Date: August 25th
Location: Actors' Guild Hub at Spotlight, 7 Leicester Place, London, WC2H 7RJ
Time: 18.00 - 21.00

There are many parallels between mindfulness and acting. Both require you to be in the moment, have clarity of thought, feel connected to and aware of your surroundings as well as your body, mind and emotions. We don’t always achieve this state in life. Similarly it is hard to feel a sense of presence, focus and connection while acting. Often our mind is commenting on how an audition or performance is going and we worry about the outcome.

This workshop will be an introduction to mindfulness and meditation and include information on what mindfulness is and how you can incorporate it in your personal life and your acting.

Mindfulness is a natural and an intuitive state of presence in which we can feel more connected, real and alive. This can be immensely helpful in life but also in acting. When practiced regularly mindfulness can be a powerful way to retrain the mind and allow us to rediscover the joy in acting (and life) and navigate our way through this competitive and stressful industry. It is a practical skill that can help to reduce stress, aid mental clarity and improve emotional and physical wellbeing. 

This session will be practical and include meditations and mindfulness practices based on the 8-week MBSR course.

No prior meditation experience necessary.

Cornelia Baumann is an actress who discovered meditation and mindfulness five years ago and has felt the benefits in all areas of her life including her acting, performances - and her approach to the industry. After initially training to teach children meditation she decided to teach adults as well and began training to teach MBSR, Mindfulness-based stress reduction. Cornelia is a core member of Arrows & Traps Theatre Company and most recently appeared in their ‘Female Firsts Rep Season’, playing Anne Lister in Gentleman Jack and Gerta Pohorylle in TARO.