Martin Gruber (born 1957) is a German director, choreographer and movement teacher for performing artists.

Education

Degree in Theatre and Music from the

Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich The Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (simply University of Munich, LMU or LMU Munich; ) is a public university, public research university in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as the University of Ingolstadt in 1472 by Duke ...

. Training in Zenbodytherapy® and Triggerpoint Anatomy® with William Dub Leigh (USA), Functional Integration with Alon Talmi (Israel). Suzuki Training with

Tadashi Suzuki is a Japanese avant-garde theatre director, writer, and philosopher. He is the founder and director of the Suzuki Company of Toga (SCOT), and organizer of Japan’s first international theatre festival (Toga Festival). With American director ...

in Toga-Mura (Japan).

Judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

Aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...

Iaido , abbreviated , is a Japanese martial art that emphasizes being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.Christensen, Karen and Allen Guttmann et.al (2001) ''International Encyclopedia of Women and Sport ...

, Hojo in Japan and Germany, 6th Dan in Aikido (

Aikikai Hombu Dojo The Aikikai is the original school of Aikido. It is centered on the Aikikai#Aikikai Foundation, Aikikai Foundation in Japan, and its figurehead is the Aikikai#Doshu, Doshu (the family heir of the founder of Aikido). It is represented globally th ...

). Study in Butoh Dance with Kazuo Ono in Japan, Acting wit
Yoshi Oida

Life

Martin Gruber works as a director and a choreographer. He is a professor for movement at the

Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts The Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts (German: ''Hochschule für Schauspielkunst Ernst Busch'', ''HFS''), located in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany, was founded in 1951 as the National Theatre School in Berlin with the status of colleg ...

in Berlin. He has developed his own method of actor training and founded the Tami Method®, named after Alon Talmi. see https://www.talmi-methode.com/en/treatment-with-the-talmi-methode/additional-information/see http://www.impulstanz.com/en/archive/2006/workshops/id779/ Martin Gruber's impact on contemporary European actor training is important: In 1985 he introduced

into actor training at the

Otto Falckenberg Otto Falckenberg (5 October 1873 in Koblenz25 December 1947 in Munich) was a German theatre director, manager and writer. In April 1901, he co-founded ''Die Elf Scharfrichter'', the first political ''kabarett'' (a form of cabaret which developed ...

School (

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

), in 1986 Suzuki-Training,see http://archiv.mimecentrum.de/videos/MCB-SV-1413 and in 1993

August Everding August Everding (; 31 October 1928; Bottrop, Germany – 26 January 1999; Munich) was a German opera director and administrator. He studied at the Universities of Bonn and Munich, where launching his career in the 1950s. He was a member of the Ro ...

invited him to develop the movement training for the then newly founded

Bayerische Theaterakademie August Everding The Bayerische Theaterakademie August Everding (Bavarian Theatre Academy August Everding) at the Prinzregententheater in Munich, was founded by August Everding in 1993. The academy offers theatrical students eight different programs and through th ...

(Munich). Since then quite a number of his students have become teachers themselves and teach his methods both in universities in Germany and further afield.among them Vera Schlenker, Prof. Daniela Wicaz, Jutta Burger ( Hochschule für Schauspielkunst Ernst Busch Berlin), Prof. Carola Grahl (Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst, Stuttgart), Doris Dexel (Konservatorium Wien, Österreich), Susanne Rebholz (Orff Institut,

Universität Mozarteum Salzburg Mozarteum University Salzburg (German language, German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the "Mozarteum" name in Salzburg, Salzburg municipality; th ...

, Austria), Jannis Spengler (Bayerische Theaterakademie München), Prof. Isabel Hindersin, Stefan Lenz ( Universität der Künste Berlin). Many of his former students work successfully on stage, in film and on TV.for example

Jens Harzer Jens Harzer (born 14 March 1972) is a German stage, film, and television actor. He began his career at the Munich Kammerspiele, and has been a member of the Thalia Theater (Hamburg), Thalia Theatre in Hamburg since 2009. He has appeared at the S ...

, Joachim Meyerhoff, Bettina Mittendorfer, Natali Seelig, , André Eisermann, Götz Otto, Birge Schade, Ina Weisse,

Francis Fulton-Smith Francis Fulton-Smith (born 25 April 1966) is a United Kingdom, British-Germany, German television actor. Life Fulton-Smith was born in Munich, West Germany, the son of a German mother and an English father. After graduating school he trained as a ...

, George Lenz, Rainer Strecker,

Oliver Wnuk Oliver Wnuk (born 28 January 1976) is a German actor. He is best known for his performance as Ulf Steinke in the TV series '' Stromberg''. Selected filmography References External links * 1976 births Living people German male film ...

and more.

Basics of Actor's Training

Martin Gruber developed a new foundational method for comprehensive, interdisciplinary actor training inspired by Asian and western dance, martial arts as well as many of the concepts from structural integration and functional bodywork. His method is based on three main aspects: Individual work on the student's posture, dialogical movement work with a partner and formal dynamic work with the collective. The training combines amongst other things neurophysiological understandings and techniques (held within the Talmi Method®), a modified approach to

's training as well as Aikido and creates a comprehensive system. In this way, his method can answer to the demands of an ever-changing theatrical landscape that is constantly searching for new modes of expression, whilst lending the skills necessary for the traditional theatre. The actor gains competence to access the whole plethora of theatre styles ranging from classical theatre to performance art.

Theater Laboratory

In 1986 Martin Gruber opened a training place for professional theatre groups and performing artists in a converted farm in Birach, Bavaria. Th
ZeltEnsembleTheatre
directed by Otto Kukla and Crescentia Duensser was the resident company until 1992. Premiering ''Armut, Reichtum, Mensch und Tier'' (

Hans Henny Jahnn Hans Henny Jahnn (born Hans Henny August Jahn'';'' 17 December 1894 – 29 November 1959) was a German playwright, novelist, and organ-builder. Personal life Hans Henny Jahn was born in 1894 in Stellingen, one of Hamburg's suburbs, and was the s ...

); ''Figaro and Co''; ''Ulenspiegel''. Since 1995 there have been premiers in the Bavarian dialect for example ''Wir sind Gefangene'' (Oskar Maria Graf), ''Lena Christ'', ''Die heilige Nacht'' by Joern van Dyck and Bettina Mittendorfer. Teachers at Birach include Rena Mirecka (

Jerzy Grotowski Jerzy Marian Grotowski (; 11 August 1933 – 14 January 1999) was a Polish theatre director and theorist whose innovative approaches to acting, training and theatrical production have significantly influenced theatre today. He is considered one ...

's Theaterlaboratory, Polen), Paco Gonzales ( Familie Flöz); Marita Günher ( Roy Hart Theatre, London), Prof. Alon Talmi (Israel), William Dub Leigh (USA), Nobuyuki Watanabe (Japan).

Teaching

* 1993–1985: Movement Tutor, Otto Falckenberg Schule,

Munich Kammerspiele The Munich Kammerspiele (German: Münchner Kammerspiele) is a state-funded German-language theater company based at the ''Schauspielhaus'' on Maximilianstraße (Munich), Maximilianstrasse in the Bavarian capital. The company currently has three ...

. * 2005–1993: Movement and Acting lecturer,

, Munich. * Since 2010: Professor for Movement,

, Berlin. Martin Gruber has given trainings at many international institutions e.g. Ecole Supérieure d’Art Dramatique du Théatre Nationale de Strasbourg (Frankreich),

Central Academy of Drama The Central Academy of Drama () is a national public drama school in Beijing, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education. The academy is part of the Double First-Class Construction. Information The sch ...

, Beijing, and

Shanghai Theatre Academy Shanghai Theatre Academy () is a municipal public college for dramatic art education in Shanghai, China. It is affiliated with the Shanghai Municipal People's Government. History On December 1, 1945, the Shanghai Municipal Experimental Drama ...

(People's Republic of China), workshops for example at Westerdals Oslo School of Arts, Communication and Technology, Oslo (Norway),

National School of Drama National School of Drama (NSD) is a drama school situated at New Delhi, India. It is an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, Government of India. It was set up in 1959 by the Sangeet Natak Akademi and became an independent school ...

, Delhi (India),

Mozarteum Mozarteum University Salzburg ( German: ''Universität Mozarteum Salzburg'') is one of three affiliated but separate (it is actually a state university) entities under the "Mozarteum" name in Salzburg municipality; the International Mozarteu ...

, Salzburg (Austria),

Hochschule für Musik und Theater München The University of Music and Theatre Munich (), also known as the Munich Conservatory, is a performing arts music school, conservatory in Munich, Germany. The main building it currently occupies is the former ''Führerbau'' of the NSDAP, locate ...

, Mime Centrum Berlin,

Berlin University of the Arts The Universität der Künste Berlin (UdK; also known in English as the Berlin University of the Arts), situated in Berlin, Germany, is the second largest art school in Europe. It is a public art and design school, and one of the four research uni ...

, ImPulsTanz Vienna International Dance Festival (Austria)

Directing

* 1993: ''Autistenhochzeit'' (Alexander Wagner). Premiere:

Gasteig The Gasteig is a currently closed cultural center in Munich, opened in 1985, which hosts the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. The Richard Strauss Conservatory, the Volkshochschule, and the municipal library are all located in the Gasteig. Most ...

Munich * 1994: ''Sklavnaja Markta''. Project with students at the

Prinzregententheater The Prinzregententheater, or, as it was called in its first decades, the Prinz-Regenten-Theater, in English the Prince Regent Theatre, is a concert hall and opera house on Prinzregentenplatz in the Bavarian capital of Munich, Germany. Building ...

Munich * 1997: ''Beijing lan – Peking ist blau''. International and interdisciplinary theater project with actors, dancers, musicians and singers from Germany und China. Premier Yan Huang Art Gallery, Beijing (PRC). * 1998: ''Fest für Liebende in unglücklicher Konstellation'' (Susanne Goesse). Project with the Bayerische Theaterakademie. Premiere: Akademietheater (Munich). * 1998: ''Anstatt Rashomon'' (Susanne Goesse). Premiere: Theatre

Ulm Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city. Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...

, 1998. * 2003: ''Monteverdi-Duelle''. Interdisciplinary music theatre project,

Munich Opera Festival The Munich Opera Festival () takes place yearly in the Bavarian capital from late June to late July. Preceding on the calendar the two nearby festivals of Bayreuth and Salzburg, which both start in late July, the festival summarizes the concludin ...

. * 2004: ''Dialoge über die Liebe. Eine Straßenoper''. International Hue Festival (Vietnam) June 2004, Temple of Literature, Ha Noi (Vietnam) Octobre 2004,

June 2004. Interdisciplinery music theatre project with opera singers, musicians and dancers from Germany und Vietnam. * 2006: Assistant Director: ''Die Bakchen'' (Euripides). Director: Dieter Dorn, Residenztheater Munich. * 2008: ''Sakkorausch'' (Elisabeth Reichart). Premiere, Schauspielhaus Salzburg, Austria. * 2014: ''Lavapolis/Friday in Venice'' (Michael Schindhelm). Transmedia Storytelling Project for the

Venice Biennale of Architecture The Venice Biennale of Architecture ( Italian: ''Mostra di Architettura di Venezia'') is an international exhibition showcasing architectural works from around the world, held in Venice, Italy, every other year. Originally held in even-numbered ...

, Video: Robert Schuster, ''Lavapolis/Friday in Venice'', edited by Michael Schindhelm, ZHDK Zurich University of the Arts Center for Cultural Publishing Studies: Zürich/Schweiz, 2015.

Movement Directing

* 1987: ''Mann ist Mann'' (Bertolt Brecht). Director: Günther Gerstner, Munich Kammerspiele. * 1993: ''Der Sturm'' (

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

). Director: Dieter Dorn, Munich Kammerspiele. Part of the staging was working with especially manufactured life-sized puppets ('ghosts'). * 1994: ''Elektra'' (

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...

). Director: Dieter Dorn, musical director:

Daniel Barenboim Daniel Moses Barenboim (; born 15 November 1942) is an Argentines, Argentine-Israeli classical pianist and conductor based in Berlin, who also has Spain, Spanish and State of Palestine, Palestinian citizenship. From 1992 until January 2023, Bare ...

Staatsoper Berlin The Staatsoper Unter den Linden ( State Opera under the Lime Trees), also known as the Berlin State Opera (), is a listed building on Unter den Linden boulevard in the historic center of Berlin, Germany. The opera house was built by order of Pr ...

. * 1996: ''Ithaka'' (

Botho Strauß Botho Strauss (; written as Botho Strauß) (born 2 December 1944) is a German playwright, novelist, and essayist. Early life His father was a chemist. After finishing his secondary education, Strauss studied German, History of the Theatre a ...

). Director: Dieter Dorn, Premiere: Munich Kammerspiele * 2000: ''Memory. Eine Videooper''. Director: Otto Kukla, Premiere:

Theater am Neumarkt The Theater am Neumarkt () or by its present official name Theater Neumarkt is a Theater (structure), theatre in the Swiss German language, German-speaking Switzerland situated at Neumarkt, Zürich. It is part of the building complex ''Bilgeriturm' ...

Zurich (Switzerland). Other performances: Munich (Germany), Sarajevo (Bosnia), Teheran (Iran) * 2005: ''Wann wird es endlich wieder so, wie es nie war?'' Director: Joachim Meyerhoff. Premiere: Maxim Gorki Theatre, Berlin. * 2015: ''La Traviata'' (Giuseppe Verdi). Director: Dieter Dorn, musical director:

, Staatsoper Berlin. * 2016: ''Transit Europa. An international cultural project''. Director: Robert Schuster.

Deutsches Nationaltheater Weimar The (DNT), or German National Theater and Weimar State Orchestra, is the most significant arts organization in Weimar. The institution unites the (German National Theater) with the (Weimar State Orchestra). It plays on a total of six stages ...

(DNT), Kunstfest Weimar, Theater Freiburg,

Schauspielhaus Bochum The Schauspielhaus Bochum is one of the notable drama theatres in Germany. It is located on Königsallee in Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, ...

(all in Germany), La Filature Scène Nationale, Mulhouse (France), Kurtheater Baden, Theater Chur (both Switzerland). * 2018: ''Parsifal'' (

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

). Director: Dieter Dorn, musical director: Daniel Barenboim. Premiere:

Festspielhaus Baden-Baden The Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, located in the spa town of Baden-Baden Baden-Baden () is a spa town in the states of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg, south-western Germany, at the north-western border of the Black Forest mountain range o ...

Publications

* 2015 ''Tongguo chuangzao xingxingwei chaoyue chengshi dadao gexinghua bioada (Ten days with Zhou Xinfang in Shanghai. Afterthoughts)'', in: ''Jihua jingju dashi Zhou Xinfang danchen 120 zhounian. Waiguo zhuanjia yanjiu wence (In Memory of the 120th Birthday of the Jingju Maestro Zhou Xinfang. A Collection of Research Papers by Foreign Experts)'', edited by Zhou Xinfang Arts Research Center: Shanghai 2015, pp. 10–15, with Susanne Goesse. * 2014 ''Der Körper in der Darstellenden Kunst - der Neutralkörper'', in: ''Psychologische Medizin. Österreichische Fachzeitschrift für Medizinische Psychologie, Psychotherapie und Psychosomatik'', Wien 3/2014, pp. 23–28 * 2010 ''Formen bilden, Formen vernichten''. In: Bernd Stegemann (editor): ''Lektionen 4: Schauspielen Ausbildung''. Theater der Zeit, Berlin 2010, pp. 169–188. * 2002 ''Form und Wandlung. Schauspiel als Weg am Beispiel des Aikido und anderen Arten der Körperarbeit''. In: Peter Schettgen (editor): ''Heilen statt Hauen. Aikido-Erweiterungen in Therapie und beruflicher Bildungsarbeit''. Augsburg 2002, S. 117–134. * 2001 ''Formen bilden, Formen vernichten. Bemerkungen zu neuen Wegen in der Schauspielausbildung''. In: ''Rollenunterricht, Sprecherziehung, Stimmbildung und Körperarbeit in der Ausbildung zum Schauspieler. Dokumentation der Arbeitstagung der Bayerischen Theaterakademie August Everding 27.–30. April 2000''. München 2001, pp. 201–215. * 1999 ''Grammatik der Füsse und Stimme''. In: ''Integration von Sprecherziehung, Liedgestaltung und Körpertraining in der Ausbildung zum Schauspieler. Dokumentation der Arbeitstagung der Bayerischen Theaterakademie 26.–29. März 1998''. München 1999, S. 96–100; with Uwe Hollmach.

Symposium contributions and articles as PDF files

* Demigod or Servant – On the Vulnerability of the Actor. 2012 (symposium lecture
PDF
121 kB). * Abmessen der Handlungsräume. Erste Eindrücke nach dem Besuch der Bauhaus-Bühne. Mapping the Action Spaces. First Impressions After the Visit to the Bauhaus Stage. In: Theater der Zeit. 6/2011. Supplement to

Prague Quadrennial Held in Prague once every four years since 1967, the Prague Quadrennial of Performance Design and Space or Prague Quadrennial is the world's largest event in the field of scenography, consisting of a competitive presentation of contemporary work in ...

2011: Die Bühne als Raumapparat / The Stage as Space Apparatus, S. 2–3
online
. * Formen bilden, Formen vernichten. In: Bernd Stegemann (editor): Lektionen 4: Schauspielen Ausbildung. Theater der Zeit, Berlin 2010, S. 169–188.
PDF
. * Form and Change: Acting as Path – based on the Example of Aikido and Other Types of Body Work. 2010
PDF
. * Go and wash your plate or how to teach Aikido to human resources. 2003
PDF
.

Literature

* Susanne Goesse: ''Von China nach Japan in zwei Theaterstücken''. In: ''Minima sinica''. 1/2006, pp. 48–74. * Wolfgang Lanzinger: ''Martin Gruber. Ein Großmeister des Theaters mit einem Hang zum Extravaganten''. In: ''Dorfener Heimatbuch. Von der Stadterhebung bis ins 3. Jahrtausend''. Band 1. Dorfen 2006, pp. 460–462.

Notes

References

External links

Martin Gruber
at

Berlin
Martin Gruber
at Theater der Zeit

� Bad Gleichenberg Leib oder Leben
Fulton-Smith
about Martin Gruber * Martin Grube
Video of Aikido training in Stavropol
2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Gruber, Martin 1957 births Living people Academic staff of the Ernst Busch Academy of Dramatic Arts German choreographers Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich alumni