Masters of Invention
The Philip Saville Studio isn'it your usual run-of-the-mill acting class. Here you will tackle one of the hardest, yet one of the most enjoyable topics in the dramatic art. Original in it's originality, improvisation requires quick thinking, even quicker acting, and the ability to forge a believable character out of spontaneous imagination.
"Within a room at RADA, a group of actors led by Philip Saville will work together to create improvisational drama. Before long, stories will emerge, whether through a set theme, or through individual exercises that encourage everyone to express their inner sanctum of hopes, dreams and other secrets. Sometimes reality and fiction will merge as performers reveal parts of themselves through the characters they create and the stories they weave. Without enough time to plan a performance, actors must resort to more emotional reflexive acting.
An example of an exercise you might encounter is 'The Guilt Chamber’, where a crime has been committed and the actor who has already been sentenced has a chance to redeem him or herself in front of the group. A kangaroo court listens and questions the person in the dock about the perceived crime, which emerges through the inquisition. The group will ultimately give it's verdict, through a thumbs up or down, whether the defendant goes free or to the gallows.
In improvisational drama the theme might be set, but the actors must propel the stories through the development of the characters they are playing. Without a script, the interplay between relationships creates it's own impetus. In the hands of gifted improvisers the results make riveting stories, so younger less experienced actors will find it easy to improve their game when acting alongside established performers.
Finally, what makes this different from the usual spontaneous reality TV, is that the group have a common purpose. Whether it be writing or performing, the classes provide a creative experience that offers an opportunity for the participants to develop their own potential in their own direction, and to be masters of their own invention. Improvisation is the grittiest and most real form of acting, and there's so much room for those elements of surprise. Like life, it is unrehearsed."
- Nina Saville
"I think that improvisation is used too infrequently in the build-up to creating a character in the professional arena. With improvisation, one can explore the possibilities of one's role and the situation, without endangering the position of the script. Also, one is much more free to explore when liberated from the necessary restraints of the script. The rewards are often numerous with aspects of the character; background history, interweaving relationships and much besides, that may not even be hinted at in the script but are nevertheless valuable to the process of putting together a layered character. Often, and this is something that I have experienced, one discovers or touches upon areas within the script that the writer had in mind at some point or were in early drafts, that never made it to the final. What I did in the session with you was a reminder of all that and made it clear to me that I miss the process."
- Bernard Hill
