ΑDVANCED LABORATORY FOR ACTORS/PERFORMERS
Long-Term Actor Research Process
Phenomenology of Acting – An Embodied Approach to Acting
Research Direction: Michael Seibel, PhD
Stage Director · Theatre & Opera · Acting & Vocal Coach · Researcher
The Advanced Laboratory for Performers is conceived as a long-term process of research and practice into acting. The process develops gradually and through clearly defined stages, so that each participant is aware from the outset of the Laboratory’s overall perspective and can make a conscious decision about whether, and to what extent, they wish to continue.
The process begins with two free Open Lab sessions, with no commitment to continue. From among those interested in pursuing the work more systematically, a small and stable group of 8-10 participants will then be formed to take part in an initial three-month research cycle.
This cycle consists of four sessions per month, each lasting 4 hours. After completion of the first three months, those wishing to continue will have the opportunity to form the stable core of the Laboratory. The long-term perspective is the gradual development of an ongoing research group within which the practice of acting can be explored systematically, in depth, and over an extended period of time.
Participation therefore does not require a long-term commitment from the outset. Each stage allows participants to become more deeply acquainted with the process and to decide whether they wish to proceed to the next stage.
HOW DOES SCENIC ACTION EMERGE?
How do perception, the body, the voice, space, time, the partner, and the specific situation shape what happens on stage?
The Advanced Laboratory for Performers, directed by Michael Seibel, PhD, is a space for experimentation and practice-based research for actors and performers who wish to investigate acting as an embodied, lived, and situational process.
It is neither a conventional acting class nor the preparation of a performance. At its centre is the acting process itself: how scenic action emerges through perception, corporeality, voice, space, time, the encounter with the other, and the specific situation.
OPEN LAB – TWO FREE SESSIONS
The process begins with two free Open Lab sessions.
These sessions offer participants the opportunity to become acquainted with – and, above all, to experience – the approach in practice before deciding whether they wish to participate in the first research cycle.
Participation in the Open Lab is free of charge and involves no commitment to continue.
At the same time, the two sessions provide a space for mutual acquaintance: they allow us to discover who is genuinely interested in deepening their artistic practice and in actively participating in a stable research group.
FIRST RESEARCH CYCLE
Following the completion of the Open Lab, a small and stable group of 8-10 participants will be formed.
The first research cycle will run for three months, with four sessions per month, each lasting 4 hours.
The limited number of participants is an essential part of the Laboratory’s structure, as it provides the necessary space and time for practical work, observation, experimentation, exchange, and reflection.
The three-month duration has been deliberately chosen as an initial continuous cycle of research rather than as a requirement for an immediate long-term commitment. It gives the group time to develop a shared way of working and allows each participant to explore the approach in greater depth.
TOWARDS A LONG-TERM LABORATORY
Upon completion of the first three-month cycle, those wishing to continue will have the opportunity to form the stable core of the Advanced Laboratory for Performers.
The aim is gradually to establish a stable research group capable of investigating the processes of acting in depth and over an extended period of time, while simultaneously developing a shared approach to practice-based research.
The Laboratory forms part of the broader research project Phenomenology of Acting and aims to provide a space in which artistic practice, experience, and research come together within the very process of acting itself.
“Technique can create form, but not presence.”
Michael Seibel
Information:
Start of the Research Programme:
25 September 2026
PHENOMENOLOGY OF ACTING, POA
An Embodied Approach to Acting
Research Direction: Michael Seibel, PhD – Theatre & Opera Director · Acting & Vocal Coach · Researcher
Location: Central Athens. The exact venue will be announced in due course.
Monthly participation fee: €120
Schedule: Every Friday, 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
Telephone: +30 698 1912 696
Office Hours: 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Email: poa.actinglab@gmail.com
Website: www.michaelseibel.eu, https://michaelseibel.eu/index.php/future-workshops/