Basics of Stage Combat (With Swords!)

Completed by 26 learners

Ages 13-18

Live One-Time Class

In this one time course, students will learn the basics of safely enacting a fight onstage, in preparation for a Shakespeare play. We will also learn about the history of sword fighting in the military and the duel.

Paul H. The Shakespearean Student

Average rating:

4.8

Number of reviews:

(54 reviews)

Live video meetings

Meets once

3-9 learners per class

55 min

About Learning Overview Teacher Reviews

What's included

1 live meeting

55 mins in-class hours

Assessment

Students will be given a certificate if they: 1. Pay attention 2. Correctly label the parts of the sword 3. Demonstrate that they understand the basic moves of a swordfight.

Class Experience

Have you ever wanted to do a swordfight? Have you imagined yourself as a swashbuckling hero or a villainous knight? Now's your chance to learn some simple techniques used by real swordfighting actors! We will cover the parts of the sword, how to handle the blade, and some basic moves that you can do at home. The course will utilize live teaching over Zoom, prerecorded video, and a short slide presentation.
Format:
1. I will start with a short presentation on the history of duelling and the parts of the sword. 
2. I will then switch to video of myself performing a few basic moves with a real sword, which the students will imitate with a fake one. 
3. I will take the moves we rehearsed, and teach a simple sequence of "armed" combat that can be adapted in a final performance. This particular sequence is based on the fight scene between Mercutio and Tybalt in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet," Act III, Scene i.

Learning Goals

Goals: 

To introduce The martial culture of Shakespeare's England which permeates into many of his plays.

To show how fights like dances 🕺 can show character.

To introduce these students to the principles of stage combat, emphasizing safety & effectiveness.

Other Details

Parental Guidance

We will not be using real swords for this class. I encourage students to bring safe materials that are similar in shape to a sword such as foam swords, pool noodles, soft baseball bats, pieces of cardboard, etc. I take safety very seriously and do not want the students to hurt themselves or others. That said, they need to be able to move their "swords" in a 3 foot arc around themselves, and they shouldn't be fighting if they have bad knees. Students should wear clothes that are easy to move in with no hanging jewelry, baggy pants, etc.

Supply List

All you need for this class is:
1. Comfortable clothing that you can move in

2. any 3-foot object that you can use as a sword:
     - Long cardboard tube
     - Toy sword
     - Pool noodle
     - rolled-up newspaper
     -  cardboard sword

External Resources

In addition to the Outschool classroom, this class uses:

Sources

There are no required readings for this course, but you are welcome to read the website of the Society of American Fight Directors, the organization of professionally trained actor-combatants. https://www.safd.org/

Meet the teacher

Paul H. The Shakespearean Student

Joined April, 2021

4.8

54reviews

Profile

Teacher expertise and credentials

2 Degrees

Master's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from Mary Baldwin College

Bachelor's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from Ashland University

I was certified as an actor combatant in 2011 by the Society of American Fight Directors, which means I have professional training in unarmed combat, rapier/ dagger, and broadsword. I have choreographed several fights for community theaters and high schools over the last 8 years. I have also used my fight training onstage in such plays as "Macbeth," "Trumpet In the Land," "Hamlet," and "Der Bestrafte Brudermord."