L'École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq
École internationale de théâtre Jacques Lecoq is a school of physical theatre previously located on Rue du Faubourg-Saint-Denis in the 10th arrondissement of Paris. In May of 2023 the school announced its departure from Paris and relocation to Avignon, where its next season training would commence that autumn.
Founded in 1956 by Jacques Lecoq, the school offers a professional and intensive two-year course emphasizing the body, movement and space as entry points in theatrical performance and prepares its students to create collaboratively. This method is called mimodynamics. The school's graduate list includes renowned figures of stage such as Philippe Gaulier of École Philippe Gaulier, Ariane Mnouchkine of Théâtre du Soleil, Steven Berkoff, and Simon McBurney of Théâtre de Complicité, among others.
Background
The Lecoq program lasts for two years. Ninety students from all over the world are accepted in the first year, and out of these, thirty will be accepted into the second year. Classes are conducted in French.Two-year program
His method, called mimodynamics and involving corporeal movement, is not miming in the traditional sense, as the spoken word is involved. The focus and the goals of mimodynamics are widely different from those of miming.Classes
- Movement analysis
- ** This includes physical preparation – learning and analysing 20 essential movements, acrobatics, juggling, stage combat, etc.
- Improvisation
- Autocours
- ** Each Friday, students are asked to work in groups to prepare for a performance upon a certain theme related to their other classwork. The process of collaborative directing is often frustrating at first, but allows students to engage with each other creatively. In this way, students get to know each other extremely well, and also learn to work with others to create a piece of work.
Notable alumni
- Isaac Alvarez – choreographer, mime, actor, pedagogue, founder of Théâtre du Moulinage
- Philippe Avron – actor
- Joey Batey – actor and musician
- Steven Berkoff – playwright and actor
- Kate Brooke – screenwriter
- Chris Channing – performance artist and theatre maker
- Leah Cherniak – Canadian playwright and director
- Salim Daw – Palestinian actor
- Avner Eisenberg – performer and teacher
- Isla Fisher – comedian and actor
- Giovanni Fusetti – theatre pedagogue, founder of Helikos, Florence, Italy
- Philippe Gaulier – clown, teacher and founder of École Philippe Gaulier
- Dean Gilmour – actor and director
- Chris Harris – English pantomime dame, director and writer
- Charlotte Hope – actor
- Sophie Hunter – director
- Toby Jones – actor
- William Kentridge – artist
- Beejan Land – actor
- Victoria Legrand – singer, musician, member of the band Beach House
- Sergi López – actor
- Alex McAvoy – actor
- Simon McBurney – actor, director and founder of Théâtre de Complicité
- Gates McFadden – actor and choreographer
- Adrian Pecknold – founder of Canadian Mime Theatre
- Ariane Mnouchkine – director, writer and founder of Théâtre du Soleil
- Richard Pochinko – clown, teacher at the Theatre Resource Centre and creator of the Canadian Clowning/Pochinko Clowning Technique
- Yasmina Reza – playwright
- Geoffrey Rush – actor
- Toby Sedgwick – director/actor, choreographer of War Horse
- Julie Taymor – film and Broadway theatre director
- Ayse Tashkiran – movement director and author on movement
- – Colombian actress, writer and producer
- Kani Kusruti – actress
- Suzy Willson – director and co-founder of Clod Ensemble