Develop Personally

We may know choral speaking at most from praying together in a church service or, in its most extreme form, in a football stadium or at protest rallies. What these phenomena have in common is that the voice of the individual merges into the overall sound of all participants and that there is often a choral “leader” who speaks first and the choir responds in amplified form.

But not only does the choir need clear guidance; the leader also needs the choir’s powerful response as support. This leads to synergy effects from which both sides can benefit.

Content

• Exercises for body and breathing awareness

• Voice exercises

• Exercises for self-awareness and awareness of others within the group

• Exercise for clear articulation

Objective

• Strengthening vocal presence and clear articulation

• Developing self-awareness and awareness of others

• Developing hearing and listening skills

• Developing vocal power/presence that extends far beyond our own voice and allows us to experience a great shared strength.

Lecturer

Prof. Georg Verhülsdonk

• Lecturer in speech training and acting at Alanus University, Folkwang UdK Bochum and HfMDK Frankfurt

• Speech choir coach at theaters and at Cologne Opera

Communication via digital platforms offers great opportunities and modernizes our everyday work. But it also presents challenges: generating attention in a video conference and leading the conversation confidently, holding seminars or lectures digitally, and organizing team meetings productively and collaboratively can feel unfamiliar.

Through targeted training and with the help of exemplary situations, presence, expression, spontaneity, and empathy are developed.

Content

• Introduction to the topic and clarification of terms

• Technical tools: What should I pay attention to? (training in the conscious use of camera, light, space, framing)

• A relaxed body as the foundation for dynamic communication

• The five senses as the foundation for a three-dimensional impact

• Moderation techniques for groups/teams in digital spaces

• Exercises on breathing and voice

• Space for individual concerns

Objectives

• Strengthening personal expression as well as perceptual and experiential abilities

• Handling the interaction between space and body in a digital context

• Establishing a personal connection in digital communication

• Conscious use of breathing and voice

• Acquiring the ability and skills to communicate consciously and confidently in digital spaces

Lecturer

Prof. Dominik Schiefner

• Professor of Acting

• Dean of the Performing Arts Department at Alanus University

• Graduate actor

• Director

• Mediator

• Juror for the Handelsblatt Rhetoric Check DAX30

Body language has more influence on how others perceive us than we think. And it plays a major role in determining the quality of our communication. The body language signals of others provide crucial orientation for us. Those who, on the one hand, perceive and correctly interpret these signals and, on the other, sharpen their awareness of their own signals, have an advantage in many professional situations. That is why it is worthwhile to devote attention to the impact of body language, image, and presence.

Actors are “body language experts.” This is an important part of their profession. They perceive body language and use it. They can inspire others and win them over. In this seminar, you will learn how they do this and how you can benefit from it in your everyday professional life.

Content

• Image design: With the help of the other seminar participants, we determine your first impression on others and turn it into a strength, into a well-anchored “lean-back” for your professional appearances.

• Using acting methods, we train the elements of impactful and effective communication:
– lively vocal expression, clear articulation
– efficient breathing technique
– awareness of space (with and without microphone)
– authentic and energetic physical expression

Objective

• You will become familiar with the range of your body language signals, and you will learn to read those of others.

• You will test your influence through body language and train how to actively change the external and internal attitude of the person opposite you.

Lecturer

Prof. Suzanne Ziellenbach

• Professor of speech training and acting at Alanus University

• Actress

• Speaker

Wherever people meet, they assume a certain status. The skilled and conscious use of body language often has a decisive effect on the other person—whether employees, partners, or the public.

With so-called “status work” (according to Keith Johnstone), we will find out how each of us prefers to present ourselves in the world.

Content

• Exploring body language using the rules of status games

• Playful handling of the various “status characteristics”

• Describing how this changes our inner and outer impact

• Games and exercises for perception, spontaneity, and mobilizing the imagination

Objective

• Applying what has been learned to practical examples from the participants’ everyday professional lives

• Strengthening self-confidence and persuasiveness in acquisition and employee conversations

• Awareness of appreciative communication

Lecturer

Beate Schwarzbauer

• Lecturer in acting and scene study at Alanus University

• Actress

• Speaker

• Director

• Mediator

This seminar focuses on exploring nonverbal forms of expression based on the techniques of contact improvisation. Our approach is bodywork, meaning the exploration of the body’s own mechanisms and their expansion. Another focal point is the conscious handling of physical expression and the enhancement of sensory perception.

Content

• Taking in impulses and using them for one’s own actions, training the perception of intuitive decisions and trust in one’s own possibilities and their expansion

• Professional input, practical exercises, small group work, short presentations, feedback, video feedback

Objective

• To sense the mechanisms that limit or influence our intuition and thereby develop confidence in new decisions and fields of impact

Lecturer

Ilona Pászthy

• Trained in classical and contemporary dance

• Studied painting/illustration

• Co-director of Barnes Crossing

• Multiple award winner and internationally active

• Lecturer in bodywork/performance/choreography at Alanus University

Body, voice, and spoken expression account for a large part of a person’s rhetorical impact. They determine likability and credibility, but also the comprehensibility of the presented content.

In this seminar, participants learn and explore how to use their voice efficiently when working with texts, improve resonance, articulate more clearly, shape their speaking pace according to meaning, and appropriately vary emphasis and melody, thereby significantly increasing their persuasiveness in speech.

Content

• Speaking texts as a communicative process

• Interpretation and transformation of texts

• Developing spoken versions of factual and literary texts

• Presentation and feedback

• Constructive criticism of the developed texts

Objective

• Realistic self-assessment of one’s own speaking performance

• Strengthening reading-aloud skills

• Acquiring skills that make speaking texts as a communicative

process tangible

Lecturer

Prof. Suzanne Ziellenbach

• Professor of speech training and acting at Alanus University

• Actress

• Speaker

Image films, documentaries, interviews, and presentations are becoming increasingly important for many people in the age of the internet and digital media. This applies equally to both professional and private contexts. The perspective of an experienced documentary filmmaker can provide substantial new insights here.

The seminar examines the impact of authentic presence in front of the camera. Which basic narrative principles make a scene interesting? What is the core of a good story? Using exemplary situations, participants in this seminar learn how they come across on camera and how they can use this impact deliberately.
Content

• Exercises in storytelling techniques

• Interview training

• Learning a conscious understanding of roles

Objective

• Learning the basic principles of appearing in front of the camera

• Confident handling of interview situations

• Strengthening personality in front of the camera

Lecturer

Prof. René Harder

• Professor of Acting and Project Development at Alanus University

• Multiple award-winning film director

• Theater director

• Actor