How can drama enliven the spirit and be transformative?


Enlivening the creative spirit of students is the core principle of Screen Acting Studio. 

 

Where does this principle come from?

My own experience doing drama. I was lucky enough to have a passionate and generous acting teacher in high school who enlivened my creative spirit through her teaching. Her name was Mrs. Hayden, and I owe her my heartfelt gratitude. Her classes at my small country high school taught me ways to unlock my imagination, and to then use my mind, body, and voice, to create original characters. As a teenager, this was a transformative experience.

Why?


Well, I knew I had an expansive inner creative life (which was and still is the part of me that I like the most!), but had not found a way to meaningfully express it. Mrs. Hayden’s classes taught me how to do it.

What is catharsis?


Drama is an ancient art form. The drama that I studied at high school and university began in Ancient Greece over four thousand years ago. Aristotle, one of Ancient Greece’s most renowned philosophers, loved the theatre. His analysis of why theatre can be so powerful was that it enabled people to experience catharsis. Catharsis means to purify or to release repressed emotions. As the actor performing the character, or as the audience who experiences the performance (theatrical or screen), I have experienced this cleansing of repressed emotions. I have also experienced catharsis through other art forms like dance, music, and visual art. This not only enlivens my spirit but sparks feelings of joy, wonder, spiritual awakening, curiosity, empathy, and open-mindedness.

Why not just teach kids, why adults?


I was up to play any game at primary school and had few inhibitions about performing in front of people. Asan adult, I still love to play, but as I’ve gotten older the way I play has changed. Considerations of what others think have become more important, hence I want to know I am in a safe space when I need to open myself up to an audience, or peers, in a drama class or when performing professionally. And I still regard my creative inner life as the part of me that I like most. Therefore, I want to provide a safe space for other adults, young and old, to be able to connect to their inner life and express it.

You’ve been talking a lot about drama and the theatre… but your school is Screen Acting Studio?


If drama is a passion I feel with my heart, then screen stories are a passion that fascinates me intellectually. I love watching films (with a particular love for foreign films) and enjoy analysing the many art forms that combine to make a film, the actors I admire the most are screen actors, and I become obsessed when directing actors for the screen. So, although I still love the theatre, I want to teach you what I’m most passionate about – acting for the screen.

But who are you?
I grew up in the country on a farm, left home as a teenager, and moved to the big city to follow my passion for becoming an actor. I studied acting at university (University of New England, NSW & The Victorian College of the Arts), became a professional actor, then a professional filmmaker. I have taught various acting and filmmaking subjects at Deakin University, University of Melbourne, Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Film & TV Studio International, Footscray Community Arts Centre and Marian College. I have moved to regional Victoria and want to share my knowledge and passion for acting with as many people as possible.

 

I am currently studying for a Master of Teaching (Primary) at La Trobe University. 

 

My extensive knowledge of acting and filmmaking techniques helps me teach screen acting holistically. Therefore, I wear two teaching hats in my classes – the acting teacher and the screen director.


I hope these answers give you an insight into the philosophy of our school. If you have any further questions, please get in touch. I look forward to working with you to create original characters for the screen.