AGES: 9 & Up
DESCRIPTION: Thirteen-part Online Course
ONE EPISODE: $8
PACK OF THREE: $20
ALL THIRTEEN LESSONS: Only $50 (save $46 off buying episodes individually)!
Theatricum teaching artist, choreographer, and fighter/performer Celina Lee Surniak takes participants through short, fun, physical stage combat moves using a Quarterstaff! Each short segment includes a warmup, breakdown of a move, practice, and a cool-down. Each segment builds on the one before it – use one, two, or all 13! Once purchased, students can watch/review/repeat each segment as often as they’d like. All videos are available to watch online or download and keep forever.
Course requirements:
- The ability for students to watch a short video, with sound, on a screen that they can see and hear (could be a computer, iPad, large phone, or TV screen)
- Room to move and spin your staff!
- Something to use as a Quarterstaff (should be no taller than the student and able to be spun, held, balanced – can be a dowel, broom handle, or even a wrapping paper tube!)
Jump To A Lesson!
ONE – TWO – THREE – FOUR – FIVE – SIX – SEVEN – EIGHT – NINE – TEN – ELEVEN – TWELVE – THIRTEEN
Celina: Hello everyone! In our first lesson we will be exploring the basics of a Quarterstaff and how to begin flow training! A quarterstaff is a long stick and flow is the art of moving it around in circles in a lot of different ways! Find yourself a stick, a broom handle, or whatever you can find and let’s get started!
Celina: Hi everybody! Welcome back! This time, we will be learning about the base spins that every flow artist should start with! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Three: Rotations
Celina: This lesson we will start to explore side-plane rotations double-handed. This is the beginning blocks of all things cool in flow staff work! I am excited to show you! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Four: Switching Directions
Celina: This lesson we’re switching directions!! Huzzah! We will be working with our staff going backwards as well as working with single-hand spin rotations. This lesson is a great next step to all we have been working on. There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Five: Attack Patterns
Celina: This lesson, we will be stepping away from our spinning flow work. New territory! We will be exploring attack patterns in both short and long form quarterstaff styles. These will lead into our work in later lessons and I am excited to show you! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Six: ZAH!
Celina: This lesson, we get to talk about something called ZAH! This is a wonderful exploration of how important sound is in stage combat. We will explore proper vocal techniques and how to take care of our voices when fighting. We will learn a quick combo that will be built on during later lessons! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Seven: Cool New Tricks!
Celina: Cool New Tricks Lesson!!! Taking a step away from the serious and learning some cool flow/spin tricks to add into your skill set! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Eight: Defense
Celina: Welcome back! This lesson is dedicated to DEFENSES and PARRIES! Come learn the proper defenses and have some fun! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Nine: Footwork
Celina: This lesson we got to explore some footwork! We have been standing in place this whole time; it’s time to move! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Ten: Throws and More!
Celina: Another COOL NEW TRICKS LESSON! One of these new tricks needs to have a high ceiling/being outside (however, fret not! There are ways to practice this if you have neither of those things)! This is a super fun lesson and I am excited to share it with you!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Eleven: Moving while Spinning
Celina: Now that we have a lot of the building blocks of our flow, we are going to start introducing our “project” that we will work on at Lesson 13. This lesson is dedicated to moving while spinning! It is a super important lesson. There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Twelve: Project Prep
Celina: This is our prep lesson! We will be discussing our superhero project! We are combining all of our pieces that we learned to create something truly awesome! Find some music you like to listen to, and practice! There will be a warm-up and a quick recap, because practice makes perfect! Make sure you find some space, grab your “staff” and let’s get started!
Quarterstaff Flow Lesson Thirteen: The Final Project
Celina: Our final lesson!! Thank you so much for coming on this journey with me and I hope that you feel like you learned something! This lesson is dedicated to teaching you tips about how to film and piece together a project like this! Lots of tips!
Purchase a Set of Three Lessons!
Purchase Three Lessons at Once and save $4 off buying them individually! Choose any set of three lessons below.
ABOUT CELINA LEE SURNIAK
Celina Lee Surniak is a stunt woman and stage combatant based in Los Angeles. She has been a fight director for about 5 years and has put her name on several Shakespeare productions such as: Macbeth, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Romeo and Juliet, Titus Andronicus, Cymbeline, Julius Caesar, and more. She has worked in stunt coordination for film and new media and loves to problem solve and create wonderful story telling. She has been teaching stage combat around Los Angeles for about 6 years and loves teaching young people the elements of safety and techniques associated with this art form.
Questions about Theatricum Botanicum’s Youth and/or Teen programs? Contact Youth/Teen Programs Manager Cindy Kania-Guastaferro for more information.
Tech difficulties or questions with our online video series? Email Education Programs Coordinator Frank Weidner
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