© Andreas Skourtis 2015

Part of
‘Walking the City’ TCCE Annual Walking Weekend 2016

Walk Guide: Andreas Skourtis,
The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Duration: about 60 minutes

Devised and created by Performing Architectures, this is a walk for exploring a bridge as a scenographic metaphor and sharing thoughts on immigration itineraries.

This walk is a slow walk on a route that includes Millennium Bridge, a soundscape inspired by the site and devised and created for the specific performance through headphones, a performer-guide and performer ‘passers-by’, a short journey in which thoughts about longer journeys are shared.

‘A Bridge’ is the first chapter of ‘EU Immigrants. EU Citizens’, a research project in development by Performing Architectures – Andreas Skourtis, which aims to raise awareness and widen the dialogue on ‘EU Immigrants’ through scenographic interventions.

The walk will start under Blackfriars Bridge (North end) and end at Blackfriars Bridge (South End) via the Millennium Bridge and Tate Modern.

Please note: Parts of the event will be filmed.

MP3s players and headphones will be provided to participants at the starting point (these are to returned at the end) together with instructions and a short brief.

Attendees must be in the starting point at least 10 minutes prior to the starting time.

Concept and Leader: Andreas Skourtis, Lecturer Scenography – The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Associate Artists: Christina Kapadocha, Shanna May Breen

Participating Artists: Elena Hadjiafxendi, Maria Yerosimou

Produced by Performing Architectures, with the support of The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama

Andreas Skourtis is a Greek-born London-based practicing architect and scenographer, and lecturer in scenography and researcher at the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama.

He is founder and artistic director of Performing Architectures, exploring architecture as scenography through scenography-led performances, installations, exhibitions and workshops, merging practice and academic research. 

He trained in architecture at Aristotle University and acting at Theatre Lab in Thessaloniki (1992-1998), and studied for an MA Theatre Design / Scenography at Wimbledon College of Arts (1999-2001).

His designs for the new theatre building of the Greek National Theatre in Athens (opened in 2009) were awarded a ‘gold medal for best work in theatre architecture and performance space’ in the Prague Quadrennial 2011.

In the last 15 years he has designed and directed a number of theatre shows and performances in London, Athens and Thessaloniki, and designed a number of private and public sector architectural projects.

He has previously taught scenography and theatre architecture at   the Theatre Studies Faculty, University of Peloponnese.

Christina Kapadocha is an actor, somatic acting/movement educator and researcher. Her movement-based actor training methodology emerged from her practice-as-research PhD project on the development of a BMC-informed somatic acting process (RCSSD). Greek National Theatre Drama School and East 15 Acting School alumni Christina currently teaches actors and artists within various London-based institutions (including East 15, RCSSD, Mountview), directs workshops and performs in London. She has also trained and performed in Bali (ISI) and Moscow (GITIS).

Shanna May Breen is an Irish-born London-based theatre maker who completed her MA in Advanced Theatre Practice at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama in 2014. Throughout Shanna’s artistic practice and research, she has been mainly interested in examining the notion of the ‘Uncanny’ in live contemporary performance. Shanna most recently completed a six-month Development Traineeship alongside Artichoke as part of the Lumiere London Festival in 2015 & 2016.