MaskPoetica: Contemporary Commedia dell'Arte – Open Laboratory – Amsterdam October 2025
Open Laboratory
maskpoetica
Contemporary Commedia dell’Arte
directed by Carlos García Estévez
8 – 10 October 2025
at Polanentheater, Amsterdam
In this Manifesto Poetico Open Laboratory, we invite participating artists to explore the dramatic and poetic dimensions of Contemporary Commedia dell’Arte and the transformative power of the mask.
Our highly practical laboratory is grounded in principles of architectural form, space and movement. We will approach the mask as a bridge to the theatrical dimension.
The work will cultivate a deep connection to the present moment, inviting vulnerability and complicity through direct interaction with – and powerful impact on – the audience. We will seek to discover theatrical characters and awaken archetypal reactions in the audience.
In the course of the Laboratory, we will embark on a sensory journey through the mask, rediscovering ourselves not as isolated beings, but as participants in a universal narrative.
At the heart of this practice is the Triad of Passage: form, transform, perform — where the mask meets the actor’s body and spirit of play to create a transformation that connects with the audience.
Our Laboratories are well structured to support the high level of physical and attentional commitment required for the work. Each MaskPoetica Laboratory is unique, however, as we respond to, and create with, the individual talents and qualities of the participants.
MaskPoetica: Contemporary Commedia dell’Arte is a continuously evolving concept, guided by principles such as mass/force/compensation and time/rhythm/movement. With full engagement of mind, body and spirit of play, we seek to awaken a universal human experience, where space for meaningful stories can arise.
Know more about Manifesto Poetico’s
MaskPoetica: Contemporary Commedia dell’Arte
SOME OF THE TOPICS THAT WE’LL EXPLORE ARE:
- Sensorial Journey. Emotion & Counter-emotion
- Interaction & direct contact with the audience
- The Triad of Passage: form, transform, perform
- Directional Symbology. Movement & Counter-movement
- Mask and its abstraction. Inner Structure.
- Improvisation
- Movement Technique
- Musicality. Timing. Space
"I firmly believe that the actor and director Carlos García Estévez is an extraordinary pedagogue, interpreter and especially a sharp actor in interpreting not only the Commedia dell’ Arte masks, but masks in contemporary theatre."
Donato Sartori - Centro Maschere e Strutture Gestuali (IT)
This Open Laboratory is an opportunity for actors, dancers, performers, and all other theatre practitioners or scholars interested in exploring the physical and performative aspects of Mask Performance.
Participants will engage in an in-depth study of the mask dimension in contemporary theatre through unconventional perspectives.
Practical Information
DATES 8 – 10 October 2025 (11am to 5pm)
PRICE 325€
LOCATION Polanentheater - Polanenstraat 174
1013 WC Amsterdam
www.polanentheater.nl
The activity will be directed in English. Work sessions can be translated into French, Italian and Spanish.
TO APPLY send an email with your CV, PHOTO and a MOTIVATION LETTER to info@manifestopoetico.com Applicants will then be selected.
