DRAMA AND ENGLISH WORKSHOPS

IAMBIC PENTAMETER - SHAKESPEARE'S STAGE DIRECTIONS!


From an actor’s perspective, and via live performances from the selected play, I take students through how the beat reflects what Shakespeare was trying to communicate - how he directs the play from beyond the grave!


This extremely popular talk helps students understand iambic pentameter with demonstrations (both Shakespearean and modern!) of how it reflects every day life.


I help students not be afraid of the verse, but to see it as a tool to unlocking a scene. For the younger age groups, just to hear some of the more difficult passages performed - and with great enthusiasm - gives them the boost in confidence they need!


Students participate actively throughout as penny stinkards and by reading scenes with me. We then stage scenes from the target play in which students put their new-found understanding of verse and its irregularities to the test!


I am happy to talk on any Shakespeare play and my love of iambic pentameter is infectious! I also enjoy bringing out the comedy of the piece - you may well see an occurrence of a 4ft beard to play the older characters!


CREDENTIALS


As actor:

My enthusiasm for all things Shakespeare is genuine. I have just finished on the West End in A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Arts Theatre West End. In my time, I have performed in countless Shakespeare plays all over the world. For example, I toured twice with the European Theatre Group (alumni include Ian McKellen and Stephen Fry), performing in A Midsummer Night’s Dream and alongside Derek Jacobi’s ‘Ghost’ in Hamlet. I also appeared in Romeo and Juliet, directed by Charlotte Westenra at the Cambridge Arts Theatre. More recently, I performed in Civil Rogues (developed at the RSC’s Other Space) and am currently rehearsing my Shakespeare-infused One Woman Show, Words, words, words, which deals with grief and the incapacity of words, using excerpts from his plays to explore this. Premiering at the Leicester Square Theatre next year, please see the play’s website for more information and performance dates.

As teacher:

I studied English at Cambridge University, choosing a paper in Shakespeare in Performance and trained for three years on the Acting course at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. I then went on to teach a summer school on Macbeth at Pembroke College, Cambridge. I also regularly give interactive talks for AIM Conferences on 'Shakespeare from an Actor's Perspective', most recently on The Tempest and King Lear. I have trained with Shakespeare for Kids and work as part of the Ob Education team, delivering workshops on Exam Technique in schools across the country.


STUDENT AND TEACHER REVIEWS

Contact me on lowri@lowriamies.com or by using the form below.