HELIKOS | THE POLITICS OF THE FOOL

THE POLITICS OF THE FOOL

2 November, 2017 → 5 November, 2017 - HOBART - Tasmania

Clown,

Bouffons

and Physical Comedy

for social, political and environmental action

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IT’S TIME TO CALL FOR THE CRAZY WISDOM OF THE FOOL

We live in times of great intensity. We live in times of collective tragedies and individual dilemmas. The planet is heating up, the hot spots are burning, the systems are crushing. Politics often seem fully out of touch with the heart of the world.

As theatre artists passionate about comedy and humor, we feel the call to bring our art where the wound is hurting and contribute to the individual and collective healing of the world.

But sometimes, to keep laughing, or even smiling, feels very hard. Tears swell behind the eyes of the clowns and we may fall into the overwhelming sense that the task is too big, we are too few, the mess is too much, the hurt is too deep…

That is when we need to breath deeply and call for the Crazy Wisdom of The FOOL.

The Fool reminds us to embrace it all, jump of the cliff and enjoy the fall.
The Fool whispers to us that fear is excitement without breath.

She reminds us that laughter is about letting go; she reminds us to abandon all intentions and celebrate all compassions.

He teaches us that identity is a process, and that we can all shapeshift into each other. Nobody is just good or just evil. Individuals, groups, societies do change; their mind, their heart and their bodies do trans-form.

She reminds us the in the end we are going to die, and that is really sad, but not just. If we stay in the here and now, vitality will save us.

He reminds us that every gestures saves the whole world, that all laughter is a drop of balm for the heart of us all.

She inspires us to not take ourselves too seriously and play even more, play with everything and everybody, play till the end, play from the personal and collective heart of the world.

There is crack in everything, that's how the light gets in.

(Leonard Cohen)

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A SEMINAR

A Seminar is a playful epistemological banquet. 

A Seminar is a space of reflection and intellectual elaboration: it creates a field of discussion, with analysis, examples, questions and synthesis. Experiential exercises are integrated by moments of discussion and intellectual, poetical and emotional integration.
A Seminar gives food for the mind, references, history of ideas, articulation of principles, awareness of awareness.  
Etymology tells us that the word theory means something you observe, a spectacle. It is connected with the word theatre. They both contain the element thea = to look at, to see, to have visions. A theory is a choreography of ideas and principles moving in the mind space and seen by awareness. An intellectual performance to attend and enjoy. A theory that can’t be performed in space is, most likely, not that good. 

The seminar will include different ingredients:  

- Lectures on pedagogic theory and practice
- Collective Exercises 
- Improvisations 
- Work in small groups 
- Discussion on the questions from the participants
- Supervision of projects or scenes presented by the participants

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THE PROGRAM

ELEMENTS of THEORY: the lineage of the work and the political dimension of the body and teh theatrical process:

- Movement Based Theatre of Jacques Lecoq: everything moves and to imitate the world is to know the world and play with it. The Poetic Body and the Masks. 
- Gestalt: being in contact with the here and now. 
- The somatic lineage of Wilhelm Reich: what is not expressed remains impressed in the body. The cycle of embodiment of emotions: excitation, repression, impression, expression, amplification, play. The political body.
 - Archetypal Psychology : our psyche is a community of roles, figures and characters. And so is society.
- Process Work: the Dreambody and the shapeshifting nature of our psyche.
- Elements of History of Theatre and its relationship with politics. 
The Greek Roots: Tragedy, Satiric Drama and Comedy
The Indigenous Roots: theatre as a ritual of collective ecstasy and shapeshifting
Theatre as communal storytelling.

Day 1: Clowns
The sublime stupidity of the Clown.
The individual clown as an amplification of somatic processes.
Laughing at oneself: Humor for Activists.
The Hero and the Clown: the fight and the letting go.

Day 2: Physical Characters
Characters: passions, urges and dramatic drives.
Creating and Playing with Physical characters.
Mask and counter-mask.
States of consciousness and states of awareness: play as a non-ordinary state.  

Day 3 Grotesque Characters
Levels of expression and levels of playing.
Amplification and grotesque.
Amplification as revelation of the shadow.
Using grotesque characters to mirror the roles of society. 

Day 4: Bouffons
Collective Tragedies and the Collective Roles.
Playing with the wound: the excitation of the hurt.
From roles to games: the dynamic of mocking.
Mocking as knowledge. Mocking as compassion. Mocking as provocation.
Satire and paradoxical storytelling.

Finale: Death as a Trickster. 
Death as an ally: the Fool and the King working together.

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ADMISSION

Drawing from the practice and the lineage of movement based theatre, as well as the wisdom of myths, Archetypal and Somatic Psychology and Process Work, this seminar wishes to provide a space of learning, inspiration and practice for theatre practitioners who are active in theatre both as artists and activists.

This seminar is open to anyone involved in the arts, education, social work, health care, politics, community work: performers, directors, writers, educators, teachers, social workers, therapists, community organizers and leaders, politicians… and any caring citizen wishing to explore the connection between movement based theatre and political, social and environmental action, both on an intellectual level and in an experiential way. With play, humor and fun.

The experiential part of the seminar will offer tools for self-awareness through the power of expression, embodiment and humor, as well as theatrical tool for direct action.

Previous experiences and practice of movement based theatre are required.

A strong and playful desire of diving in one’s own folly is required !  

The seminar will provide a variety of insights, knowledge, exercises and tools for practitioners. All material will be shared for the common good of individual and collective awareness and as a celebration of pedagogic research and creation.  
See you in the playing field.  

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PRACTICALITIES

LOCATION 

South Hobart Living Arts Centre, 408 Maquarie St, South Hobart.

https://www.southhobartlivingartscentre.com/

SCHEDULE 
Classes are from 9:30 to 1 and from 2:00 to 5:30 
The workshop is a whole so it is not possible to attend it only in parts. 

TUITION
Sliding scale: 300 AUD to 550 AUD

The sliding scale wants to make the seminar financially accessible to a larger field of people. In the spirit of Permaculture Ethics (care for the land, care for the people, share the surplus), those who can afford the full tuition are encouraged to do so, so that a surplus can be generated and shared.
Half of the sum generated by the seminar will fund the Helikos School and the setting up of its new program.
A small number of work-exchange scholarship are available. If you are interested please contact Giovanni.

ENROLMENT

To apply to the workshop please send a brief letter of motivation by e-mail, sharing something about why you wish to attend this training. Once the application is accepted, applicants can confirm their enrollment by sending a AUS$ 150 non-refundable deposit.

Once accepted, places will be given in order of arrival.

Please note that the number of participants is limited to 24.

Please note that the workshop is a learning continuum, so it is not possible to attend the class only in parts, or to miss any session of the work.

For further information about the content of the workshop, please contact Giovanni Fusetti

For applications, enrolment and practical enquiries please contact:

Phone: 0476785679

PHOTO CREDITS

Picture n.1: Charlie Chapli in THE GREAT DICTATOR (1940)  Picture n.2: A Bouffons perfomance at the Dell'Arte School of Physical Theatre, 2006  Picture n.3: Grotesque Characters at KIKLOS SCHOOL, 2002  Picture n.4: Theatre of the Absurd at KIKLOS SCHOOL, 2001  Picture n.5: Bouffons at HELIKOS SCHOOL 2014  Picture n.6: ZORAN for GlobalHeartWarming.org, Comedy videos on Climate change