Menu
Menu
workshops / masterclass
TAMTAM’s style of visual theatre without text, based on objects and materials, inspires a new generation of theatre makers, puppeteers, animators, visual artists and mulitidisciplinarists. That is why Gérard and Marije increasingly give workshops and masterclasses, often at international theatre festivals. They direct and supervise young makers and gave guest lectures at various art and theatre academies.
Watch the video of a scene that one of the participants of the workshop at the Skipton Puppetfestival made.
A workshop can sometimes be a short introduction or inspirational event of one day or even part of a day. But often we make a short performance with a group of participants over several days with a performance played for live audience at the end. And sometimes they help a theatre company kickstart a new performance.
We think our workshops should be as tailor-made as our shows. Often they are combined with performances at festivals.
A new service is the “performance doctor” (Gérard) , who offers personal guidance to makers at every stage of a new or old performance.
Please contact us to know more about the various possibilities.
For creators, performers, directors, designers, musicians
The workshop or masterclass can have various forms. The most requested by festivals is an intensive multi-day workshop. The participants each create their own short performance, based on objects they have brought with them. At the end of the workshop the result performed for real audience.
We follow the entire production process of a visual performance without text. From inspiration out of found material and how to convert it into scenes and content, to organising those scenes into a performance that is understandable to the audience.
By working small scale in a relatively simple form, the mechanisms of visual theatre become clear and participants can work on developing their own style.
We use a method of screenwriting for visual theatre developed by TAMTAM in more than 40 years. Of course, we are also dealing with bringing the objects to life objects and things such as the role of light, sound and decor as means to tell the story in different layers. This is mostly an eyeopener to the participants.
Depending on the number of days, we can dive deeper into the details of each element of visual theatre and object theatre.
A duration of 3 to 5 days is ideal, with a presentation at the end, for example as part of a festival.
But we are always into tailor made workshops in close collaboration with the festival.
We can also conduct a short workshop or masterclass on
-The secret life of objects
-Visual theater screenplay and dramaturgy
-Music and soundtrack as an actor
-Unsuspected talents: Reuse and sustainability
-Other themes are possible in consultation.
The workshop or masterclass can take place as part of a festival or in the TAMTAM workshop in Deventer .
Contact us for morents. information.
School of puppetry, advanced course, The Hague (NL) (2024)
Two-day masterclass in object theatre/visual theater for 14 professionals in puppetry and theatre. A short performance was made with each participant in two days based on the objects they brought with them.
Artez University of the arts, Zwolle, Nederland (2023)
A 2x two-day masterclass on object theater for 30 2nd and 3rd year students of the theatre academy in which a short presentation was made and performed with each student in two days based on the objects they brought.
TAMTAM workshop, Deventer NL (2023)
One day workshop for theatre students for the artschool of Brugge (Belgium) They came to our workshop and followed a short workshop on obecttheatre.
Izmir International Puppet Days, Turkey (2019)
Next to our performances on this festival we did a one day workshop on objecttheatre with Turkish performers and makers
Klaipeda, Lithuania (2018)
As part of the Marteria Magica Festival we conducted a three day workshop on object theatre for Lithuanian performers and makers
Alexandria, Egypt (2018)
During the Backstreet festival 2018 we conducted a two-day workshop on object theatre to Egyptian actors and theatre makers
Skipton UK (2017)
Prior to the Skipton Puppet Festival we gave a 3 day masterclass to British (and one Canadian) puppeteers and made a short objecttheatre cabaret act with each of them. Those acts were performed during the festival in a 50 minute show with very enthusiastic audience!
Watch the video
Nürnberg Germany (2017)
During the Internationales figurentheater Festival Erlangen Nürnberg Fürth we gave a 4 day workshop on objecttheatre for students of the Musikhochschule. In 4 days we made a one hour performance that was played before audience on the last day.
Macau, China (2017)
In the Macau Arts festival we did 4 short workshops after the performances for parents and children, where we made object-creatures and scenes with stuff that the participants had taken with them. And then we showed them under the camera on a large screen and made small animations with live music. See the results here
Taipei, Taiwan (2016)
During the Close To You festival we did a 4 day masterclass for puppeteers, actors and musicians with a public performance on the last day
Bristol UK (2015)
For the Bristol Festival of Puppetry we did a one day objecttheatre workshop with 16 puppeteers and students
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2014)
As part of the Kakiseni Arts Festival we did a two day masterclass with 16 theatre school students and made a performance in 2 days
Dyarbakir en Çanakele Turkije (2014)
We conducted two workshops for volunteers who make theatre with children in refugee camps in Syria.
Debrecen, Hungary (2014)
We made an objecttheatre performance of one hour in one week with 12 members of two companies
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (2012)
Masterclass for performers, puppeteers and movie-animators
Kristiansand, Norway (2009)
We made acts for the late night show in the festival cabaret with 11 third year theatre students
Sibiu, Romania (2007)
In the context of the European Capital of Culture, we made a full-length performance in one week with the Gong theatre company.
Ravenna, Italy, (2001)
A lecture on objecttheatre and the TAMTAM way of producing theatre.for theatrestudents and actors of Arrivano dal Mare Company
HKU Utrecht, Netherlands (1998 and 1999)
Two years in a row we gave a 5-day workshop for students of the theater academy and scenography students in which we made a full-length performance.
Johannesburg, South Africa (1997)
As part of the Arts Alive festival we gave a 5 day Workshop for puppeteers and theater students
Riga, Latvia (1996)
A 5 day inspiration workshop on small-scale object theater for 16 puppeteers from the ex-state puppet theatre.
Paramaribo, Surinam (1991)
A 5 day workshop for Surinamese puppeteers and theatre makers as part of the festival De Poppen Aan Het Dansen
