WHAT IS KaDISS
The Kalamata Drama International Summer School (KaDISS) is an intensive 3-week course, for a limited number of participants, taught in English, held annually at a designated venue in the city of Kalamata, teaching the practice of acting. Classes are held Monday-Friday 09:00 to 16:00 and Saturdays 9.00 – 13.00. Students should also set aside time for daily preparation. The cost of participation in the programme is € 1,500.
Kalamata Drama International Summer School is the established focal point for Kalamata Drama, a broader vision of international performance-oriented events, projects, masterclasses, workshops and educational seminars held regularly in the city of Kalamata throughout the year, starting autumn 2021. Watch the News page of our site.
WHAT IS KaDISS
The Kalamata Drama International Summer School (KaDISS) is a new, intensive 3-week course, for a limited number of participants, taught in English, to be held annually at a designated venue in the city of Kalamata, teaching the practice of acting. Classes will be held Monday-Friday 09:00 to 16:30 and Saturdays 9.00 – 13.00. Students should also set aside time for daily preparation. The cost of particiaption in the programme is € 1,500.
WHO IS IT FOR?
The Summer School reaches out to young performers worldwide. It is aimed at professional actors, graduates of drama schools and young people who already have professional experience in performance as well as those who require an acting ability/foundation in other areas of the performing arts, such as opera and music theatre, and who want to evolve their own methodology and skills in acting.
Age: 18+
The 3-week Summer School provides an invaluable resource for actors-in-training or actors at the early stage in their career as well as those wishing for a rigorous re appraisal of their abilities and skills. The aim is to develop the actor’s flexibility in performance through an encounter with the two fundamental genres in European theatre.
HOW IS IT TAUGHT?
The course is taught in English by a team of tutor-practitioners of international reputation.
Through immersion in and exploration of the dramatic language of Shakespeare (Scene Study) and approaches to ritual-based Greek Classical Theatre (Classical Theatre Lab) as dual foundations, as well as Physical Performance and Vocal Performance, the intensive course provides comprehensive re-examination of the actor’s craft through reasoned preparation, focused energy and stimulated imagination, as well as enhancement of skills within the framework of ensemble theatre-making. Daily Vocal and Physical Performance classes hone the student’s self-discipline and liberate the actor’s body by providing skills to widen the perspective of contemporary theatre practice through somatic flexibility and expression.
COURSE CONTENT
The course includes daily classes in voice and verse, movement, text and character study through the language of William Shakespeare. The performative scope of the text and its embodiment by the actor are explored by way of imaginative engagement, improvisation and use of the classical mask. The course culminates in workshop productions of scenes from Shakespeare’s plays, or of an abridged Shakespeare play. The voice and movement skills classes complement the performance projects. The daily classes and rigorous rehearsal practice empower the participant to creative interpretation and sustained performance in a variety of conventions, disciplines and styles.
The students (optimal number in a group 8 – 12) are led by the Artistic Director of the course, who will work on interpretation directly from the text and rehearse an abridged version of a play, or a selection of scenes from different plays by Shakespeare for a showcase presentation of about 90 minutes’ duration.
Approaches to Classical Drama investigates how mask work helps the actor to focus, listen, develop an instinctual response, interpret outside of traditional convention and perform as part of an ensemble.
The programme teaches how to recognise stereotypes and received ideas and to apply observation and imagination.
Become an integral member of an ensemble which, in response to given circumstances provided by the human drama, collaboratively contributes to the world of the play.
The Physical Performance and the Vocal Performance, including verse, while focusing on the actors’ technical proficiency and professional self-discipline, link directly to the work on the showcase presentations.
WEEKS 1 & 2
The focus is on regular physical performance and vocal performance exercises, acquisition of methodology in a close approach to Shakespeare’s world, text and character in Scene Study and exercises in tuning physical and sensory faculties through the Classical Theatre Lab and mask work, all within the framework of ensemble theatre-making.
WEEK 3
Physical Performance and Vocal Performance classes complement the rehearsals and may involve work in the open air and work with masks. Two evenings are devoted to giving students individual voice and movement feedback. The week ends with a vocal and physical workout prior to a 60-90-minute presentation of the work in Shakespeare Scene Study followed by informal feedback from teaching staff.
Written feedback from students is actively sought at the end of the course.
GROWTH THROUGH PRACTICE
Although on the Timetable the days look the same, each day is different. In Scene Study the rehearsals are progressive from day to day: new exercises are set from day to day and new scenes and monologues explored. The Movement and Voice Classes develop in complexity and in demand from day to day, complementing the Scene Study work. The same applies to the Classical Theatre Lab which is based on developing practice and Movement and Voice, expanding approach by embracing this area of exploration.
Each year different plays will be chosen to explore, rehearse and perform in Scene Study and the Classical Lab. The skills’ classes complement the plays, so each year the course acquires a different tone and students may well wish to return to benefit from further development and diverse practice.
STANDARD OF THE COURSE
All classes are run by top-level practitioners, each with extensive teaching experience. A professional standard of theatre practice is maintained throughout the 3 weeks’ duration of the course: this includes stringent timekeeping, mutual respect in the workplace and encouragement to achieve best results. This is particularly important in the culturally diverse environment of the Summer School. Any student not able to rise to the ethical or professional standards set by the Summer School will be asked to leave the Course.
We aim to invite creative collaborators to benefit our students as well as inviting leading practitioners of international reputation to run specialised workshops.
AIMS OF THE COURSE
To provide a facility at an internationally recognised level for young actors to hone their skills and broaden their professional capability.
OUTCOMES OF THE COURSE
For the student, an enhanced artistic flexibility in two fundamental areas of theatre and a sense of achievement at a high level of professional practice. Encounters with tutors and students from diverse cultural, social and artistic backgrounds.
Change of outlook to theatre practice and to the world in general through the sheer experience of group participation and staying in Kalamata.
