FRIDAY, Sept 3

4-6pm Rod Ben Zeev - Zenprov from Amsterdam - Hideout Upstairs

Finding flow in scenes is difficult. When you have it, it's the most powerful feeling in the world, everything you say and do works. It's the one thing I aspire to in any show I do. But it's not easy to reach.

How many times have you had non scene related thoughts while playing the scene from "Hey, I think that's my neighbor's girlfriend in the second row" to "I'm gonna avoid doing a scene with that guy cause we don't click"?

While it is possible to multi task, your body language might be telling a different story and your actions are no longer believable and congruent to what is spoken. Aside from that, you are probably enjoying the performance a lot less, questioning your instincts and are working really hard to catch up.

In this workshop we learn how to connect the body language with the spoken text in scenes using meditation. The meditational excersizes are inspired by NBA coach Phil Jackson's meditational techniques which he uses before basketball games.

This workshop is open to anyone who has experienced those "out of scene" thoughts and is looking for ways to improve their on stage believability. No meditational experience necessary, just an open mind.

Rod Ben Zeev

Rod Ben Zeev has been performing, directing and teaching impro for over ten years on four continents in three languages to audiences aged 5 to 95. In 2002 he began a program at Hyatt Classic Residence in Chicago teaching and performing with senior citizens. The final show was performed at the Chicago Improv Festival in 2003 and the program keeps on running nationally. In 2005 he traveled Europe with Boom Chicago doing corporate shows for unsuspecting companies and in 2006 founded the Dutch impro group DIT. He has performed in the last two International Impro Festivals in Amsterdam and the San Francisco Improv Festival and is a regular guest performer at Improline in Tel Aviv. Rod also writes for television. In 2004 he wrote 65 episodes of a children's history show titled Amazing History for Rai in Italy and is currently writing 26 episodes of the Greek sitcom to be broadcast starting in October. A pretty incredible feat considering Rod does not speak Italian or Greek.