Upcoming Courses
Demidov Three Intensive Series
DEMIDOV ACTING TECHNIQUE THREE INTENSIVE SERIES
(The Intensives in this Series can also be booked individually.)
This Three Intensive Series is aimed at actors who would like to receive a more extended taste of the Demidov work, focusing on in-depth work on the foundations of the technique and Demidov's inimitable approach to working with the power of circumstances. It is suitable both for actors new to the work and those with some experience who would like to go more deeply into the work.
Each Intensive focuses on a different aspect of the Demidov curriculum, with one stage leading naturally to the next. We begin at the core of the Demidov School: nurturing the actor's subconscious creativity and cultivating freedom of life onstage from the very first moments of training through Demidov's Etudes, before exploring how we allow our work to be truthful and alive each time we repeat – a moment, a scene or a whole performance – through what Demidov calls Inexact (Creative) Repetition. We then dive more deeply into discovering how we work with circumstances, learning how to surrender to them so that they guide us as an irresistible force.
THE INTENSIVES IN THIS SERIES CAN ALSO BE BOOKED INDIVIDUALLY FOR THOSE WHO WOULD LIKE TO PARTICIPATE, BUT CANNOT ATTEND ALL THREE INTENSIVES. ALL INTENSIVES WILL BE HELD AT PUSHKIN HOUSE IN BLOOMSBURY SQUARE, LONDON. SEE BELOW FOR EXACT DATES AND TIMES.
The Demidov School approaches the creative process as an indivisible whole (everything we need is already there from the beginning). We put the actor’s talent, creativity, and intuition at the heart of everything we do. The Demidov School was created in the latter part of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th Century by Nikolai Demidov, a close associate of Stanislavsky. But the school and technique were lost to us for many years. Thanks to the efforts of Professor Andrei Malaev-Babel - head of the Demidov Association - who recreated the technique according to the letter and script of Demidov’s original ideals, we now have this revolutionary approach to actor training.
This Series will be led by Demidov Studio London Director, Andrei Biziorek.
TOTAL COST FOR THE SERIES: £900
OR
Cost for the May Intensive: £240
Cost for the June Intensive: £350
Cost for the July Intensive: £350
SCHEDULE:
INTENSIVE 1 : MAY 6 & 7 (Tuesday & Wednesday) - 10am to 4pm each day.
INTENSIVE 2 : June 13, 14, 15 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) - 10am to 4pm each day.
INTENSIVE 3 : July 11, 12, 13 (Friday, Saturday, Sunday) - 10am to 4pm each day.
To register your interest in this Series or for individual Intensives, please fill out the form below and click the register button, and we will be in touch to set up a time to have a chat.
DEMIDOV THREE INTENSIVE SERIES REGISTRATION FORM:
Demidov Three Month Immersion Course
The Demidov Three Month Immersive is for actors who want to dive more deeply into the work of the Demidov School. The course will give actors the opportunity to work more intensively and in greater depth on certain aspects of the Demidov curriculum. The course will include working with the Foundations of the entire technique, rooted in Demidov’s signature Etudes, plus Inexact (Creative) Repetition, The Power of Circumstances, and his unique approach to the development of Character. The course is structured to flow seamlessly from one aspect of the work to the next, allowing actors to stay immersed in the work and organically utilise what they are learning as the course progresses. The whole course is designed to immerse actors in the fundamental approach fo the Demidov work: creative freedom, spontaneity and connection to deep intuition and faith in our own talent.
Total course hours: 72.
Total cost: £1800
Course Structure
Term One - Foundations – Inexact (Creative) Repetition – Circumstances
IN PERSON INTENSIVE 1 - FOUNDATIONS: MAY 23, 24, 25 – 10am to 4pm each day.
ONLINE SESSIONS: June 2, 4, 9.
IN PERSON STUDIO SESSIONS: June 17, 20, 24, 26, July 1 – 10am to 1pm.
We begin at the core of the Demidov School: nurturing the actor's subconscious creativity and cultivating freedom of life onstage from the very first moments of training through Demidov's Etudes
We then explore how we allow our work to be truthful and alive each time we repeat – a moment, a scene or a whole performance – through what Demidov calls Inexact (Creative) Repetition.
We then dive more deeply into discovering how we work with the Power of Circumstances, learning how to surrender to them so that they guide us as an irresistible force. And how acting then becomes effortless.
Term Two - Character
IN PERSON STUDIO SESSIONS: July 3, 8, 10, 15, 17, 22.
JULY CHARACTER IN PERSON INTENSIVE: 26, 27 (10am to 4pm each day)
According to Demidov, character is born in us, not ‘built’ or ‘made’. It is a living being that continues to develop and mature for as long as we are active in a role. Demidov says the origin of character, the ‘just-born’ character, and is connected with subtle energy, with what he calls ‘weak currents’. In this intensive, through our work on etudes, we will practise surrendering to these 'weak currents', to the first subtle manifestation of a character's being, to what Demidov calls the ‘embryo’ of the character. We will learn how to allow this 'embryo' to grow and develop on its own - without interfering with it. We will work with etudes that encourage you to surrender to characters perhaps further away from your ‘habitual persona’, furthering the cultivation of the reflex of transformability. You will also be introduced to the techniques of character accumulation and facilitation, unique to the Demidov School.
The Demidov Organic Acting Technique empowers actors to connect deeply with their unique creative individuality by guiding them to recognise and trust their innate artistic instincts. It is an approach that cultivates faith in the actors’ own talent and foster spontaneous performances that emerge organically, allowing actors to consistently access inspiration and fully express their true creative potential.
To register your interest in the course please fill out the form below and click the register button, and we will be in touch to set up a time to have a chat.
Demidov Nine Month Immersion Course
Demidov Acting Technique Nine Month Immersion Course
Demidov Studio London is, for the first time, offering actors the opportunity to embark on a nine-month continuous journey into the technique of creative freedom, as developed by Nikolai Demidov and taught at Demidov Studio London.
This in-depth course in the Demidov School of Acting is designed for actors who are serious about developing a complete and practical inner technique — one that enables consistent access to artistic inspiration and the ability to fully experience and live on stage or screen.
Over the course of nine months, actors will explore an extensive part of the Demidov curriculum in greater depth, including how to approach a role. The course is designed so that each stage unfolds seamlessly into the next, as our experience deepens. Training will be delivered in five stages, through a series of in-person intensives, supported and complemented by online work via Zoom.
The aim of the course is to cultivate our innate talent, so that it develops smoothly and organically, liberating our subconscious creativity and creating a natural path to each actor’s unique artistic individuality.
The Demidov School approaches the creative process as an indivisible whole (everything we need is already there from the beginning). Throughout this course, actors develop their creative reflexes (spontaneous reactions) to live truthfully in each moment – and to experience what true creative freedom means.
We are looking for actors who are committed to diving deeply into the Demidov work; who are drawn to explore their own creative process and who they are as artists. The group chosen for the course will work as an ensemble across the nine months of training.
Course Content
Stage One - The Demidov Etudes + Inexact (Creative) Repetition - the Demidov Etudes are the foundation of the entire Demidov School, and in this stage of the course we learn the fundamental principles of the organic approach to the art of living on stage and screen. Through Demidov's signature Etudes we get a first taste of what it means to truly live in the moment, to truly and see and hear on stage, to remain ‘here and now’. We are encouraged to trust our spontaneous urges, and surrender to the genuine life that develops on its own. These are our partner scales exercises, as a musician practises scales every day. Demidov created these to refine and tune our creative instrument towards surrender to and transformation into character.
The Art of Inexact (Creative) Repetition - The nature of acting is that we repeat, whether in rehearsal, audition, or performance. It is impossible to repeat something exactly the same way twice. So how do we repeat an etude, a scene or an entire play, so that it is not a mechanical repetition of what we did last time? Here we learn the fundamental principles that lie behind Demidov’s art of Inexact (Creative) Repetition. We discover the inner life of a given text and the ways to embody it. This frees us from any obligation to repeat anything exactly (our behaviour, actions, what we felt, etc.), and teaches us how to trust our creative intuition; to surrender to the truth of the moment, without considerations of right and wrong.
Stage Two – The Power of Circumstances – Most actors know that circumstances are important, but how do we immerse ourselves in and surrender to them so that they carry and drive us, as a force of nature? In this stage of the course, we discover how circumstances – both known and unknown – propel and guide our life as character. Working with Inexact (Creative) Repetition, we will explore how circumstances become given, and how they are clarified and deepened every time we repeat. At the same time, we will discover the connection between circumstances and character, and how relationships are simultaneously enriched. When we learn to perceive and surrender to circumstances, acting becomes effortless. Also at this stage, you will be introduced to individual scales exercises, which are to be practised at home daily.
Stage Three – Character – According to Demidov, character is born in us, not ‘built’ or ‘played’. It is a living being that continues to develop and mature for as long as we are active in a role. Demidov says the origin of character is connected with subtle energy, with what he calls ‘weak currents’. In this stage of the course, through our work on etudes, we will practise surrendering to these 'weak currents'; to the first subtle manifestations of a character's being; to what Demidov calls the ‘embryo’ of the character. Specific character facilitation and accumulation exercises, unique to the Demidov School, will be introduced at this stage. These exercises are precious for the actor's creative homework.
Stage Four – Scene Study – Here we explore the Demidov School’s approach to working with circumstances and character given by an author. It will further develop the technique of Inexact (Creative) Repetition, enriching characters, deepening relationships and working with more heightened circumstances by utilizing the organic approach. During this stage, we take new steps toward mastering the art of creative transformation (embodiment), as we approach character via scenes from contemporary realist plays, chosen by you and agreed between you, your scene partner and the facilitator.
You will be introduced to sophisticated approaches to working with the text. These new methods will further develop the basic skill of “assigning” the role’s text. We will also work with:
· Uncovering the character’s past
· Assigning and ‘magnetising’ the circumstances
· Yielding to physical sensations
· Character Accumulation and Facilitation
· The art of letting go
· Preparation for rehearsal
Stage Five – Approaching a Role- In this final stage of the course, we focus on how we apply the work learned so far to the process of rehearsal and development of a role. We build naturally on the work developed during Scene Study, by expanding our focus from a single scene to a sequence of scenes from a contemporary play. Here we apply the work across the broader arc of a character’s journey. We are not concerned here with the outcome, or with creating a production, but rather with the process of preparation, rehearsal and role development. The focus is on learning to perceive and become immersed in the world of the play, and on the organic development of the character’s journey. Rehearsals become a space for continual discovery, not a place to fix results.
Why train with us?
Demidov Studio London is the only place in the UK where you can receive authentic and complete training in the Demidov Technique, with a trusted teacher, who has trained in the entire Demidov curriculum as both actor and teacher and is certified by the International Demidov Association. DSL is the only official UK Chapter of the Demidov Association.
The Immersion Program will be taught by DSL Director Andrei Biziorek.
Program Cost, Dates and Times
Entry to the course will be by interview.
The course will comprise 207 hours of training over nine months.
Total Cost of the Program: £3500.
A deposit of £500 is required within two weeks of being accepted onto the program.
Payment plan: A payment plan is possible, in agreement with DSL administration. The full deposit would still be necessary and then a monthly payment would be required. Full payment would need to be received before the end of the course.
The course will consist of in-person intensives and online work via Zoom.
STAGE ONE – ROOTS OF THE TECHNIQUE AND INEXACT (CREATIVE) REPETITION
In Person Intensive: October 10, 11 and 12. (10am to 4pm)
Four weeks online – Wednesdays: October 15 to November 5. (10am to 1pm)
STAGE TWO – THE POWER OF CIRCUMSTANCES
In Person Intensive 1: November 14, 15. (10am to 4pm)
Five weeks online – Wednesdays: November 19 to December 17. (10am to 1pm)
In Person Intensive 2: December 19, 20 and 21.
CHRISTMAS BREAK
STAGE THREE - CHARACTER
Seven weeks online – Wednesdays: January 14 to February 25, 2026. (10am to 1pm)
In Person Intensive: March 6, 7 and 8. (10am to 4pm)
STAGE FOUR – SCENE STUDY
Seven online sessions – Wednesdays and Fridays: March 18 to April 10. (excluding April 3) (10am to 1pm)
In Person Intensive: April 17, 18 and 19. (10am to 4pm)
STAGE FIVE – APPROACHING A ROLE
13 online sessions – Wednesdays and Fridays: April 29 to June 10. (10am to 1pm)
In Person Intensive: June 19, 20, 21. (10am to 4pm)
The first step…
If you are interested in applying please complete the form below to register your interest.
The next step…
If you are invited to interview, you will be offered a date to meet over zoom with DSL Director. Please note, if you are accepted onto the program, you are agreeing to commit to the entire course and to be available for all the scheduled dates. Refunds are only considered in exceptional circumstances so please consider your application carefully.
DEMIDOV ACTING TECHNIQUE RETREAT – JANUARY 2025
This first of its kind Demidov Acting Technique Retreat will bring together actors from all over the world to work over seven days with two certified Demidov Acting Technique teachers, in the mountains of Poland. Conceived and organised by Demidov Studio Vienna, in collaboration with two other Demidov studios: Demidov Studio London and Demidov Studio Athens.
The aim of the retreat is to bring together actors internationally from all over the world, who are committed to and interested in working more intensively with the Demidov Acting Technique. Over a seven-day period, actors will work as an ensemble and have the opportunity to explore more deeply their potential as artists. The group will stay and work together in a mountain location in Poland for the duration of the retreat, offering the opportunity to escape the distractions and stresses of everyday modern living to focus on their artistic development. In addition to the class work sessions, time will be allocated for discussions and sharing of observations about the ongoing process.
Teachers for the Retreat will be Andrei Biziorek, Director of Demidov Studio Vienna and Demidov Studio London, and Vicky Georgiadou, Director of Demidov Studio Athens.
SCHEDULE: January 3rd to 11th, 2025
COST: 1480 Euros
LOCATION: Mandala retreat Centre, Targoszów 51A, 34-206, Krzeszów, Poland.
THREE INTENSIVE SERIES
Our Three-Intensive Series is now available as individual intensives. So you can now register for any of them individually, or get the whole experience of all three as a series. This Series is aimed at actors who would like to receive a more extended taste of the Demidov work, focusing on in-depth work on the foundations of the technique and Demidov's inimitable approach to working with the power of circumstances. It is suitable both for actors new to the work and those with some experience who would like to go more deeply into the work.
Each Intensive focuses on a different aspect of the Demidov curriculum, with one stage leading naturally to the next. We begin at the core of the Demidov School: nurturing the actor's subconscious creativity and cultivating freedom of life onstage from the very first moments of training through Demidov's Etudes, before exploring how we allow our work to be truthful and alive each time we repeat – a moment, a scene or a whole performance – through what Demidov calls Inexact (Creative) Repetition. We then dive more deeply into discovering how we work with circumstances, learning how to surrender to them so that they guide us as an irresistible force.
SCHEDULE
Cost for the whole series: £850.
Cost for the Two-Day Intensive: £212.50
Cost for either of the Three-Day Intensives: £318.75
Intensive One - The Etudes and Inexact (Creative) Repetition: Saturday November 30 and Sunday December 1, 2024.
Intensive Two - Circumstances 1: Discovering the Power of Circumstances: Friday January 17, Saturday January 18 and Sunday January 19, 2025.
Intensive Three - Circumstances 2: Freedom v Force: Friday February 14, Saturday February 15 and Sunday February 16, 2025.
Each Intensive will run from 10am to 4pm each day.
All intensives will be held in person in London. The series will be led by DSL Director Andrei Biziorek, the only certified teacher of the Demidov Acting Technique in the UK.
To register your interest in this innovative sequence of intensives please complete the form below. We will then contact you for a conversation. Please mention which intensive/s you are interested in.
** To register for the whole series actors must be available for all the dates. Please check your calendar with the dates above!
DSL Actor Gathering
Come together in November!
The DSL Actor Gathering is aimed at providing an opportunity for actors, directors, and all creative people in the performing arts to meet, connect and share a drink. As our work begins to reach more people, we want to create a space for our Demidov community in London to come together, meet others, share their stories, observations, questions, and just to hang out together.
This meeting is also for actors and creatives who may be interested in finding out more about the Demidov work and meeting actors who are already or have been involved in the work.
We will also share what’s going on with the studio here in London and share more about the Demidov work in general.
Come join us on 29 November, say hi and share a glass of something with us!
To RSVP and reserve your place (we need to know numbers!), please email Kelsey by clicking the button below.
Rome intensive
In this Demidov Acting Technique Intensive actors will be introduced to Demidov’s unique approach to accessing our inner freedom, cultivating our intuition, perception, spontaneity and ability to surrender fully to our inner urges and the truth of our experience in the moment. Over these two days we will work with techniques central to Demidov’s art of living on stage and screen:
The Foundations We will work with Demidov’s signature Etudes – the foundation and the apex of the whole Demidov School. These improvisational exercises with a given text train in us the ability to surrender to the free flow of our inner life, our subconscious creativity. We then discover how character, circumstances and relationships arise on their own, without our conscious interference. We become more creatively free, spontaneous and able to truly live in the moment.
The Power of Circumstances Circumstances - both known and unknown - are an enormously powerful, subtle and pervasive force that work through, transform and drive us, if we can learn how to immerse ourselves in them, bring them close to us and surrender to them. On this intensive, drawing on the principle of Inexact or Creative Repetition, we will get a taste of the transformative power of circumstances – and how effortlessly our life as character unfolds as a result.
This intensive is for actors both new to the Demidov work, and also for those who would like to continue to go deeper into it. The intensive will be two days, six hours each day: See below for exact times.
The Demidov School approaches the creative process as an indivisible whole (everything we need is already there from the beginning). We put the actor’s talent, creativity and intuition at the heart of everything we do. The Demidov School was created in the latter part of 19th Century and beginning of 20th by Nikolai Demidov, a close associate of Stanislavsky. But the school and the technique were lost to us for many years. It was thanks to the efforts of Professor Andrei Malaev-Babel – head of the Demidov Association – who recreated the technique according to the letter and spirit of Demidov’s original ideals, that we now have this revolutionary approach to actor training.
This intensive will be led by Demidov Studio London and Demidov Studio Vienna Founder and Director, Andrei Biziorek.
The Intensive will be conducted in English, so an adequate level of English is required.
COST: 280 EUROS
WHERE: STUDIO DRANG, Via Galeazzo Alessi, 212, ROME.
WHEN: October 11 and 12 – 10am to 4pm each day.
ENQUIRIES: andrei@demidovstudiolondon.com
Andrei Biziorek
Andrei is an acting teacher and director who spent 20 years working predominantly in Poland, the UK, the US and Australia. In Poland he worked with companies in the post-Grotowski lineage, including Gardzienice, Song of the Goat Theatre, and was an actor touring internationally with Theatre ZAR, resident company at the Grotowski Institute in Wroclaw.
In Poland he also trained with Zygmunt Molik, one of Jerzy Grotowski’s main actors from the Laboratory Theatre. He has taught acting and directed at numerous drama schools in the UK and internationally, including RADA, East 15, ArtsEd, Guildford School of Acting, Drama Studio London, Fourth Monkey Acting Training Company, Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, Bristol School of Acting and he has been teaching on the BA and MA courses at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in London for more than eight years. Andrei was introduced to the Demidov Organic Acting Technique by Professor Malaev-Babel and has been for the past seven years, working intensively with the technique under his guidance – in London, Moscow and Florida.
As a result of this relationship, Andrei founded Demidov Studio London, the UK chapter of the International Demidov Association, with Professor Malaev-Babel’s support as curator.
In Australia, Andrei was artistic director of Vis a Vis Theatre in Sydney, and in London, artistic director of Waving Not Drowning Theatre, Wrestling the Angel polyphonic singing group, and is currently director of the Tribe Theatre Collective, whose first production, Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment – created entirely with the Demidov Technique – was performed at The Cockpit Theatre in 2019.
TWO DAY INTENSIVE SEPTEMBER
DEMIDOV TWO-DAY INTENSIVE: FOUNDATIONS AND THE POWER OF CIRCUMSTANCES
In this two-day intensive, actors will be introduced to Demidov's unique approach to accessing our inner freedom, cultivating our intuition, perception, spontaneity, and ability to surrender fully to our inner urges and the truth of our experience in the moment.
Over these two days we will work with techniques central to Demidov's art of living on stage and screen:
The Foundations - We will work with Demidov's signature Etudes - the foundation and the apex of the whole Demidov School. These improvisational exercises with a given text train in us the ability to surrender to the free flow of our inner life, our subconscious creativity. We then discover how character, circumstances, and relationships arise on their own, without our conscious interference. We become more creatively free, spontaneous, and able to truly live in the moment.
The Power of Circumstances - both known and unknown, is an enormously powerful, subtle, and pervasive force that works through, transforms, and drives us if we can learn how to immerse ourselves in them, bring them close to us, and surrender to them. On this intensive, drawing on the principle of Inexact or Creative Repetition, we will get a taste of the transformative power of circumstances - and how effortlessly our life as a character unfolds as a result.
This intensive is for actors both new to the Demidov work, and also for those who would like to continue to go deeper into it. The intensive will be two days, six hours each day: April 16 and 17, 2024. See below for the exact times.
The Demidov School approaches the creative process as an indivisible whole (everything we need is already there from the beginning). We put the actor's talent, creativity, and intuition at the heart of everything we do. The Demidov School was created in the latter part of the 19th Century and the beginning of the 20th by Nikolai Demidov, a close associate of Stanislavsky. But the school and the technique were lost to us for many years. Thanks to the efforts of Professor Andrei Malaev-Babel - head of the Demidov Association - who recreated the technique according to the letter and spirit of Demidov's original ideals, we now have this revolutionary approach to actor training.
This intensive will be led by Demidov Studio London Director, Andrei Biziorek.