and vocabulary of character development, providing a foundation for on-camera acting and more advanced studies into the discipline. Students will be introduced to the principle theories and terms of Movement Psychology, as well as the fundamental concepts of tempo/action/objective/ activities that are the cornerstone of this method of character creation and story development.

Students will be assigned defined characters to perform in class in the form of monologue and dialogue scenes, and then offered actionable critique to help them better their work. Students will be introduced to the foundations of creating their own monologues and dialogues using these methods.

Character Development for Actors is recommended for performers who wish deeper understanding of the complexities of character building, script breakdown, scene study, story arc, and physical activity. Students will be provided with actionable, practical, and expedient methods to solve the performance-related challenges faced by every working actor, whether on stage or on screen. This work is also shown to provide enormous value to those who seek to write and/or produce original material, and to those creating their own voice/story. The course objectives are to give students the necessary skills required to solve the most fundamental problems associated with the development and presentation of a character for an audition or a performance. The only prerequisite for this course is to have a keen interest in storytelling. Some experience with performance or related training is an asset. Students will be required to bring a notebook and pen/pencil and must wear comfortable clothing that will not inhibit movement.

We will work with you at your own level. So whether you are new to this, or you are a working actor, this course will help you advance your acting and book that role you are after.

Character Development for Actors

Wednesdays, June 26-July 17, 7-9:30pm – $195 (no tax)

Secure your seat by e-transfer to movementpsychology101@gmail.com. Please include name of student and email address. Please note that refunds, partial refunds or make-up classes are not offered.The only prerequisite for this course is to have a keen interest in storytelling. Some experience with performance or related training is an asset.Students will be required to bring a notebook and pen/pencil and must wear comfortable clothing that will not inhibit movement.

Testimonials
”One of the only technical based coaches I trust, Jason’s movement psychology teaching provides exactly the type of training that is needed to break into the film/tv market. Would highly recommend to actors hoping to be relevant in Vancouver casting rooms.” Daniel Diemer, (SACRED LIES)

“Graham has an unconventional head-to-tail approach to acting — he is able to create a teaching environment that feels safe to explore one’s individuality while celebrating the value of the team dynamic. Graham is one of the most caring and insightful teachers I have ever worked with.” Fletcher Donovan, A Million Little Things (ABC), Supernatural (FX Network), Unspeakable (CBC/Sundance TV), The Man in the High Castle (Amazon Studios), DRINK, SLAY, LOVE (Lifetime)

Biographies

Jason Stevens is a classically trained actor from the prestigious Drama Centre London, where he studied under the legendary founders Yat Malmgren and Christopher Fettes. The work was primarily based on Stanislavski’s “Method” combined with the Movement Psychology acting technique, which is rarely taught outside of the Drama Centre.

Students of Movement Psychology include Colin Firth, Sean Connery, Pierce Brosnan, Paul Bettany, and many others. The Drama Centre primarily trains actors for the National Theatre, Royal Shakespeare Company, British Repertory companies, and for the screen.

Jason worked as an actor in London and New York for many years, and in Canada he has performed with various theatre companies in Victoria and Vancouver. He is currently a working actor in film and television with representation in Vancouver.

Jason has been teaching classes in Movement Psychology as part of an 8-month program at the Victoria Academy of Dramatic Arts for seven years. He has also been teaching Audition Technique at 4 Corners, and will be offering this course again in the fall. Jason’s teaching presents actors in Canada with a rare opportunity to experience a closely guarded and legendary acting technique that provides a strong basis for actors to succeed in the genre of their choice. 75% of his past students are now professionally represented.

Graham McDonald is an actor’s director. He is also a co-founder of Grahamsey Theory, a boutique independent film production company in Victoria, BC. He is known for his hands-on and personal style of teaching and directing. Actors feel comfortable around him and he gets results. He has been producing independent film and theatre for over 20 years. His recent directing credits include: Norman – short film (SHORT CIRCUIT: Pacific Rim Film Festival 2019) Seat of My Pants Productions, Crown Appointed Counsellor – Grahamsey Theory (an ongoing improvised feature), Death – music video for August Mountain, Year-end Performance Project: Demo Reels with Ramsey Fendall, Things We Said Today by Neil LaBute – The Victoria Academy of Dramatic Arts, Bent by Martin Sherman – Victoria Refugee Initiative, Goers Art Project (short film), Autobahn by Neil LaBute – The Victoria Academy of Dramatic Arts, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea by John Patrick Shanley – Belle & The Tide, Lear by Edward Bond – The Victoria Academy of Arts, Runaway by Mika Laulainen – Theatre SKAM, Siblings (short film), the operas Cosi fan tutte by Mozart and Don Pasquale by Donizetti – Fear No Opera, Blackbird by David Harrower, The Walworth Farce by Enda Walsh, The Crackwalker by Judith Thompson, Shining City by Conor McPherson, Pornography by Simon Stephens, The Pillowman by Martin McDonagh, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, The Caretaker by Harold Pinter, The Life Inside by J.F. Tait (AD) – The Belfry, Swimming to Cambodia Spalding Gray, and Moscow Stations adapted from the novel Vendict Yerofeev by Steven Mulrine, which had its off Broadway debut in NYC. Graham has taught locally at VAD Arts, Kaleidoscope Theatre, and Theatre Inconnu. He has worked as a teacher and acting coach for the past 15 years.