‘ZAR Intense’ is designed for theater professionals – actors, dancers, musicians, performers, theater instructors and practitioners seeking artistic and personal growth.
It’s 13 days of intensive work and a unique opportunity to delve into the creative practices of Teatr ZAR’s theatrical work.
ZAR Intense is an initiative born out of the need to share our unique artistic language and values and the questions that accompany our creative work. It is a profound, poetic and human approach that aims to encourage the actor to create in a very interdisciplinary manner, weaving together physical and vocal practices, solo and polyphonic singing with physical improvisations, training the listening, a deep physical and vocal concentration, and the courage to stand alone and with others in conveying messages that are important and need to be heard by the world around us.
We are delighted to offer an enriched ZAR Intense 2025 program, featuring special activities that will make this year’s experience even more profound for participants.
Highlight of this year
We are honored to announce that Vakhtang Pilpani, our teacher and the main source of inspiration for Teatr ZAR, will join us for this year’s program. Vakhtang performed and taught Svan folk music for several decades. His presence and guidance promise to bring an exceptional depth and uniqueness to the experience, offering participants a rare opportunity to work with one of our key mentors.
Participants of the workshop will be introduced to Svanetian and Georgian polyphonic songs, some of which will be accompanied by traditional musical instruments. There will also be traditional dances presented.
What do we share?
The work will be focused on introducing and exploring various lines of practice proposed and developed by actors of Teatr ZAR. Our work focuses on a variety of practices that intertwine vocal, physical, and textual work, emphasizing discipline, collaboration, and creative freedom.
Such sessions will include:
- Polyphonic singing that encourages collaboration and team-work in listening, supporting and taking the reins
- Working with sound carrying an image and adapting it to stage language
- Daily practise of healthy vocal and breathing techniques
- Performer physical training – building stamina and understanding one’s own strengths in order to use them in building a heightened physical stage presence
- Body awareness – developing physical and mental focus
- Widening our primal inborn sense of perception into one that can be receptive to subtleties in our daily lives
- Improvisation within tight and precise technical frameworks
- Partner training including simple acrobatic elements to develop coordination, trust and collaboration
- Devising stage material
Lectures, discussions and presentations
- Meeting with the sources (meeting dedicated to expeditions and reconnaissance made by Teatr ZAR while gathering music material)
- Process of creation – a space to discuss the process of creation accompanying performances of Teatr ZAR (meeting with whole company)
- Participants will have the rare opportunity to access and view selected archival recordings from the Grotowski Institute, such as the legendary performances “Apocalypsis Cum Figuris” or “The Constant Prince”, available exclusively here. Other valuable materials from the Institute’s archives may also be included.
Each day will consist of several lines of practice represented by active members of Teatr ZAR.