Neutral Mask For Actors (ETCETERA PERFORMERS LAB)

Information

Neutral Mask For Actors

How does having our face covered change how we act? Can we use this restriction to find full engagement and presence with our body when on stage?

In life we build up habits that get in the way of our choices as actors, a neutral mask offers a way to observe the body more accutely, to find a deeper presence, embodiment, and sensitivity to impulses. This intensive workshop will explore how we can use neutrality to be aware of our bodies, differences, and habits to find deeper presence with ourselves and our body on stage as performers.
Drawing on different approaches we will playfully look at what we can learn from neutral, finding power (and perhaps comedy) in simplicity in order to explore to what extent our use of space and rhythm alone be enough to intrigue an audience.

What to expect:

Games and movement work to find a heightened awareness of the body.
Exploration with Neutral’s response to surroundings and mirroring.
Using the neutral mask to notice habits and tension - how can awareness move us towards deeper presence.
Putting a neutral mask into scenarios and experimenting with how it can be used as actors.

Feedback for Rob's Workshops:
"The Neutral mask workshop helped me engage more with the scene and get out if my head. It allowed me to “be” instead of “acting”. I am really grateful and would like some more please!" - Neutral Mask Participant

"Rob created a friendly environment that allowed me to take risks. To make simplistic choices and modifications, which held big impact. It was a privilege to work with such a fascinating performance concept, taught by a brilliant teacher who is proficient in creating a feeling of connection and comradery in a matter of hours" - Neutral Mask Participant

"I’ve learned so much from Rob’s workshops, he maintains playfulness whilst going deep into technique and freeing us as performers." - Acting student at Central School of Speech and Drama

"Rob McCloskey is the real deal, with deep commitment to community, creativity and those in his workshops... He’s a wonderful force." - David Glass, Physical Theatre director

"One of the most exciting and freeing guest teachers we've had in" - Northbrook College student.

"I thoroughly recommend Rob's workshops, he is just an exceptional teacher and such a pleasure to learn from" - Devising workshop participant

Experience Highlights:
Guest Teacher - Devising - University of Cambridge
Director - Tip of Your Tongue - ★★★★ "Beautiful. Dreamlike. Split Hairs have produced something profound" - Fringe Review
Director - SQUELCH! - ★★★★★ "This is a kind of comedy I haven't seen in recent times... had the audience in fits of the laughter the entire time." - Voice Mag
Performer - Earth Teeth - Brighton Festival and Brighton Dome.

Social Media:
@robertjmccloskey
@splithairstheatre

Bio:
Rob McCloskey is a theatre maker and the Artistic Director of Split Hairs Theatre. He trained internationally in physical and devised theatre at the École Philippe Gaulier, Grotowski Institute, and in workshops with specialist theatre directors such as David Glass, John Wright, and Tanushka Marah. He has toured across the UK receiving 5 star reviews and audience acclaim - described as 'perfectly achieved physical theatre... immensely evocative.' As a teacher Rob has taught devising, mask, clown and performance at University of Cambridge, and Northbrook College as well as workshops with his company in Brighton.