Students Perform Scene from “Melancholy Play”

Students from the Michael Chekhov Technique: A Psychophysical Approach to Acting hold prop balloons from the finale following the scenes they performed scenes from Sarah Ruhl’s “Melancholy Play.”

Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre and Performance Lenka Pichlíková Burke teaches the course, which covers the historical importance of Michael Chekhov in bringing revised Stanislavsky acting methods to America.

The techniques emphasize responses to psychological impulses via movement in harmony with the character’s thoughts, emotions, and desires.

Students infuse tangible actions of body and voice with intangible feelings, sensations, and images from the actor’s imagination, using techniques such as archetypal/psychological gestures and “centers” in character development.