Service Description

For the last parts of our Characters classes we take modern characters and give them a twist. What would an ancient equivalent of a hacker be? Was there one? Was it a Jack of All Trades (master of none? BUT being a jack of all trades was better than being a master of one!). A problem solver? Or was it simply someone who had a knack for getting things done? A Knacker, if you will? A series of truly characterful classes and a creative painting class. Using the ‘Aladdin’ character as an Everyman/Everywoman/Everyperson stem-cell figure from which our characters will sprout, we will create our very own characters in these monthly classes. ‘Aladdin’ is our baseline figure and although traditionally male, feel free to flout the rules - the theatre and pantomime regularly do. The TALES series dealt with stock characters that are a kind of shorthand for the viewer. These classes are different. The TALES stock types dealt with recognised categories; we design characters who don’t easily fit into boxes. We make real, interesting personages and create guises and disguises that beguile. We take the idea of the Guild processions and Tarot archetypes to represent 1000 faces and different strata of society, as if our character is in a play, the game of life, the veiled illusion that is the theatre of the world. There will be time in each class to brainstorm ideas, research, play, draw and paint our character. You can borrow bits from other miniatures you like and graft them onto your figure. You can add accessories related to their interests. You can add hats. You can add fun shoes. You can put things in their pockets... Each character is different and unpredictable, so the cover image above is for a baseline reference only. In class we'll use our own ideas, imagination and the internet to flesh out our folk. I conceived this idea by imagining Aladdin in a desert (he goes to the desert in my ALADDIN toy theatre). What if this Aladdin-of-the-sands could stand in for everybody? What if he could be anyone? Starting from scratch - from the desert - we can ‘populate’ our Aladdins with all kinds of roles. There is something exciting about going ex nihilo to anywhere. We are free to form our characters however we like. You will need: A4 paper (any type) Imagination: essential