Diane Smith-Sadak, U.S.A. Pennsylvania
An Associate Professor of Acting and Directing for the past 17 years at Towson University’s prestigious Department of Theatre Arts, in Baltimore, Maryland Smith-Sadak received her M.F.A. in Directing from Florida State University, she was a member of Actors Equity Association for 21 years, and is an Associate Artist and Member of the Roy Hart Theatre and Center for International Voice in Thoiras, France. She is a private acting and voice coach for actors and singers as well as people who want to improve public speaking, interviewing and job-performance skills and specializes in ensemble and team-building utilizing theatre as a metaphor and model for strong ensemble and personal development. Professor Sadak spent a year as Visiting Professor of Acting and Voice at the Korean National University of Arts. She has taught guest workshops at Dartington College in England; University of Rajasthan in India; at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney, Australia; in St. Petersburg, Russia, and has taught guest workshops in movement and voice at the Accademia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy iand at InFoMaT in 2007, 2014,1015 and presently. In the past several years, Ms. Smith-Sadak has created roles in new work; playing Janis Joplin in a concert/theatre piece entitled Legends: A Concert ; and others. Smith-Sadak’s most recent work is an original show entitled CRACKeD, based on her personal journey with bipolar disorder, for which she was awarded a Faculty Development Research grant. Her research is in physical and vocal theatre integration; particularly Viewpoints, Suzuki, Vinyasa yoga and Extended Voice. Professor Sadak is a certified teacher of Vinyasa yoga, a Level 3 practitioner of Reiki, and a Zumba instructor. She lives with her husband and 2 children in a small farm in Pennsylvania, USA.
Crystallizing the Text
Using text and blocking from each night of the rehearsals the night before of The Midsummer night's dream, students will use exercises from both Viewpoints and Suzuki training to strengthen their understanding of the text and their power in delivery of the material. Through work with chairs and partners, we will work on clarity of textual meaning and ensemble choices, through Suzuki statue exercises, we will work on the power, clarity and focus of text as it is being delivered. Viewpoints training is improvisational-based ensemble movement actor training originating from the world of modern dance. Suzuki training is from master teacher, director and acting theorist Tadashi Suzuki of Togamura, Japan. It works on strength, deepening of the reason for being on the stage, and delivery in a focused and crystallized way, all speaking of text recognizing each individual actor as a crucible in which to burn out the impurities in an actor’s delivery and finding the diamond of each actor’s center. Please make sure all text you have rehearsed is memorized when you come to the workshop.