harnessing the creative energy of the shadow for solo devising!
If you’ve never tried Bouffon, in this workshop we will be covering some of the foundational techniques so you can get a taste of this anarchic and deliciously wicked genre of performance and training. If you are familiar with Bouffon, you know its explosiveness and intensity require constant practice, so come try it out in a different way. In this workshop we will begin to playfully explore our personal ‘shadow’, harnessing reserves of untapped energy and a rich source of creative material.
Bouffon expresses itself in the arts in a hundred different ways. It leaks out in our horror films, in stand-up comedy, in television satire, and permeates a diverse range of characters; villains, or anarchic innocents whom seduce us, touch us and even reveal themselves to be beautiful and disturbingly familiar. Sometimes it is just in the attitude or action of an artist who wishes to break with convention and confront something ugly and universal in their audience. Whether it be a little or a lot, working with Bouffon can be a powerful vehicle for getting audiences to sit up and pay attention.
Bouffons are uniquely positioned to make fun of everything and everyone, disrupting the status quo in a delightfully joyous way. Where better to start than with ourselves?
in this practical workshop you will:
Discover why the shadow is so useful in our creative work
liberate reserves of energy through play and pushing boundaries
work with levels of parody from the subtle to the extreme
revel in the pleasure of mockery
experiment in Bouffon chorus
understand how physical transformation and the power of disguise allow exploration of the shadow aspect of our artistic expression
practice using sophisticated rhythms, manipulation and surprise in order to empower your Bouffon
Mine the shadow for a more personalized monster and material which could be developed into a solo piece
about jaime mears:
Jaime Mears - Australia Jaime is a Churchill Fellow for excellence in the Performing Arts. She has worked professionally in theatre, film and television both in Australia and in Portugal since 1999. She is a graduate of the National Institute of Dramatic Art NIDA in Sydney. In 2007 Jaime was awarded several arts grants including the Churchill Fellowship, a Mike Walsh grant and an Australia Council Arts development grant for which took her to Paris, New York and the UK to pursue further training with Philippe Gaulier Anne Bogart and the SITI Company, Keith Johnstone and Complicité. She is a member of the SITI Extended Ensemble. She has taught Bouffon in the UK, Russia, Australia, Hungary and Denmark as well as in Portugal where she works regularly for Theatre schools such as ESMAE, ESTAL, Espaço EVOE, and Inimpetus. Jaime works as an actress and theatre maker for Companhia Caótica e Mente do Cão in Lisbon. She has been touring Duncan Macmillans’ Every Brilliant Thing to secondary schools in Portugal since 2022. She works as a hospital Clown for Operação Nariz Vermelho and regularly performs as an idiot, which she cites as an effective prevention against taking herself too seriously.
www.jaimemears.com
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