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Movement: Embodied Acting

Short Study – Weekend Course

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Booking Closed

Overview

Booking is now closed. Please email shortcourses@rcs.ac.uk to enquire about late sign ups.

On this intensive one-day course, you will discover powerful physical techniques to develop authentic, fully embodied characters that feel natural and meaningful in performance. Through practical exploration and guided exercises, you’ll learn to transform your physical presence and harness your body’s expressive potential.

We will explore movement analysis, physical characterisation, pure movement, and gestural vocabulary to create characters that are grounded, purposeful, and compelling. The course provides a supportive environment to experiment with different physical approaches while building confidence to make bold choices that serve the character and story.

Strong physical characterisation is essential for memorable performances, successful auditions, and creating truthful moments on stage and screen. This open access course is suitable for training, professional and amateur actors who wish to:

  • Develop a deeper understanding of physical characterisation through exploration of posture, gesture, rhythm, and movement qualities to create distinct and authentic character physicality;
  • Explore practical techniques for releasing tension, increasing body awareness, and accessing natural impulses to eliminate self-consciousness and artificial movement;
  • Learn to analyse and embody character status, emotional state, and objectives through specific physical choices and behavioural patterns;
  • Gain confidence in making bold physical choices through practical exercises and receive feedback on character-driven movement work and physical spontaneity.

Courses you may be interested in

We run a variety of different courses throughout the year, and update our programme regularly – you can find all courses by clicking here.

Mailing List
Sign up to our mailing list to receive the latest updates of courses, offers and news from Short Courses. You can do this by completing this short online form found here.

Contact us
If you have any questions about this course before you book it, please get in touch with us at shortcourses@rcs.ac.uk.

The important details

Age:
16+

Cost:
£75

Date:
Saturday, 19 April 2025

Time:
10am - 5pm

Venue:
The Wallace Studios at Speirs Locks, 210 Garscube Road, Glasgow, G4 9RR

Course Information

There are no entry requirements for this course.

We ask that students be open, respectful and willing to participate in discussion and practical activities.

If you have any questions about this class or the support we can offer, please get in touch with us at shortcourses@rcs.ac.uk

  • Please come ready for practical work, dressed in comfortable clothing. We will work barefoot for part of the course.

  • Bring a note pad and pencil in case you wish to make notes.

  • Please bring a bottle of water to keep hydrated during the course. Refilling stations are available throughout the building.

  • There may be use of music and/or use of a drum.

  • Please inform us in advance of any reasonable adjustments or accommodations we can make to ensure you can fully participate in and benefit from the course.

Each session will begin with a physical and energetic warm-up designed to increase body awareness, release tension, and prepare you for character exploration.

You will be introduced to fundamental movement analysis techniques and physical characterisation tools, exploring how different parts of the body can express character traits, status, and emotional states. Through guided exercises, you’ll learn to identify and understand your own habitual movement patterns and how to consciously adapt them for character work.

As the day progresses, you’ll explore various movement qualities, rhythms, and gestural vocabularies that can help define different characters. You’ll discover how slight adjustments in posture, weight distribution, and movement patterns can dramatically alter your physical presence.

You will have the opportunity to work individually in front of the class on a short character piece, applying the physical techniques learned throughout the day. During this time, you will receive detailed feedback and guidance from your tutor on your physical choices and their effectiveness in storytelling.

The day will conclude with a sharing of your character work and time for reflection on how to integrate these tools into your ongoing practice.

Further Information

We want to ensure as many children, young people and adult learners as possible can access the performing and production arts education that is offered through Short Courses at RCS. Financial support options available for Short Courses include:

Agnes Allan Bursary

Agnes Allan was a teacher, passionate about inclusion, and this bursary scheme exists to offer support to students to participate in the performing or production arts.

The Agnes Allan Bursary provides some support to students who may require financial assistance to take part in a short course in dance, drama, music, production or screen.

Anyone who wishes to take part in our Short Courses and faces a financial barrier can apply for bursary support to help meet the cost of tuition fees.

James McAvoy Drama Scholarships

BAFTA-winning and Golden Globe nominated actor James McAvoy is committed to nurturing the creative potential of young Scots who experience barriers to access and participate in drama at RCS Short Courses.

James is a graduate of the BA Acting programme at RCS and Patron of the Junior Conservatoire of Drama. The Glasgow-born actor has funded the new James McAvoy Drama Scholarships to enable young people to experience the world-class drama training at RCS as he did.

The scholarship aims to support applicants who would otherwise find meeting the cost of tuition fees at RCS a barrier to accessing pre-Higher Education drama training at the Royal Conservatoire.

You can find more information about these funds on our Financial Support page.

We run various promotional offers for our Short Courses and Summer Schools. You can view our current offers on our Promotional Offers page.

You should contact us at shortcourses@rcs.ac.uk to request your discount code before booking a course.

Please note, only one promotional offer can be applied per course and should be used at the time of booking as we are unable to apply a discounts retrospectively.

Please see our Short Course FAQs for more information about all aspects of choosing, booking and attending your course.

Please see our Short Courses – Terms and Conditions for more information about your contract with Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, and Cancellation and Refund policies.

Sign up to our mailing list to receive the latest updates of courses, offers and news from Short Courses. You can do this by completing this short online form found here.

Short Courses
shortcourses@rcs.ac.uk

Summer Schools
summerschools@rcs.ac.uk

Credit-Rated
credit-rated@rcs.ac.uk

Bursary and Scholarship
bursaryscholarship@rcs.ac.uk

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Short Courses Photo Gallery

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Short Courses students are reading scripts in a rehearsal room.
Short courses music students are performing in the Stevenson Hall. A string quartet and an accordion player sit in a semi-circle while a pianist performs behind them.
A group of short courses students are playing accordions. They are sitting in a semi-circle.
A group of short courses students are playing saxophones.
A group of short courses students are playing string instruments.
Short courses students are reading scripts in a rehearsal room. They are smiling and laughing with each other.
Short courses students are using a film camera.
Short courses students are reading lines from printed scripts. They are in a rehearsal room.
A person is smiling off-camera. They are holding a pencil and a book. Another person looks on intently.
Three actors are performing on stage. They are standing next to two chairs that have been toppled over. They are gesturing off camera.
A group of actors are performing on stage. They are wearing brightly coloured clothes.
A tutor directs two short courses students. They are all smiling.