Viewpoints, Suzuki Method & Pace Work
Frida ... A Self Portrait actor and playwright Vanessa Severo is trained and certified in Viewpoints and Suzuki Method. This workshop will introduce you to these tools, with a focus on flexibility, articulation, making ensemble playing a reality, as well as strength in movement and speaking. Vanessa hopes to "unlock a sense of wonder and discovery, by experiencing the use of your whole, true, honest, simple self in a wide range of training and performance situations."
Attendees should come dressed and ready to move for class in bare feet, wearing shorts, footless leggings, or sweat pants and a T-shirt. (No jeans, jewelry, or loose hair please.)
This class is appropriate for all skill levels and is recommended for ages 12 and above. No prior acting experience is required.
Viewpoints Training
Viewpoints is a technique of improvisation which grew out of the post‐modern dance world. It was first articulated by choreographer Mary Overlie, who broke down the two dominant issues performers deal with ‐ time and space ‐ into six categories. She called her approach The Six Viewpoints. Since that time, Anne Bogart and the SITI Company have expanded her notions and adapted them for actors. The Nine Viewpoints allow a group of actors to function together spontaneously and intuitively and to generate bold, theatrical work quickly.
The Suzuki Method of Actor Training
Developed by internationally acclaimed director Tadashi Suzuki and the Suzuki Company of Toga, the Suzuki Method’s principal concern is with restoring the wholeness of the human body to the theatrical context and uncovering the actor’s innate expressive abilities. A rigorous physical discipline drawn from such diverse influences as ballet, traditional Japanese and Greek theater, and martial arts, the training seeks to heighten the actor’s emotional and physical power and commitment to each moment on stage.
Pace Work
Vanessa will use pace exercises to show how changes in speed can be a tool to isolate important characters. Through this approach, she will demonstrate how movement direction can shift the audience's focus to suit the demands of the play.
Vanessa's regional acting credits include Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Frida … A Self Portrait, Sex with Strangers, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, August Osage County, Cabaret, Lot’s Wife (KCRep); Much Ado About Nothing, Twelfth Night (Heart Of America Shakespeare Festival); The Revolutionists, Men on Boats, Mother F**ker with the Hat, Venus in Fur, The Clean House (The Unicorn Theatre). Fellowships/residencies/awards: Recipient of the TCG 11th Round of the Fox Foundation Resident Actor Fellowships, 2017 (KCRep), Frida … A Self Portrait (2020 Kilroys’ List), certified in Suzuki method and Viewpoints under the instruction of Ellen Lauren, SITI Company. Education: Studied at Missouri State University, as well as The American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco.
Current & Upcoming
Art Exhibit: ¡Soy Yo! by Mika Martinez
¡Soy Yo!, is a multi-media project, created by Mika Martinez, that examines and celebrates Latinx identity featuring more than 50 portraits of the Hispanic/Latino community in Portland.
Piano Bar with Courtney Freed and David Saffert
Join us for this monthly event with local songstress Courtney Freed and Portland-based pianist David Saffert as they host a good old-fashioned PIANO BAR.
Improvisation Classes for Beginners
Whether you're looking to get more confident in social situations, think quicker on your feet, or get in touch with your imaginative side, these "one-off" improv classes will set you on the path to success!
Nassim
From Iranian playwright Nassim Soleimanpour (creator of the Off-Broadway smash hit White Rabbit, Red Rabbit) comes an audacious new theatrical experiment, presented in collaboration with Boom Arts. Each night, a new, unrehearsed local performer joins the playwright on stage, while the script waits, unseen, in a sealed box... Touchingly autobiographical yet powerfully universal, NASSIM is a striking theatrical demonstration of how language can both divide and unite us.
Art Exhibit: Garam Garam Chai by Yusra Siddiqui
Portland Center Stage will host Garam Garam Chai, an art exhibit by Portland-based multidisciplinary artist Yusra Siddiqui, featuring a series of hand-sewn teabag printmaking pieces that serve as a contemplation of the communal tea times shared between Desi and British culture.
Coriolanus
Shakespeare’s tragedy about the war hero Coriolanus and the fight between the elite and the deprived masses will be fueled by a dynamic female and non-binary ensemble with a muscular, movement-focused staging.
Portland Center Stage is committed to identifying & interrupting instances of racism & all forms of oppression, through the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, & accessibility (IDEA).
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