Theatre & Performance Lab

Rural Theatre & Performance Lab at the Vallican Whole

Saturday October 18th – Sunday the 19th

Registration now open:
$20-$40 per workshop, or $75 -$100 for the whole weekend. Lunches included both days.
Email slocanvalleygems@gmail.com to register.

To apply to perform at the Brave New Works Cabaret, please send a short description of your piece, approximate length, and your performer bio to slocanvalleygems@gmail.com.  Work should be “new” or in-progress, original theatre/performance work. Feel free to ask questions if you need more details!  Approximately 6-8 slots available, depending on length and number of applications.  Honoraria provided for all performers!

Saturday Schedule:

9:00 AM – gather
9:30 – 10 AM – warm-up
10:15 – 1:15 – Performing with Larval Mask
1:15 – 2:15 – Lunch & Chat
2:15 – 4:15 – The Natural Actor

7:00 – doors open for
7:30 – Brave New Works Theatre Cabaret

Sunday Schedule:

9:00 AM – gather
9:30 – 10 AM – warm-up
10 – 12 – Intro to Improv
12 – 1PM – Lunch & Chat
1 – 3 – Co-creation time, deepening with content, collaboration, OR go home

See below for workshop descriptions so far

Thank you to the RDCK’s ReDi Grant program for funding support for this project!

Performance with Larval Mask
Enter the strange, simple, and magnetic world of Larval Masks. Rooted from the winter carnival of Basel, Switzerland and reimagined by Jacques Lecoq, these oversized, beginnings of life masks are a gateway to embodiment, archetype, non-verbal storytelling and dream space. This is physical poetry, where breath, stillness, and silhouette speak louder than words.

Larval work sharpens the performer’s ability to explore presence; by stripping back, listening with the body, and building story from tension, space, and rhythm with the unknown.

Ideal for performers, educators, writers, and anyone curious about the full-body language beneath text. The full-faced mask is a revelation and invitation to encounter the architecture of play and possibility.

Facilitator: Elaine Weryshko

The Natural Actor- Exploring the Craft of Acting

We will investigate the actor’s work as an expression of truth and the deep understanding of human nature. In preparation for an upcoming Valley Gems project, we will use Anton Chekhov’s, “The Seagull” and the Stanislavski Method as a jumping off point for the session.

Facilitator: Val Campbell

Intro to Improv with Michelle Hart
This intro to improv class covers the basics of  long-form improv, including “Yes, And,” listening, and how to say YES – AND to your scene partner. We’ll focus on building confidence and spontaneity in a collaborative performance!

Facilitator: Michelle Hart