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Next sessions starting
August 2, 3 & 7
Theatrical Stage Combat
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"There are some things one can “wing”
when the cameras are rolling,
swordplay isn’t one of them."
- F. Braun McAsh, Swordmaster Highlander the TV Series.
Academie Duello's Theatrical Stage Combat program provides actors and stunt people in Vancouver with an engaging and supportive environment to build and develop their skills as stage combatants and stunt people with swords, pole weapons, and unarmed combat.
All of Academie Duello's programs are of benefit to the actor and stuntmen, especially those desiring to build physical fitness while gaining proficiency with the sword. Our three stage combat programs focus specifically on the skills needed for performance and safety on stage and film: Thursday Stage Combat Meet-up, One-Day Stage Combat Workshops, FDC Certification Program.
FDC Certification Programs
Academie Duello's stage combat programs provide actors and stunt people with an opportunity to develop the three basic weapons of Fight Directors Canada (FDC): sword, quarterstaff, and unarmed combat.
Stage combat is a shortcut to mastering your instrument by incorporating:
- interacting with another character in a life-or-death situation
- playing fear, anger, injury and effort while still concentrating on the choreography
- staying aware of your environment
- moving around the stage with purpose
- breathing, yelling and speaking your lines while exerting yourself
Schedule
Our next 10-week course will be starting May 17, 2010. It will run Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays for two hours each session.
Stage Combat Course Breakdown
Creating the illusion of violence is a vital part of many plays and films. The climax of a majority of stories is some physical confrontation, be it a slap in a drama, a swordfight in Shakespeare, or a massive battlefield in a war movie. The art of stage combat puts tools into the hands of the performer to keep them safe in those circumstances.
Safety is our primary concern during the program, but it's only the first step, as we want our heroes to look skilled, for the victims to look like they're really hurt, for the villain to be convincingly overcome, and for the murder to be horrible.
In short, we do stage combat because we want to create a heart-stopping climax for the audience while keeping actors safe.
Stage Combat Basics
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Actors need to have a variety of skills and comprehensive training to be effective actor-combatants. The first is a selection of techniques that includes several types of punches, slaps, ways to fall, sword manoevers, staff manipulation, and ways to conceal safety tricks. The second is the ability to tell an emotional story with the scene, portraying the anger in the attacker, the fear of the victim, the exhaustion of a long fight and the pain of wounds... all while keeping the choreography consistent. The third ingredient is incorporating the fight into the play with dialogue, character choices, connection with your partner and the scene.
Sword: Saturday
The fundamental sword techniques taught in the lessons can be adapted to any one-handed sword, such as the rapier, the hand-and-a-half sword, the scottish basket-hilt, the sabre and even the bayonnet. In this class we'll cover footwork, parries, cuts and thrusts, control of the opponent's blade, how to play wounds, and what options exist for customization. By the final day of the classes, we will have developed a choreographed fight to show off the actor's new moves.
Quarterstaff: Monday
Considered by many to be the most challenging weapon to keep both safe and exciting, the staff will test your coordination. Robin Hood would not be the same without Little John's challenge to a quarterstaff duel.
Unarmed: Wednesday
At this level, we show you all the secrets of a great fist-fight without getting all Bruce Lee. Knock-down-drag-out action that looks realistic and brutal that works in ancient and modern settings. The Fight Directors Canada's Accreditation Program will cover punches, slaps, throws, hair pulls, grappling and dozens of other topics.
Who Should Attend?
Although stunt performers will benefit from the class, the content is geared to actors. In a play there are no stuntmen. You have to do the fight yourself, night after night, and never get hurt. Even if your focus is TV and film, if you want to be an action hero, you'll need to do some of your own stunts. Stage managers and directors who want a better understanding of the craft are also welcome.
Hey Students!
Your training program at school will be a full-time commitment, so you may not have the time to get this training during the school year. Most theatre schools in Vancouver don't even teach stage combat. However, it is a fundamental skill for the performer. Do you want to blow away your instructors this semester?
Don't Accept Less Than FDC Standards
Fight Directors Canada is internationally recognized qualitification, and the only stage combat training officially recognized by the Canadian Actors Equity Association. Learn the foundations:
- Unarmed combat
- Quarterstaff
- Sword
It's not just weapons, FDC emphasizes:
- Safety: You need to move with high speed and intensity, without risking any kind of injury.
- Storytelling: It's not a game, it's part of the play/movie... learn to incorporate combat into a scene.
- Style: Techniques change based on history and geography. Learn a versatile system.
Note that FDC Certification at the Basic Actor-Combatant level requires 60 hours of training, a written exam and the evaluation of an FDC Fight Master.
Thursday Stage Combat Meet-ups
Every Thursday from 6:00-7:00 pm Academie Duello hosts Vancouver's Stage Combat Meet-up. This one hour session provides those skilled and unskilled in the art of stage combat an opportunity to meet with their peers, practice skills, network with other actors and stunt men, and partake in a class lead by Duello instructors or visiting guests. Topics range from rapier & dagger and sword & v shield, to punches, throws, and unarmed skills.
Drop-in this Thursday and learn some new skills or practice some olds ones.
Cost: $10/per session
(free to attending Academie Duello members)
One-Day Stage Combat Workshops
Our one day workshops provide an opportunity to gain the fundamentals of safety with unarmed and weapons skills for the stage and film.
See our workshop schedule for the next upcoming dates.
Instructor David McCormick
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Fight choreographer, stage combat instructor and performer, David McCormick has taught stage combat at George Brown College, Rapier Wit Stage Combat, the Hamilton Urban Shakespeare Workshop, and many workshops for Forward Theatre (Mississauga). David has recently choreographed fights for Fat Pig (Performance Works, Granville Island), Beauty & The Beast (Pembroke), Sherlock Holmes and The First English Gentleman (Toronto Fringe), Conversations with My Father (Teatron, Toronto), and five seasons of Forward Theatre's Shakespeare productions, including: Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet, Hamlet, King Lear, Twelfth Night and others. His martial arts expertise includes karate, judo, wing chun and bartitsu, as well as experience in parkour (free-running). He has over 9 years of training through Fight Directors Canada with such Canadian and international stage combat veterans as: Daniel Levinson, John Stead, Simon Fon, Ian Rose, and Tony Wolf.
David is an alumnus of the University of Waterloo's drama department and Rapier Wit Stage Combat in Toronto. David is excited to bring a full stage combat program to Vancouver, through Academie Duello. Contact David at http://www.PlayFighting.ca
Drop by 412 Hastings Street or call Academie Duello at 604-568-9907 for information or to sign-up for any of our programs.