This week marks a thrilling opportunity for students at CPPM, as the internationally celebrated Young Boy Dancing Group (YBDG) conducts an exclusive workshop culminating in an open class on Thursday, 30 November at 19:00 in EMTA Black Box.
Established in 2014, YBDG began as a dynamic dance ensemble, gaining its name in 2015 and featuring a rotating cast of talented performers. The company has captivated audiences worldwide, performing at prestigious venues and events such as Oflaherty NYC, Mendes Wood Gallery Sao Paulo in 2023, Unter NYC, Kunsthalle Osnabrück in 2022, Freiburg Biennale, and Art Hub Copenhagen in 2021. Their notable appearances include the Disappearing Berlin, Schinkel Pavilion Berlin, and a solo exhibition at OCD Chinatown NYC in 2019. The group’s influential presence was also felt at the Baltic Triennial, Tallinn and Athens Biennale in 2018, as well as the Lithuanian Pavilion at the Venice Biennale in 2015, and Silencio, Paris in 2014.
The workshop offered by YBDG is not just a set of choreographic instructions but an intimate journey into the world of modern dance. It aims to create a sense of belonging within the group, encouraging participants to dance together, express emotions freely, and find comfort in collective stillness. The workshop fosters an environment where vulnerability becomes a strength, allowing participants to delve into their raw emotions through dance while embodying a punk attitude towards modern dance.
Don’t miss this unique opportunity to learn from and interact with the Young Boy Dancing Group, an ensemble known for its innovative and emotionally charged performances. Join us for the open class on Thursday to witness the fruits of this exciting workshop!
The Latvian Theatre Award ceremony, held at Dailes Theatre in Riga on Thursday, 23 November 2023, unfolded into an evening of theatrical splendour as “Malleus Maleficarum. The New Pact” took centre stage. Masterfully directed by CPPM alumna Iveta Pole, the production earned widespread acclaim, clinching the title of the year’s best and setting a new benchmark in big-scale physical performance.
Iveta Pole, an esteemed Latvian performance artist and actor, embarked on a transformative journey during her studies at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre’s CPPM program from 2019 to 2021. Here, Pole developed a deep interest in contemporary physical performance, leading to the inception of “Malleus Maleficarum”. Inspired by the theme of feminine energy and its often misunderstood dimensions, Pole envisioned a production that explored these complex dynamics.
Drawing from Heinrich Kramer’s medieval treatise “Malleus Maleficarum” or “The Witch’s Hammer”, Pole and her creative team sought to challenge and reinterpret the historical perception of women as inherently dangerous. The production delves into a pre-labelled era of feminine energy, questioning its role and potential in the past and future.
Pole describes the production as an emotional and heart-centred journey, emphasising the importance of approaching it beyond mere intellectual analysis. She highlights the natural flow and primal energy embodied in the show, likening it to being in the womb or a flowing river.
The cast, including CPPM alumni Martina Georgina from Malta and Lea Blau from Croatia, is part of this artistic exploration. Show participant Katrīna Neiburga reflects on the production’s uniqueness, focusing on feminine energy rather than women per se. Lea Blau, another participant, shares her experience of working in a predominantly female creative team, highlighting the dynamic and sometimes explosive energy this brought to the process.
Spectators and critics have praised the show for its courage, self-irony, and exploration of deep-seated themes. Theatre critic Tom Chever commends the play for addressing significant issues beyond gender. In contrast, Henrietta Verhoustynska, another critic, acknowledges the powerful sense of sisterhood and primal connection to the earth experienced during the performance.
“Malleus Maleficarum” is a testament to Iveta Pole’s visionary direction and the collaborative spirit fostered by the CPPM. This production marks a significant achievement in Latvian theatre and sets a high standard for future productions, inspiring artists and audiences with its innovative approach and exploration of deep-rooted themes.
From November 20th to 25th, Sasha Pepelyaev will be giving a masterclass to CPPM students.
Sasha Pepelyaev is a director and choreographer. His first steps in theatrical arts were made while still in secondary school, where he attended drama classes. while studying chemistry at Moscow University, he started learn pantomime and spent all his free time in the studio – learning, performing, improvising and directing. after graduating from university, he continued his theatrical career in the Taganka theatre and Moscow concert agency as a mime soloist.
in 1984, he became an artistic director at the mime studio of Moscow State University. the studio transformed into one of the first independent theatre studios in Moscow in 1987, during the beginning of perestroika. The company was called “poor yorik”. During this time, Sasha entered the State Institute of Theatrical Arts, where he studied drama for four years.
In 1990, after closing down the “poor yorik”, he worked successively as a director and choreographer in a circus, on TV, and in drama theatres in Moscow and abroad. in that period, he also visited Western Europe, took different dance classes in Amsterdam and participated in various theatre dance projects.
in 1994, he started the “The Kinetic Theater” project in Moscow, which led to the creation and performance of a string of experimental works. The project eventually became an intensive search focused on the definition of contemporary Russian dance. since the winter of 1995/96, the idea of combining postmodern Russian texts, contemporary dance and traditional Russian dramatic style continued in the company’s productions.
Workshop: The Third Eye
The workshop will focus on building a structure of visual-physical performance and methods that can be used. This will include initial concept, rough realisation, verification, modifications, analysis of available tools for those tasks, search for influences, affecting phases and patterns of the whole process. The creation of “sign” as a key element of visual communication and the importance of “code” as a collection of homogeneous “signs”, which implement content and desired statement (or meaning) of the performance will be observed and, in a positive scenario, realized. Objects and environments will be inspected as building elements of “code”. Themes for improvisations will be suggested to participants and later stay as the basis for dramatic structure (“story”). They will be mixed and transformed by choreographic patterns, including elements of dance, acrobatics, contact improvisation, etc. The core idea of the workshop is to vary the scope of tools available for creation and emphasise the visual content of stage production. A model of performance will be a goal, but not necessarily.
The masterclass concludes with an open lesson on Saturday, November 25th, at 19:00 in the EMTA Black Box.
We are thrilled to announce the opening of applications for our esteemed MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) program, starting March 1, 2024.
Key Dates:
Application Opening: March 1, 2024
Application Deadline: July 1, 2024
Auditions: August to October 2024 (Globally and Online)
Studies commence in February 2025.
“MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) is a ground-breaking course that takes postgraduate education out of the classroom and puts practical experience with world-leading makers of performance at the heart of the learning process. Students will work alongside some of the most exciting directors, choreographers, performance makers, artists and companies across the world to further their own artistic practice through active collaboration, devising and performance”, said CPPM Course Leader professor Jüri Nael.
CPPM alumni Seren Oroszvary adds that “CPPM inverted and rearranged my perspective of myself, of people, of performance, theatre and what it is to be an artist. It has shaped my identity in an organic, unique way. I don’t feel the halo of an institution above me but rather my own master of my journey and artistic practice. The course has also helped me to recognise and embrace the power of being a multimodal artist and a flexible creator in the current social, political and ecological climate.”
As a CPPM student, you’ll be part of a diverse, international community, experiencing a dynamic learning environment that fosters experimentation, collaboration, and high artistic standards. This program is a journey of transformation and self-discovery, demanding physical and mental endurance, creativity, and a readiness to be transformed through the creative process.
More detailed information about the application process, entry criteria, tuition fees, and the comprehensive list of guest artists for 2025-2027 will be published on CPPM admission page on March 1, 2024.
The International Platform for Performer Training (IPPT) annual conference is taking place 6-9 January 2022 at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre.
IPPT is a community of international practitioners, artists, pedagogues, and researchers involved in performer training within the institutions offering higher education in performing arts. IPPT gathers in annual meetings since its establishment in 2014 organized by participating institutions. Previous conferences have been held in Helsinki, Ghent, Wroclaw, Utrecht, Zurich, Gothenburg, Canterbury, and this year in Tallinn.
Each annual meeting includes presentations and workshops that have a common theme. This year’s topic is “New opportunities, practices, technologies, platforms, experiences, discoveries and resources in the field of performer training at the time of the pandemic.”
“The current pandemic world order has thrown great challenges at performer training in higher education institutions. Yet, we have found ways to continue. This IPPT meeting would like to look at the more positive side and focus on these fantastic opportunities of pandemics that have forced us to step out of our comfort zone and find new ways and modes for being, teaching and training. The open call for presentations was deliberately open and broad to allow a variety of best practices to be introduced and shared in our meeting in Tallinn. Some presentations take place in the studio, while some are delivered online, practically testing new technological opportunities and challenges,” said Professor Jüri Nael, who is behind the initiative to bring the IPPT meeting to Tallinn.
IPPT conference will be live streamed so that those who could not travel would still join.
The aim of these sessions is to offer prospective MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) students an opportunity to meet the course teaching team and ask questions about the application and audition process, and find out specific information about the course. Former CPPM students will be present, so it is possible to enquire about their experience on the course.
All prospective applicants can choose from the following options:
1 December 2021
10:00 (GMT +2)
20:00 (GMT +2)
10 January 2022
10:00 (GMT +2)
20:00 (GMT +2)
20 February 2022
16:00 (GMT +2)
Each session will last around 90 minutes.
Please register for one of these sessions using this link
Closer to your selected session you will be emailed a Zoom link to join.
If you have any questions prior to these sessions, feel free to contact us via email info_cppm@eamt.ee
The course application deadline is 1 March 2022.
On November 1, the admission opened for MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre. The applications process remains open until January 31, 2022. Auditions will take place from March 7 to April 17 in various cities worldwide: Tallinn, Berlin, Milan, London, Seoul and Melbourne. You can find out more about the admission criteria and process here.
CPPM was founded under the belief that the most intense artistic growth occurs through genuine encounters with inspirational artists. That is why most studies are conducted by internationally renowned directors, choreographers, performers, and companies from all over the world. The confirmed guest artists for 2022-24 include Anne Bogart (USA), Olivier de Sagazan (France), Juan Dominguez (Spain), Kim Collier (Canada), Theodoros Terzoupoulos (Greece), Guillaume Pige (England), Stacy Makishi (Hawaii, USA), Tadashi Endo (Japan), Fran Barbe (Australia), etc. You can see the complete list of guest artists here.
“CPPM is a ground-breaking course that takes postgraduate education out of the classroom and puts practical experience with world-leading makers of performance at the heart of the learning process. Students will work alongside some of the most exciting directors, choreographers, performance makers, artists and companies across the world to further their artistic practice through active collaboration, devising and performance,” said CPPM course leader professor Jüri Nael.
CPPM offers a generous scholarship scheme allowing eight accepted students to get a discount on their tuition fees. You can read more about the tuition fees and scholarship scheme here.
In 2021, the first cohort of CPPM students graduated: 12 students from 8 countries. Their final projects gave birth to the international performing arts festival CPPM Manifestal, which took place from May to June 2021 and included more than 70 performances in different locations across Tallinn.
The deadline for applying for CPPM is January 31, 2022
On May 13th, the new contemporary performance festival CPPM Manifestal will be launched, celebrating the development of our two-year MA in Contemporary Physical Performance Making (CPPM) students at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre.
All 13 new productions presented at the festival result from their artistic research projects undertaken to complete their master studies.
Photo: Eero Vabamägi / Postimees
“Over the last two years, the have challenged themselves withstanding numerous workshopis, creative projects, academic tasks and public performances. This extreme diversity of guest artists and teacers and the intensity of the course served as a platform for them to refine their own ways and identities. Manifestal is the logical destination of the journey.” Jüri Nael
The CPPM Manifestal is born in cooperation with our incredible partners: Kanuti Gildi SAAL, Sõltumatu Tantsu Lava, Uue Loomingu Maja, Elektron, Estonian Dance Agency and Estonian Academy of Arts. The festival is supported by the Estonian Cultural Endowment.
