This month I brought my sound healer, Rachelle, into the Meisner and Screen Acting School to work with my students.
It was a chance for us to explore working together further through the first trial run of a workshop about employing a more spiritual, energy-based acting technique.
As the school is on a limited budget I paid for her time out of my wages and my own funds. I saw this as a vital chance to build a working relationship.
She was also travelling from quite a distance on a Sunday to do an hour with this group. The least I could do was make it worthwhile.
It was easy enough to set up the space; the kit needed is pretty minimal. I had told all the students to bring something to keep them warm during the session and something to lie on. Apart from one straggler, everyone came prepared and got the most out of it, so now I know it’s not a great ask in other workshops to ask actors to come with the same materials.
Energies
The session was incredible. I sat halfway between taking part and holding the space. The energies and shifts that occurred in the room in such a short space of time (30 minutes) were amazing.
I realised we should timetable grounding time for any participants so they are not left stranded with any emotions that may come up when they leave
The sound bath was geared towards creativity and removing blocks to this. The students were incredibly open.
The fact we have been opening every class with a guided meditation for two months now had made them grounded and open to new experiences and ways of working. I need to bear this in mind for participants who may not have done any such work previously.
After the session, we had a short feedback session. Then I gave them a brief break and Rachelle and I discussed what had occurred.
She was just as taken aback with how the session had gone. We felt like we were really onto something here!
When they returned we took them through the toning work. We began by going through the chakra system and how this corresponds to emotions/thinking and creativity. Then Rachelle took them through toning for each chakra.
After which we took them through toning in pairs – the variation on the Meisner Repetition Exercise. Actors connecting solely through sound – no words at all, just sound and energy centres.
Rachelle left and the remaining two hours were then going to be scene study. Except now the energetic clearing started, which I had not anticipated.
As the creative blocks were removed and brought to the surface, one student burst into tears and left the room. Another said she no longer wanted to be an actress and did not want to do the work set.
A third started crying during her scene. Her work was incredible. She found in the scene a way to release her blocks and meld this with the inner world of the character, doing work I have never seen her attempt before.
I allowed the other two to sit it out in the cafe and told them this was part of the sound-healing process – they were “clearing”. Half an hour later and they returned – smiling and saying they were not sure what had happened but they now felt much lighter and eager to do the work. We ended up with a very productive afternoon of breakthroughs and new work.
It made me realise that we will have to timetable grounding time for any participants so they are not left stranded with any emotions that may come up when they leave. And perhaps some kind of follow up email to see how they are doing, which I did with my students that evening.
Rachelle and I now have a working template for our workshops. Now I have to put together a pitch for drama schools, professional actors and for theatres. I know we have something that works on a whole new level – now I need to find a way to sell it.
