ben naylor

a legendary acting teacher interviewed me to study with him.

he was wise and gentle and courteous; he asked me where I found my inspiration.

he probably expected me to reel off a list of au-courant cultural curios (and his expectations tended to be confirmed):

of course, I duly did. I don’t remember what was on my list, though.

but anyway, the answer Reuven, most generous of teachers, wanted me to find, was ‘in myself’.

he would teach me crucial lessons: that as a receiver and a transmitter of culture and tradition, I had no right ever to be bored: that I must consciously engage, rigorously test, and ultimately trust in, my perceptions and my interpretations: and that I must attend to everything, and in all moments be attentive.

as a teacher and as an artist, I do not proselytise any one particular tradition; I do not prioritise any particular method or system. I draw inspiration from my responses to many great artists and teachers, those whom (or whose work) I’ve known in life and those I’ve encountered only in my imagination. My theatrical sense is forged by all these collisions: Stanislavskyan realism and commedia dell’arte, movement psychology and neuroscience, modern dance and silent film, clown and Greek tragedy, Shakespeare and the Method, baroque opera and butoh, high culture and pop culture, classical art and contemporary icons.