Methodology
In a Ta Ná Deptford workshop actors discover how to create performance by stripping down the architecture of conventional theatre.
There is:
No Stage
No Script
No Director
The Ta Ná Deptford actor
Tá Na Deptford is both liberating and empowering the actor by putting them in the creative control of the performance.
The only direction offered to a TND actor is music. TND actors must by listening to the music offered by the DJ create through their own impulsive actions a performance using the costumes and props available, their interaction with other TND actors and the performance space- be it in the workshop or on the street.
‘O melhor actor tem menos tempo e mais impulso’ - the best actor has less time and more impulse.
A TND actor must lean to act entirely through impulse. This is no easy task, when you consider that the TND workshop offers it’s actors the opportunity to act completely on their own direction but still requires them to create impressive performance.
The best TND actors are those who liberate their imagination- the belief that in theatre it is possible to present anything so long as you have confidence in what you are doing- in Ta Ná Deptford a bunch of flowers can become a shotgun so long as the actor holds the flowers with absolute conviction. They are those who feel a kind of natural inclination to perform to music. They are those would learn to work as part of a collective by taking on board and working with the ideas of other actors. They are those who consider the overall mise-en-secene of the performance, they must have spatial awareness, be sensitive to the colours, the era, the tone of the piece how it relates to them and what they can bring to it. And finally best TND actors are those who learn to take risks and trust their instincts, they must develop such confidence that when they feel the desire to enter- they enter!
The WorkshopThe question of what will happen in a Ta Ná Deptford workshop should in truth never be asked- a TND workshop will happen, and what happens- happens! However for the purpose of getting things off the group, in a place where nobody has experienced TND it is necessary to provide a little explanation. The TND workshop takes place in a space that offers it’s actors ample room to move, a sound system ready to play, and a door open for curious outsiders to enter, watch and if they feel the desire to- participate (provided they are willing to give and not take). Around the room is a vast array of costumes and props- of any era, of any place and for any purpose. In the room is a DJ who will spin tunes that may range from traditional English folk, to Hollywood Musicals, to Bijork- learn to expect anything. When the actors arrive they are offered no direction, they must choose when to enter the space. It is their decision which costumes to pick up and how to use these costumes. They must always remain true to the music- creating scenes that as with any good performance bring something to the music from a visual perspective. The best scenes are those which are unconventional, imaginative, reveal shrewd social insights, provoke emotion and demonstrate the skill of the actor (physical and intellectual). For example if a Hollywood classic such ‘New York New York’ were to come on, a collective of TND actors would not simply knee kick their way in rows down a stair-case. A collective of TND actors may try and create New York- revealing the rich, poor, good and ugly aspects of a ‘city that never sleeps’ in unison with the music. The DJ will continue to spin tracks, responding to what the TND actors are producing until they feel ready to stop- in Brazil this would run up to 3 hours. After the practical part of the workshop the TND actors must then come together to discuss what they have produced. I shall offer advice and guidance for technical issues raised. However it is important that all TND actors feel able to respond to what they produced, how they felt during and after, what is easy? Most importantly there should be a critical analysis of the scenes created.
A tale from Rio
In my experiences in Brazil one of the most revealing critical insights that occurred within a Ta Na Rua workshop was during a period of heavy rain in the city. Brazilians are not lovers of rain at the best of times, but the rain that had fallen the past week was particularly severe, brining Rio to a standstill and killing over 500 people in the city (mostly those living in slum housing)- the city was essentially in mourning. The workshop was made difficult by tragic course of events playing heavily on the minds of the participants when suddenly the DJ played the classic Hollywood hit ‘Singing in the Rain’. Having brought with me my florescent pink mac and umbrella, I immediately sprang to life, the music instantly evoking for me happy memories of imitating Frank Sinatra upon many a rainy street, swinging around on many a wet street lamp. I set about the dance, looking like a Sinatra-possessed Barbie doll, only to discover mid way through the music that my fellow Brazilian TNR actors had created something quite different. Inspired by the tragic events of the previous week they had set about showing the frightening destruction of the poorest houses in their city. Grabbing household objects, fake money and clothing actors began slowly tumbling down the back steps of the performance space until a disarrayed mound of bodies and goods was formed on the floor. The only performer who chose to move with to the light and happy speed of the music was one who represented death, with a long black cloak and carnival mask. Turning around I was suddenly made aware quite how frightening, tragic, and in many senses perverse the scene had become mirroring exactly the emotions of the city at the time. The rain had been frightening in that it was simply an uncontrollable force of nature, tragic given the number of people killed and yet perverse in that like all things in Rio the real effect had been weighted upon those living on the lower margins of society who were now left homeless in a city which offered little social support. The scene had offered both an interesting social insight and an important lesson from my perspective with regards to the fact that a TNR actor must at all times no matter how strong the impulse remember their actions should always work within the collective.
Who are these workshops for?
These workshops are for professional actors/ dancers or anyone who believes they have the physical stamina and create insight to explore these techniques.
They will appeal to trained actors/ dancers who wish to learn techniques that go beyond conventional training, seek to experiment with working with music and dance, would like to build confidence in improvisation and character development, and desire to be more creative. TND will definitely appeal to those interested in musical theatre- actors who wish to build their physical skills through dance or alternatively dancers who wish to develop themselves as actors.
But also:
Anyone who loves to DANCE.
Anyone interested in different avenues of theatre theory -particularly those who admire the work of Grotowski.
Anyone who wishes to develop their own self confidence and wants is open try something new.
Anyone who needs a release.
