Sessions will start Wednesday 2nd July 7pm -9pm and will run for 5 consecutive weeks, finishing on 30th July. Attendees must commit to attending all sessions.

All workshops will take place at The Old Courts & the exact venues will be confirmed ahead of the sessions.

Using storytelling, voice, movement, words, research and everything in between, devised theatre is about creating with everything available to you in the moment. It’s about collaborating across disciplines and creating theatre with the skills and ideas of the ensemble.

Across 5 sessions, we will explore various aspects of devised theatre. Whether you are a writer, musician, designer, dancer, actor, producer; these sessions will encourage you to utilise your skills to create original theatre using the immediate and imaginative practice of Devised Theatre.

Session Breakdown

1 – Devising Characters (2nd July)
An introduction to devising with a focus on character creation. How can we use characters as a starting point for devising?

2 – In Depth Relationships (9th July)
Having looked at large, expressive forms of devised theatre in previous sessions, we’ll use the intimate Holding Cell at the Old Courts to hone in on personal relationships. Focussing on the subtle details that make a performance feel real.

3 – Music and Theatre (16th July)
We’ll use instruments, voice and anything we can make a noise out of, to explore actor musician methodology in a devising setting.

4 – Ensemble Movement (23rd July)
Working collaboratively and physically to explore theatre through movement. What points of connection and distance can we find to devise exciting physical theatre?

5 – Paving the Way (30th July)
Putting our devising work into practice, we will explore how the networking community at Old Courts will continue into the future and what shape it may take.

These sessions are funded by Arts Council England and Greater Manchester Combined Authority, allowing us to offer them to participants for free. Please only sign up if you can attend all 5 sessions.