This book is written for all companies, student and professional, who are interested in non-text-based theatre and shines a practical light on the passionate business of the devising process. It includes suggestions and advice on getting started and developing trust and communication within the devising company; how to research and use the results to stimulate ideas and discussion in the rehearsal period; encouraging, channelling, and developing ideas in the rehearsal room; discovering and incorporating the unexpected in rehearsal; backstage and design work, with sample checklists; raising money and organizing budgets; and how to stop talking, start playing, and develop the performance for an audience.

Ensemble devising can be a daunting prospect for many actors: it requires a level of imagination, commitment and risk-taking not always seen in conventional theatre. In this handy volume, Davis Robinson uses his wealth of knowledge and expertise, garnered over thirty years of devising, to teach you the ins and outs of ensemble theatre making. A Practical Guide to Ensemble Devising leads you through the process of collaborative theatre, from warm-ups and generating ideas to editing and polishing a performance. It features a comprehensive series of exercises throughout, which will allow you to build the foundational skills required for a range of productive ensemble work. By discussing the work of a number of internationally acclaimed practitioners, Robinson encourages you to develop your own unique style of performance. Lively and accessible, this book is invaluable for anyone interested in developing their devising skills.

Devising Theatre is a practical handbook that combines a critical analysis of contemporary devised theatre practice with descriptions of selected companies, and suggestions for any group devising theatre from scratch. It is the first book to propose a general theory of devised theatre. After identifying the unique nature of this type of performance, the author examines how devised theatre is perceived by professional practitioners, and provides an historical overview illustrating how it has evolved since the 1960s. Alison Oddey examines the particular working practices and products of a number of professional companies, including a Reminiscence theatre for the elderly and a theatre-in-education group, and offers ideas and exercises for exploration and experimentation.

‘This is a close companion to Frantic Assembly’s practice and one that is written with an open and engaging, even disarming, tone ... A rich, rewarding and compelling text.’ Stuart Andrews, University of Surrey As Frantic Assembly move into their twentieth year of producing innovative and adventurous theatre, this new edition of their well-loved book demystifies the process of devising theatre in an unusually candid way. Artistic directors Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett offer an intimate and invaluable insight into their evolution and success, in the hope that sharing their experiences of devising theatre will encourage and inspire students and fellow practitioners. The Frantic Assembly Book of Devising Theatre is a uniquely personal account of the history and practice of this remarkable company, and includes: · practical exercises · essays on devising, writing and choreography · suggestions for scene development · a 16-page colour section, and illustrations throughout · a companion website featuring clips of rehearsals and performances. This is an accessible, educational and indispensable introduction to the working processes of Frantic Assembly, whose playful, intelligent and dynamic productions continue to be acclaimed by audiences and critics alike.

A detailed guide to the collaborative method developed by the acclaimed creators of The Laramie Project and Gross Indecency--destined to become a classic. A Vintage Original. By Moisés Kaufman and Barbara Pitts McAdams with Leigh Fondakowski, Andy Paris, Greg Pierotti, Kelli Simpkins, Jimmy Maize, and Scott Barrow. For more than two decades, the members of Tectonic Theater Project have been rigorously experimenting with the process of theatrical creation. Here they set forth a detailed manual of their devising method and a thorough chronicle of how they wrote some of their best-known works. This book is for all theater artists—actors, writers, designers, and directors—who wish to create work that embraces the unbridled potential of the stage.

This book provides a fascinating and concise history of devised theatre practice. As both a founding member of Philadelphia’s Pig Iron Theater Company and a Professor, Telory Arendell begins this journey with a brief history of Joan Littlewood’s Theatre Workshop and Living Newspapers through Brecht’s Berliner Ensemble and Joe Chaikin’s Open Theatre to the racially inflected commentary of Luis Valdez’s Teatro Campesino and Ariane Mnouchkine’s collaboration with Théâtre de Soleil. This book explores the impact of devised theatre on social practice and analyzes Goat Island’s use of Pina Bausch’s gestural movement, Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed in Giving Voice, Anna Deavere Smith’s devised envelope for Verbatim Theatre, The Tectonic Theatre Project’s moment work, Teya Sepinuck’s Theatre of Witness, Pig Iron’s use of Lecoq mime to build complex physical theatre scripts, and The Riot Group’s musical arrangement of collaborative devised text. Included are a foreword by Allen J. Kuharski and three devised plays by Theatre of Witness, Pig Iron, and The Riot Group. Replete with interviews from the initial Pig Iron collaborators on subjects of writing, directing, choreographing, teaching, and developing a pedagogical platform that supports devised theatre.

This is a book-length study of the intense creative relationship between Tennessee Williams and Elia Kazan.