Photo by Shift Focus / John Edward James Photography
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
Next one: 2nd November, 7-8.30pm
(Register below) Maybe you've enjoyed some stillness and taken the opportunity to breathe, and now you're reaching out. Maybe you've felt really overwhelmed and have pulled away from your creativity or questioned who you are, and now you're reaching out. Maybe you feel heavy in your heart or lost in your head, so now you're reaching out. Maybe you've been frantically working to keep yourself and/or others afloat or your mind busy, but now you're reaching out. Maybe you're feeling warm, lifted and supported, And you're here to extend that out. Either way, join us. There'll be no pressure to be anything other than here.
CONNECT is simply a space for us to come together
breathe, talk, listen, be and most importantly, connect. Not on a business level but on a personal one. No frills. No money, no agenda. Just us in this positive space. I'll guide you through, don't worry. If you are an Actor and/or Maker then this space is absolutely for you. Will there be moments of awkward Zoom etiquette? Of course there will! But it'll shift quickly if you let it. I am a firm believer that together we can rise the tide. So let's wrap our arms around each other. Steph x Fill in the registration form below to get the Zoom link :-)
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 NB this is our Steph but it is not a Both Feet project
Deadline to apply: Monday 28th Sept, noon Group audition on Zoom - times to be allocated, Tuesday 6th October 3 weeks in January 2021 (tbc) @ £494/week We’re very keen to hear from a diverse range of actors to ensure the piece reflects the diverse social and cultural world we live in. To apply: Complete this application form Must haves: Confidence in your ability to work with improvisation A willingness to jump in and explore An openness to devising The project: Award winning writer Sam Brady and director Stephanie Upsall love to make work from the heart whilst also pushing boundaries. This project will be doing exactly that as an unscripted, interactive play that combines Zoom and live performance. We’ll say no more. Rehearsals will more than likely be all on Zoom but we’re considering bringing us all together at some point, that would be in Manchester. A decision will be made closer to the time. This first stage is for the R&D (with an online public showback) which will inform a full piece later in the year. Everything is subject to a successful funding bid. We do have a history of receiving ACE funding, working in this format and working with each other so we stand in good stead. If you’re successful in getting an audition we’ll give you full info and a time slot. Our promise to you: we’ll be in touch either way. Any questions, please get in touch: stephanie@both-feet.co.uk "We had an amazing time, getting dressed and not having to wait in a queue for the toilet! Haha ?"
Theatre meets ZOOM: Live performances by the Both Feet community
Sunday 2nd August 7.30 - 9pm ("doors" open from 6.45pm) @ Your Place, Zoom FREE You must register below to get the Zoom link!
(NB you will need to have a Zoom account, don't worry, it's super easy and free). BOOKING CLOSES @ 7.15pm on Sunday We miss the real-ness and the live-ness so we're having a lot of fun playing with how many theatre elements we can bring to this. We can't wait to share and connect with you (and your furry friends!) Line Up below Make an Evening of it Many of us make an evening of it when we go to the theatre, so why don’t you do the same? Here’s a few suggestions:
We’d love to see any photos of you embracing any of these suggestions or any of your own theatre rituals! Use the hashtag #bothfeetLIVE on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Arrive early to have drinks with friends In Zoom I (the host) have the power to allocate people to Break Out Rooms. If you would like to hang out with other people before the show starts, you can let me know in advance HERE - or you can let me know if you’re up for being put in a room with a few strangers! I will put you back in the same rooms for the interval. And please don’t worry - if you don’t want to socialise before the show just arrive any time and keep your video off. A note from Steph: These last few months have been hard but they've also presented many of us a chance to reflect, discover and develop as people and as creatives. I have been carefully designing courses to help actors (and me as a director!) to fully embrace technology, to find the fun with it and to trust it’s still possible to connect with scene partners and whoever is watching too, even with miles between us. It has been a new challenge gracefully accepted by those I've been working with. Through playing, exploring, discovering and jumping, we have come to see that working in your home alongside family, housemates, children, pets, neighbours and washing machines (!) is different - but very much doable. More than doable. Both Feet LIVE is a way for us to connect with you. You, the audience, are the heart of live theatre and we’ve deeply missed you. See you on Sunday we hope. Steph x Promo Vid with thanks to James @ Shift Focus 
Missing live theatre? Us too.
Theatre meets ZOOM: Live performances by the Both Feet community Sunday 28th June 7.30 - 9pm ("doors" open from 7pm) @ Your Place, Zoom FREE RESERVE YOUR SEAT NOW (NB you will need to have a Zoom account, don't worry, it's super easy and free). We miss the real-ness and the live-ness so we're having a lot of fun playing with how many theatre elements we can bring to this. We can't wait to share and connect with you. Make an Evening of it Many of us make an evening of it when we go to the theatre, so why don’t you do the same? Here’s a few suggestions:
We’d love to see any photos of you embracing any of these suggestions or any of your own theatre rituals! Use the hashtag #bothfeetLIVE on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Arrive early to have drinks with friends In Zoom I (the host) have the power to allocate people to Break Out Rooms. If you would like to hang out with other people before the show starts, you can let me know in advance HERE - or you can let me know if you’re up for being put in a room with a few strangers! I will put you back in the same rooms for the interval. And please don’t worry - if you don’t want to socialise before the show just arrive any time and keep your video off. A note from Steph: These last few months have been hard but they've also presented many of us a chance to reflect, discover and develop as people and as creatives. I have been carefully designing courses to help actors (and me as a director!) to fully embrace technology, to find the fun with it and to trust it’s still possible to connect with scene partners and whoever is watching too, even with miles between us. It has been a new challenge gracefully accepted by those I've been working with. Through playing, exploring, discovering and jumping, we have come to see that working in your home alongside family, housemates, children, pets, neighbours and washing machines (!) is different - but very much doable. More than doable. Both Feet LIVE is a way for us to connect with you. You, the audience, are the heart of live theatre and we’ve missed you, deeply missed you. See you on Sunday we hope. Steph x Promo Vid with thanks to James @ Shift Focus  I have been quiet on this because I couldn't find the words even though I needed to speak. So I'm just going to keep this really simple.
Over the last few weeks I have done a lot of thinking about, and listening to, and reflecting on, the Black Lives Matter movement. My heart is heavy for many people whom I know, and many people I don't. What Adam and I want to say is that our space is safe. I won't say everyone is treated the same, because no one is the same, we all need different things but we do, and will, open our arms to everything that you are and everything that you bring with you. Many of us want more understanding, empathy and action and we want to learn and be educated so if there's something you think we can do better or to open our arms wider, we're all ears. Steph (and by proxy, Adam) xxx  Money Talk
I'll be honest with you, without my teaching I won't earn a penny. Both Feet is my full time job and I'm the sole provider for my lovely little family so I'm not sure what our way through is yet but I'm trusting we will find a way. I also know that you will be in a very similar position and for many of you money is now a serious issue - potentially to the point that it's hard to put food on the table and pay rent let alone pay for training. SO... For now all the online stuff, I'll do on a (guilt free) Pay What/If You Can basis and I'll trust that if you can give anything at all, you will and if you can't, from the bottom of my heart, it's OK. Yes, we all have bills and food to pay for, this isn't about money, this is about working together. This is about adjusting and exploring something new, our now. (With that out of the way) Let's Play Obviously there are certain things we can't do online, and that's good, because at least it means that when this all blows over we won't have created a world where everything can be done online so we will have to reconnect in person! BUT there are things we can do, which is ACE. Let's keep working, keep challenging ourselves and flexing those muscles. It's good for our head, heart and gut. So over the next few days and weeks we'll be releasing some fun challenges and things to do and we'd love for you to get involved. It might be for just you, you and another actor (familiar or not) or even you and your family. Either way, it'll keep you on your toes and ready for anything whilst continuing you on your journey of simplifying, calming the chaos and trusting. We'll be looking at...
I shall be looking into online platforms which means some of these we can do and share together and others we'll do on a 1:1 or a 2:1 basis. They're just the ideas bouncing around atm, I'm sure there's a million more. Do you have any other ideas or things that would be useful to you during this time? Tell me what you need - you know that's the most important starting point for me. Drop me and email stephanie@both-feet.co.uk ARE YOU IN? ARE YOU UP FOR SOME CHALLENGES AND SOME FUN? Right, I've been working since 5am so I'm going to switch off now and pick up again tomorrow. Steph xxx  As actors, makers and creators many of us already live with a lot of uncertainty, it comes with the territory, sadly so does depression and anxiety. So I know that for many of you this may be feeling heightened as each announcement comes and jobs / gigs / shows / events get cancelled. It is with a heavy heart that I finally announce Both Feet classes will be putting their feet up (temporarily). We don't yet know what this looks or feels like and even though our heart is heavy we are still feeling optimistic. Why? Well... There is one thing I know for sure: you and me, we're resilient f*ckers. We have the special kind of brains that adapt, that turn a challenge into something beautiful. We see ways to make use of what we have now. Yes our worlds are changing. Yes we may feel overwhelmed / scared / [insert word of your choice] but let's all take a moment, step back and check out the massive sack of resources we have. What do we know from our training?
When Shakespeare was quarantined because of The Plague he wrote King Lear If you're someone who can get stuff in your head and need to calm the chaos (and even if you're not!) then definitely take this time to connect with your present self. Replaying the What Ifs through your mind is probably not going to be great for you so trust you have loads of tools to help with that, if you choose to use them.
That's all I have to say right now. I'm going to figure out ways we can stay connected, because we need to so if you have any ideas, talk to me. We are a family, we'll get through this together. All the love, Steph xxx and of course, Adam sends his love too "Onward we go! We’ll be fine, we got this. Plus, if we can be useful to any of you you know where we are." 🙌🏻    Every time I design a new course or come up with a new idea, it’s always in response to listening to actors talking about things they’re struggling with or frustrations about the industry. I’ve seen a lot of headshots over the years. Some great and some really, really poor ones. When an actor joins this industry, how do they know what is good or not? How do they know how to prepare themselves properly for the shoot and do they even know themselves well enough to be creating their sales pitch in the first place? It got me thinking. I approached my really rather talented cousin James of Shift Focus / James Green Photography to see if he wanted to join forces to offer headshots to actors training with us at Both Feet. He was totally game. And what a wonderful treat for me - I only have three blood relatives left and he’s one of them so getting to bring together our two lives/major passions is really quite special. James is technically a phenomenal photographer, he absolutely knows his stuff. He is most definitely an artist rather than someone who’s just bought a nice camera so I knew our skills would be a perfect match. The biggest hurdle with headshots is providing a space where an actor can be themselves, which means it needs to be safe. I figured if I’m working with actors who I’ve been training, they already trust me, they already know the space will be safe. Plus I know them well enough to be able to coach them on different looks and through any struggles they might be having and push them to be simple but bold and brave. I’m a firm believer that we’re better together. So, instead of doing solo shoots I wanted to run a whole day shoot with up to 8 actors. This would mean everyone would have time to change clothes and hair etc without a load of pressure but most importantly comradery would lift spirits, ease nerves, offer inspiration and raise the bar. James and I ran our trial shoot in January and I’ve got to say, we’re both pretty chuffed with the outcome. Always learning and ready for what's next, we’re now planning our next Headshot Day and designing a similar set up for Showreels - very exciting!! It’s worth saying that I have zero interest in going into headshots and showreels but I do have a deep rooted investment in the actors I work with so, what James and I are offering will only be open to actors training with Both Feet. See you soon? Steph x I am chuffed with my new acting head shots, they have already got me some good auditions. James is a highly skilled, friendly and hard working photographer. During the session I felt relaxed and really enjoyed myself too. I have been acting for 10 years now and had lots of head shots done, but these are my favourite! ~ Josie Cerise Despite Stephanie Morgan being pregnant for 7 months of 2019, having major surgery and then gaining another baby to be a little brother to Fox and Adam Stadius creating and launching the brand new Musical Theatre BA at Leeds College of Music conservatoire and losing our Leeds space twice we have somehow managed...
Really what is more important is that we are building actor training that is trusted by actors and other industry experts. Trusted for quality. Trusted for honesty. Trusted for a technique. That list also doesn't represent everything the actors who have been training with us have achieved, the auditions attended, parts and credits gained, the drama school acceptance letters received and the many hours of mentoring we have offered. It also doesn't show the millions of beautiful moments of failure and honesty that we have shared in our spaces. Every actor we meet and every class we run we are learning from too and we love it, deeply. Thank you for trusting us. Thank you for being part of our journey and letting us be a part of yours. 2020 is going to be a big year for Both Feet. It will see the return of many courses plus newly designed ones, a retreat studio space with accommodation in North Wales, new relationships and collaborations (coz that's what it's all about, right?!), performance platforms, headshots and showreels collaborations and so much more. We're even kicking off the first couple of weeks with 2 sold out Intro to Meisner courses and a brand new Into Your Body and Out of Your Head series - which makes our hearts sing. Join Us as we jump feet first into a new decade. Blog by Josie Cerise Playing Gollum in UK Theatre Award Winning ‘The Hobbit’ for The Dukes I'll be honest (that's what Both Feet classes are all about, right!?) when Steph asked me to team up with her to do this ‘Into the Body and Out of the Head’ series of workshops, my imposter syndrome kicked in. That negative voice I've managed to tame since I started classes with Steph, cried out, 'What do you have to offer? You're a student of Both Feet, no one will want to learn from you!'. But I took a breath, thought 'trust' and said 'Hell yeah, I bloody love movement!'. Ironically what brought me to Meisner training was to get away from my physicality and focus on the simplicity of truthful acting. I'd got into a pattern of doing very physical roles and approaching characters in the same way. But I’ve come full circle and realised simple truthful acting includes physicality and the body. Our bodies never stop moving. It doesn’t matter if it’s close to my natural state or a dramatised version of an animal for a children’s show, every character I play demands my body to know how to move. I really want this series to be PRACTICAL and USEFUL, so actors can take away skills they can use for the job (including auditions). I've done physical workshops before where I think, 'how can I use this in my work?!' and left feeling frustrated. Our priority will be finding what works for you. I'm passionate about making sure everyone can take steps forward, no matter where you’re at with the connection to your body. For me, the most mesmerising and believable actors are those who are fully connected to their voice, mind and body. That’s why I think movement training is as important as voice and text work. Movement is increasingly becoming recognised as vital in the arts; movement directors are now a staple part of many creative teams. There are physical theatre companies devising brilliant work such as Frantic Assembly, RashDash, Paper Birds and Complicite to name a few. I've picked the best methods and exercises (from these practitioners and more) that have helped me connect physically. Steph will be there too (thankfully!) with her holistic approach of making sure we are mindful and truthful. The aim is that we have fun and keep aware to protect ourselves as well as unleash ourselves! If this interests you, here’s a little more on what to expect and why: Part One: Exploring Laban & Multi-roling (Thurs 9th Jan) Every session will start with a warm up in order to stay safe and learn ways to keep healthy before an audition or show. More and more cuts in the arts are leading to smaller and smaller casts, which leads to actors being required to play numerous characters in the same show. In a two hander once, I played the sister, girlfriend and male best friend to the other character. It was in a small intimate space; I'd have seconds to shift into a contrasting character in front of the audience. There was nowhere to hide. I found the Laban efforts super helpful with quickly getting into a different energy. Rudolf Laban created a movement language perfect for the actor, combinations of his 8 basic efforts describe the full range of the human condition. When we explore Laban’s efforts, we discover our own natural energy and play with opposing energies so that we can move, sound and feel like the character. For example, I previously struggled with finding calm and centred characters who have a high status, Laban’s ‘floating’ effort was the key for me. Our Laban exploration will lead on to multi-roling, we will look at playing a whole variety of characters in order to feel ready for anything thrown at us. Part Two: Meeting the Physical demands of auditions (Thurs 23rd Jan) Another pattern I've noticed: longer audition workshops are becoming popular. They can be between 1 hour to full days. I once did a 2-day workshop audition, they really put us through our paces; devising, improvising, singing, playing games. When I studied Le Jeu (The Game) with clown master Philippe Gaulier, I realised the importance of play. Gaulier sees the actors as players and theatre as the game. Some people think games are a waste of time, but I think they help connect us to our inner child. When you watch a child play, they hardly have any inhibitions and are free to be completely in the moment. When we play fully and freely it helps us share beautiful idiotic moments. Often in auditions and rehearsals, directors will ask you to play games. This shows you can work in a team and that you don't take yourself too seriously. Also, in these workshop auditions they'll sometimes give you a task such as devise a piece of movement or share your story telling skills. During the day, we'll play games and devise in a similar way to the workshop auditions I’ve experienced. This way you can feel confident when put into these situations and most importantly get some feedback. We’ll also spend part of the day looking at quick changes we can make to our bodies to help us with the directorial demands that often come with auditions. This will link nicely on from the previous workshop if you do that one.
Part 3: Exploring Given Circumstances (Thurs 6th Feb) This workshop will be looking at how the given circumstances (that come from a text/text analysis) can be explored and translated physically. Actors tend to go one of two ways: either by over complicating this part or doing nothing at all. Steph and I will guide you through a simple and easy process to character work which you’ll be able to use anywhere. We either decide given circumstances on the day, or if there's a circumstance you’d like to try, we can explore that too. Who knows, maybe Steph will throw a curveball your way by giving you scenarios that will help you find something new. I've found breaking out of my typical ‘casting’ (small child or animal!) has been the most rewarding work I've done, it’s good to open up your casting options. Is there a type of character you want to play but you’ve never had the chance? Is there a dialogue that excites you that you’d like to try out? This is the supportive space to bring it and make some discoveries.  Voice and Mindfulness masterclass with the wonderful Barbara Houseman One last thing, these classes are OPEN TO ALL (as long as you’re an actor or seriously working towards an acting career) so please share with friends who could be interested. It’s a great way to get a taste of Both Feet training and for regular students, it’s always nice to work with fresh faces. Not only this, you get 2 for 1; Steph being an acting coach and me being a movement director means we can look at all aspects of your performance.
Both Feet classes were a game changer and helped me to get out of my comfort zone. I've never experienced such a supportive learning environment, it makes us all thrive. It’s also really exciting that we’re creating a collective of kick ass, lovely actors. Post-Christmas blues are real and January is usually a quiet time in the 'business’. I don’t know about you, but sometimes the New Year can feel daunting rather than exciting. Instead of finishing off all the left-over chocolate, let’s get together and start 2020 as we mean to go on! |
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Listen with your Gut, not your Head