HELP!
Appeal for Volunteers
Dear Anthroposophical Communities in Australia,
A few months ago I wrote an article for the national and state newsletters, informing you of the new Speech and Drama initiative in Samford Valley, Queensland to work towards setting up a full time anthroposophical training in the arts of speech (storytelling and lyric poetry) and acting (drama). This initiative has grown from the impulse of two graduates from the training developed by Dawn Langman, which has integrated the Speech and Drama methodology developed by Rudolf and Marie Steiner with the acting methodology of the great Russian actor Michael Chekhov whose work was also grounded in Anthroposophy.
Our achievements so far
- We are an incorporated association, needing to work towards charitable status that would allow us to attract tax deductible donations.
We have begun this year to offer public workshops and our first two have been very successful attracting around 30 each time. We have two more scheduled for this year. - We have gone through a professional process in organization development to arrive at a vision statement for Heart Fire.
- We have a dedicated circle of around 10 professional colleagues who act as ‘midwives’ to support this initiative and have just held our 2nd AGM.
- We have engaged a professional film maker to film and edit video clips (for which we have received some funding) that can demonstrate our work at a professional level and these will be ready to be inserted into our website as soon as we have been able to create one.
- We have a small ensemble of practitioners, graduates of my training, eurythmists, speakers and performers from different backgrounds (around 8 altogether) that meet for a week 4 times each year to deepen our research into the work.
So far, the three core members of the Heartfire Management Committee have managed to do what was necessary with the help of our chairman, Siegfried Gutbrod. However, although we have brought Heart Fire to this point, we need help to carry it to the next stages. All of our team are fully stretched in our work as teachers and Katrina will be fully engaged in the eurythmy training at Pacifica College for another 2 years. In addition, it has become painfully obvious that none of us have the kind of digital, financial, legal or administrative knowledge or skills that are needed to grow Heart Fire to its next stage. We have reached the point where we cannot fulfil some of the necessary functions that are now required to take us to the next stage.
Find out more about what Heart Fire Centre offers.
Read more about Heart’s Fire Centre’s approach.
Call out for support
We are putting out an urgent call to anyone who has such skills and is perhaps retired or who has time to help us, and who would feel inspired and enthusiastic about contributing to the development of the anthroposophical speech and drama impulse in Australia to contact us.
Urgent needs
- Someone experienced in accounting who can help our treasurer to set up a proper system of accounting and help us with financial advice along the way. for example, as we move towards seeking charitable status.
- Someone experienced in creating a website that is artistic as well as clear and communicates the spirit of the work we want to offer in the world.
- Someone who has legal knowledge and can help us navigate the legal aspects that we need to be aware of as Heart Fire becomes more complex in its functioning. This person should be based in Queensland as the guidance we need will need to be appropriate for the Queensland context.
- Someone who can help us organise and keep on top of the growing amount of work involved in creating flyers, sending out information to newsletters, expanding our avenues of communication and publicity etc. And especially as we move closer to our goal of starting a 4 year full time training, help in the secretarial and administrative work that will be required.
- Our hope is that there are anthroposophists out there who are looking for a way to use their skills and knowledge, to serve Anthroposophy and who would feel happy to work together with us and are in a position to offer their services either free of charge or perhaps with some token remuneration if it is required, at least until the time that we are financially secure. We would certainly expect to reimburse anyone who helped us for any expenses incurred, but at this stage are not in a position to pay professional rates for services.
If you are interested to help and would like to find out more please contact Nicole Ostini
Nicole will send you copies of the Heart Fire Vision Statement as well as the original article sent to the newsletters informing the members of the Heart Fire initiative.
We would love to hear from you and if you are not known to us, meet in person or over zoom, get to know you and work together with you.
If you cannot help yourself but know someone who might be interested please pass this letter on to them.
Your sincerely,
Dawn Langman
About Dawn Langman
Dawn’s life work has been to research and develop an integrated speech and acting methodology based on Rudolf Steiner’s approach to the art of Speech and Michael Chekhov’s, also anthroposophically-inspired, art of acting.
Dawn undertook a mainstream speech and acting training in Australia, followed by seven years of performing and teaching at secondary and tertiary levels. Her quest for an integrated approach that includes the spiritual dimension led her to train with Maisie Jones at the London School of Speech Formation in the method developed by Rudolf and Marie Steiner. She then taught for ten years at Emerson College in Sussex. Following this, Dawn trained in Michael Chekhov’s acting technique with Ted Pugh and Fern Sloan of The Actors Ensemble in New York. Returning to Australia, she founded the School of the Living Word, where for eight years she continued to research the integration of Speech Formation with Chekhov’s technique. She taught this methodology for 10 years at the Drama Centre, Flinders University, South Australia.
Dawn is the author of The Art of Acting,The Art of Speech (both 2014), Tongues of Flame, The Actor of the Future, Vol. 1 (2019), Word Made Flesh The Actor of the Future, Vol 2 and Between Earth and Heaven The Actor of the Future, Vol. 3
Watch a video interview of Dawn Langman
Photo images: courtesy of Dawn Langman