Arts and Design faculty members at TUT are known to be experts in their fields. A recent accolade in this regard goes to Dr Karina Lemmer, lecturer at the Department of Performing Arts, who is recognized as one of the top Meisner teachers in the world.
Karina Lemmer is a lecturer in the Faculty of Arts and Design’s Department of Performing Arts.
An acting technique developed by Sanford Meisner, a theatre actor and acting teacher, is called the Meisner technique. Three elements are essential to the Meisner method of acting: emotional preparation, repetition exercises, and improvisation.
When asked how this recognition came about, Dr Lemmer replied: “After working with the film industry and my students on film acting, I found the Meisner method was highly effective in film acting, yet it was not widely used in South Africa.
The more techniques we used, the more likely we were to get a true response. Afterward, I enrolled in the Meisner Institute in Los Angeles to receive actor training, followed by teacher training and certification in 2021. As part of my Advanced Diploma program for 2021, my students and I also entered the Meisner International Scene Competition, which received a positive response.
International Recognition for Performing Arts Lecturer
Through this, he has engaged with Meisner teachers and acting schools in other countries and continued participating in coaching sessions and workshops. I guess this led the Institute to create a list of international teachers who had been awarded.”
According to Dr Lemmer, it is important to have these teaching skills because in South Africa, the emphasis often tends to be on techniques that help students express themselves on stage.
” I have learned skills that can help my students and professional actors perform truthfully on screen. Currently, I am collaborating with teachers around the world to examine the links between culture, language, and acting.
There is limited research on this topic in acting, but it is close to my heart as my PhD focused on multilingual acting. In order to keep up with the growth of the South African film industry and to connect the world through streaming, it is crucial that we develop our film actors,” she explains.
” It’s an honor to receive recognition that, hopefully, will open up future opportunities for our graduates. I’m passionate about working with actors. It can be a heartbreaking journey, but it’s so rewarding,” she observes.
In the South African entertainment industry, the Department of Performing Arts has trained some of the most prominent actors and actresses. There are a number of former students who have graduated from the school, including Moopi Mothibeli, Aubrey Poo, Wizeman Zitha, and Sithandile Nkosi.
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