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Thanks for coming by – we are always happy to get a visit from long-time fans and new friends. Check out our class schedule, courses, and current news to stay up to date on all the Meisner happenings and more.

Drop-in workshop for professional performers based on the exercises developed by Sanford Meisner, founder member of the Group Theatre in New York. 

Regular drop in classes and one off special workshops for newcomers to the technique, Meisner aficionados and performers wanting to keep their acting muscles toned between jobs. Age 18+
Sanford Meisner

Sanford Meisner was a founder member of the Group Theatre, New  York. In 1931 Lee Strasbourg, Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford chose 28 actors, one of whom was Meisner, to from the Group Theatre; it still has a profound impact on American theatre today. Within the group different opinions began to form about Strasbourg's use of Emotional Memory. Stella Adler returned from Russia having studied with the greatly respected Constantin Stanislavski; she brought with her Stanislavski's belief that with imagination and knowledge of the circumstances given by the script the actor could access the characters thoughts and feelings without delving into his own emotional past.

In 1940 the Group Theatre came to an end and Meisner became head of acting at The Neighbourhood Playhouse and his own technique came alive. He sought to create a series of exercises where there would be no space for intellectuality, to 'eliminate all the head work ...and get to where the impulses come from.' To help actors achieve this he devised a series of exercises to develop spontaneity and responsivness, widening their emotional range and increasing their interaction on stage.

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By Martin Hobbs 21 Aug, 2019

This week concluded my first year of teaching at Graduate and Post-Graduate level, having been invited to write and teach Meisner for BRICTT and the University of Chichester. It also sees the confirmation for my second year at UofC with increased hours, and other exciting teaching opportunities that I am unable to talk about just yet. Finally, this year has seen me undertake a PGCERT to become a Fellow of the Higher Education Association, with another year left until completion.

So, I thought it would be good for me to write this blog about my experiences.

Although I have been teaching Meisner for over 10 years, my experience of teaching in a formal institution has been limited to short courses and one-off workshops, so, it was a quite an exciting prospect to write and teach an entire course. Several, in fact. And it hasn’t been limited to Meisner, I have taught the History of Screen Acting, The Factual Actor, and at Post Grad - Analysis, Practice and Technique.

The learning curve has been steep, but the knowledge and skills developed on the PGCERT have helped me develop these courses and instruct the students. The first lecture I delivered was nerve wracking, but not as scary as the first night of a play. Once I realised that, I became much more confident in my ability to deliver the course material.

The theory that I have been studying on the PGCERT, and the ethos of self-reflection and experimentation with teaching styles, have been truly exciting and given me lots of ideas on new ways to deliver Meisner content and assist students with blocks that they may encounter.

One particular concept - the idea of framing has led to me introducing additional steps in the Script Reading process, something that has often been a big block in Meisner actors’ progress in developing their technique. The needs of my students vary enormously from the drama school students, university students, and the adult learners in my drop in classes. This has been interesting to explore, and discoveries in one set of students, has led to improvements in my teaching of others. My drop-ins, as always are my labs where I am able to be most radical in my approaches. I often trial an approach first in these classes, which I hope make them exciting to attend, and so I hope you can appreciate that we are all on a journey of discovering the technique, and I am getting as much out of the classes as you.


By Martin Hobbs 15 Jan, 2019

It's a new year, the dark yawning gulf of January is upon us, we have plenty of time and an urge to get started with things. The trick is to find the balance between pushing ourselves and holding firm with our ambitions for the new year, but also remaining kind to ourselves in the process. 

Our Meisner practice is similar - we want to improve our practice and stretch our emotional boundaries into deeper territory, but we also need to keep ourselves both safe, and open to all possibilities. I suppose my only answer to the dilemma is to go into my work determined to be as open as I can be, to give into my impulses as much as I can, and be ready for unexpected and the uncomfortable. And a good place to start is to feel both the fear and the excitement of the exercise from the moment I step up there.

So, if you feel like getting some work done in this new year, why not come along to one of our weekly Meisner Workouts that run every Tuesday from 7-9pm at BRICTT, New England Street, Brighton.

By Martin Hobbs 19 Dec, 2018
It’s been quite a year of change for Brighton Meisner - we have moved from a morning slot to an evening one, we have found ourselves a new home at BRICTT and, of course, we have got a new name and identity - The Meisner Sessions.  To top it all off we celebrated our 10 year anniversary of teaching Meisner.

Our link with BRICTT has brought with it a new source of attendees, straight from the Drama school with all their fresh energy and the class has found anew core from which to grow. We have seen Scott Williams & Kate Maravan for some Masterclasses, and Steel, and Melody and Dominique ready to host classes as well. I am now teaching Meisner for the University of Chichester and for BRICTT increasing the profile of Meisner on the south coast. And Emma has been busy rejigging the social media and website to keep our name in people’s minds. So, all in all, a great year with more projects planned for the next one.

A big thank you to everyone who has attended our classes and workshops this year.  We wish you a wonderful Christmas and a very happy New Year.

Martin Hobbs

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