Practical Aesthetics

Description

PRACTICAL AESTHETICS March 24 - April 28, 2026 [6 weeks] Tuesday Nights - 7:00pm-10:00pm Instructor: Vivian Majkowski Cost: $360 Practical Aesthetics is an acting technique developed with and taught by New York City’s Atlantic Theatre Company at their Atlantic Acting School. It is a technique that marries rigorous script analysis with an almost improvised approach to performance. It borrows aspects from both Stanislavski and Meisner, designed to get performers out of their heads and emotions, and focused on action. The technique is rooted in four basic questions related to action and movement. This technique gives actors a practical, repeatable way to approach text. Rather than relying on emotional memory or invented backstory, actors learn to focus on what is actually happening in the scene and play strong, specific actions rooted in the facts of the script. In this class, actors will learn to: -Break down text with clarity and objectivity -Identify what the character is doing -Create clear, playable objectives -Play actions that support the text -Trust the playwright and stop overcomplicating the work This approach frees the actor to speak the text that is actually on the page, rather than getting lost in ideas that often obscure it. Each session includes warmups, targeted exercises, company application of the technique, and partnered scene study. *Class limited to 10 participants Instructor Vivian Majkowski is Professor of Voice, Speech, Text, and Rhetoric at the University of Houston School of Theatre and Dance. She has taught at Harvard University, the Institute for Advanced Theatre Training at Harvard, the Moscow Art Theatre School, University of Florida, SCAD, and University of Colorado. She coaches voice and accents for business, film, and theatre and was master teacher for the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey’s Summer Training Program. She holds an MFA in Voice from the Institute for Advanced Theatre Training/American Repertory Theatre/Harvard University and a BA from the University of Colorado. Tuition & Payment Options EARLY BIRD OFFER: Receive 10% off tuition ($324) when you register by March 9, 2026. Payment plans are available after a $100 non-refundable deposit is received. To arrange a payment plan, email studioforactorshouston@gmail.com