As a regular teacher himself (at Tring Park for the Performing Arts and the Jackie Palmer Stage School), Gerard Logan is used to doing Shakespeare and classical acting workshops with large groups of young people.  

 

In performing "The Rape of Lucrece" our aim is to give audiences a fresh sense of the potentially hypnotic power of the spoken-word and a new, visceral impression of the greatest theatre-wizard who ever lived.

 

To this end, Gerard has brought the show and a follow-up workshop package to many schools including Oundle, Queen Ann’s School Caversham, Bedales, Marlborough College and Oldham College.

 

The reaction to these packages has, from pupil and teacher alike, been wonderful.

 

 

Here are a few testimonials for your perusal:

 

Mr Ali Boag (Head of Drama at Oundle School).

Gerard Logan’s performance of The Rape of Lucrece here was followed up by a workshop/masterclass.  Both events were of enormous value and any theatre or drama Department would benefit from the expertise, enthusiasm, honesty and love that Gerard brings to his craft.

The Rape of Lucrece is a thrilling piece of story-telling, delivered with a commitment that radiates from the stage.  The sudden shifts from power to pathos in the performance are thrilling and the integrity of the acting means that the sometimes difficult verse need not present a problem to any audience.  Gerard’s handling of the verse is astonishingly fresh, clear and exciting.  Our audience here were enthralled by both the narrative and its mesmerising delivery.

Not every practitioner can teach; Gerard can.  His honesty challenges the pupils, his advice is often unexpected, his knowledge of how Shakespeare writes is faultless and his desire to pass on performance skills is genuine and inspiring.  The quietest pupil was made to feel that achievement was possible while the more thrusting pupils’ work was put in the wider context of theatre practice in general.  The two hours’ workshop was the most sustained educational experience I have ever seen.

Our pupils were astonished and delighted by both the performance and the workshop; they were spoken to as equals, they learnt a huge amount, they were encouraged and made to feel that their skills at whatever level were valuable.  Into the bargain, they learnt enough about the nuts and bolts of iambic pentameter never to feel threatened by it again (cont’d next page).

 

Here are three reflections from the pupils:

Gerard Logan has an electrifying charisma that led to a productive and intense workshop session. The great emotional depth of his performance is reflected in his teaching style which is gripping, motivational and unforgettable. He is an exceptional man with many eye-opening theories on theatre and any opportunity to spend time with him should be seized!  His captivating style of speech, his inspirational wordplay and his sheer energy make him a fascinating teacher and a fantastic actor.

(Lower 6th male actor)

v

From the moment Gerard Logan walked into the studio, he engaged the whole group completely. The passion and enthusiasm he demonstrated was totally contagious. He encouraged us to participate, helping us connect with the emotions of Shakespeare’s sonnets and make sense of a language many didn’t really understand. He made the sonnet personal, asking us to refer back to our own deep emotions, which was an amazing technique I had encountered but had never had the confidence to practise it so successfully. Mr Logan is one of the most inspirational people I have ever met. His energy left me feeling exhilarated and his love of his profession was admirable. He taught me not to lose faith, as it is so easy to do in such a competitive profession, and that perseverance is key.

(Lower 6th female actor)

v

I am a pupil at Oundle School studying drama. Today Gerard Logan came and visited my school as part of a Sir Hugh Wonter Master Class and gave a group of drama students some advice about performing Shakespeare speeches, sonnets and the power of his work.

I would have liked to personally thank Mr Logan for how he inspired me and how incredibly fabulous I thought his talk was but I could not find his direct contact details anywhere on the internet.  There were moments when the power of his words made me want to cry.  He is the most incredible man I have ever encountered.  He spent some time talking to us about passion and it is clear he is filled with it, so much so that this amazing sense of passion he evoked has left me in total awe.  My mother is an actress as are many of her friends and I appeared on the Archers on Radio 4 for much of my childhood, so I am constantly surrounded by huge personalities and performers but never have I met someone who loves their profession so dearly, believes in themselves and the art of drama so much and who can totally encapsulate my attention for a whole 2 hours.  I did not take my eyes off him for the entire time he was talking to us and every one of his exercises was original, exciting and like nothing I had ever done before.

If you get the chance, could you please pass this message on to Mr Logan and let him know that I will never forget the afternoon I spent in his company this afternoon.  I am afraid I can think of nothing more imaginative to say than, “Wow.”  It was stunning.

(Lower 6th female actor).

v

 

Mr Rhodri Punter (Head of Drama at Queen Anne’s School Caversham)

Having just recovered from meeting theatre-God Steven Berkoff, the QAS dramanauts have recently enjoyed the company of another mesmeric dramatic talent when former-RSC actor Gerard Logan visited Dramaramaland.

Gerard performed his highly acclaimed one-man show "The Rape of Lucrece", a dramatisation of Shakespeare's narrative poem, to an audience of GCSE and A level Drama students. He then spent 30 minutes answering questions including, of course, "how on earth did you manage to learn all those lines?" (The one-man show runs for an hour and is over 30 pages long!)

Gerard spent the evening in the company of the A level Drama students, providing a highly intense, detailed and, at times, emotional and personal three hours-worth of work. The students were treated to a "Drama School standard" of workshop which focused on the precision, tightness and richness of Shakespeare's language. Even Mr Punter, who is often heard to say "yeah, clever bloke, this Shakespeare geezer!" was astonished by quite how precise some of the language is.

At the end of the workshop and after the students had left, Gerard asked Mr Punter to "please pass on my thanks to your students for their commitment, passion and bravery".

Sixteen drained dramanauts left the PAC that night feeling like they'd twelve rounds with Audley Harrison! They were exhilarated and drained in equal measure. The next day, when asked to choose just one word to summarize Gerard's performance and workshop, the most common words was "inspirational".