Twelfth Night in performance

In this series of ten acting workshops, the focus will be on speaking Shakespeare’s dramatic language, both prose and verse. Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s most popular comedies, with wonderful roles for the actors, both romantic and humorous. Illyria, the country in which Twelfth Night is set, is a highly-charged place where folly of every kind abounds. Students should read the play before the course begins and must be ready to read with good fluency and clarity. Every class will begin with a brief vocal and physical warm-up based on text. For this, we shall be using Viola’s speech towards the end of Act One, Scene Five, which begins with: "Make me a willow cabin at your gate” and continues to the end of the speech, the last line being, “But you should pity me”. Please wear comfortable shoes and clothes for these classes.

Students should be prepared to be playful with the language and ready to explore its structure. Form before feeling is key - “let the words do the work” is the most important attitude to have. Laptops should not be brought into these workshops as they would never be used in a professional rehearsal room. Each student must bring their own copy of the play to each class, including the first one and the Cambridge University Press edition would be the most effective choice.

What our students say

"Vivien Heilbron is the most amazing and generous teacher. She was made everyone feel included and even when giving criticism did so in the best and most helpful way to make each of us do better. I loved this class!"