Interview with Stéphane Lévy, co-director of the Moveo centre.

What is a theatre school?

What is a theatre school, and what is its purpose? What are the necessary conditions for a drama school to be useful in training performing arts professionals? What do we want to convey and enhance pedagogically, artistically, and socially? These are the questions that always come to mind when I think about the concept of a theatre school. And, probably, these are the questions that should be asked not only by those who wish to found one but also by the students and teachers who are part of it.

In practice, each school answers these questions through its structure, curriculum, internal organization, and, above all, the relationship between teachers and students. In the case of Moveo, a theatre school in Barcelona, these reflections emerged after its foundation and the beginning of the physical theatre diploma programme.

Moveo’s beginnings were driven by a shared desire: students wanted to train in a different kind of theatre based on the body and movement, and we wanted to share what we had learned. In 2004, we arrived in Barcelona at a time when there was a growing interest in a different kind of theatre focused on dramatic movement. It was a coincidence of circumstances: our desire to share what we had learned in London and the curiosity and dedication of the first students in Moveo’s physical theatre classes, as well as the energy of those who invited us to Barcelona: Pau Bachero, Borja Tous, and Mateu Pascual.

In those early years, the path was not entirely defined. Key questions about the school’s role and objectives took nearly a decade to find practical answers. And these answers remain provisional because a theatre school is a living organism that evolves over time.

How do you see the act of transmitting a theatre technique?

To transmit: an act of letting go. Transmitting is not only about teaching a technique, but also about sharing a personal journey. For me, to transmit means to let go of knowledge, to leave it in the workspace so that it can resonate and transform in others. This process requires humility and transparency. At Moveo, we firmly believe that knowledge is not a commodity to be sold or protected. It is a living relationship, a constant dialogue between student and teacher.

When knowledge is conceived as a commercial product, dynamics arise where only the minimum necessary is shared to keep students dependent. In our case, we think the opposite. Knowledge is not something that is exhausted; it is an experience that grows and enriches through exchange. The teacher is not the owner of knowledge, but a guide who helps the student explore new paths. And this requires honesty: recognizing one’s own doubts and limitations to build mutual learning.

Each student challenges the teacher with new questions and challenges, forcing them to expand their own understanding. On the other hand, the teacher shares not only technical knowledge but also their journey: the obstacles, frustrations, and joys that have shaped them. This creates a human bond that enriches the learning experience.

What are the pillars of the training in the Moveo physical theatre school?

I would say that the two main pillars are technique and the idea of the expressive body. Corporeal Mime, the central technique at Moveo, has a rich and complex technical corpus. We want students to enjoy everything this technique can offer: precision, clarity, imagination, a sense of composition, physicality, and poetry. But transmitting this technique is not just about teaching a set of skills; it is about enabling students to understand how all parts of this system relate to each other.

Students often face concrete difficulties in their learning. This is where the teacher’s experience makes the difference, helping to identify that the solution may lie in a change of perspective or exploring another aspect of the system. The technique thus becomes a vehicle for discovering new forms of expression and connection.

Is the group work important in the school?

A drama school is first and foremost a place for the group as a creative space. The relationships between students and teachers are one of the fundamental pillars of its success. At Moveo, we believe in non-competitiveness. We have shown over the years that collaborative groups work best, allowing each person to develop their work in the best possible way.

Fear, which is often used as a tool in some educational contexts, is for us the antithesis of what a drama school should be. Creating a safe space, where students do not feel judged for making mistakes, is essential. It is only in such an environment that intuition and, through it, the development of the individual as an artist, can be given value.

Training artists involves training people and human relationships. The theatrical act, the creation, is almost always collective. The more students can learn to generate healthy and respectful working dynamics, the more they will be able to replicate these conditions in their professional life, favouring creativity and exchange.

How do you organise a theatre school

A drama school proposes, through its curriculum, an organisation of knowledge, both in time and in the articulation of subjects. In many schools, subjects are worked on independently of each other, which accentuates atomisation of knowledge. At Moveo, we conceive theatre work as a whole, which includes technical knowledge, both instrumental and analytical, intuition, training in improvisation and the ability to interpret scores created by others.

This is why, in our pedagogy, teachers are not limited to teaching a single subject, but travel between the main subjects. Moreover, subjects are not taught in isolation. A technical exercise can lead to improvisation work or take a repertoire piece as a reference. For us, transversality is key. Knowledge is global, even if we can only access it through specific paths that separate its parts in order to explain them better. This separation is only a pedagogical tool; it does not correspond to the reality of the stage act, which is integral.

Another essential element in a drama school is its size. The number of students and teachers profoundly determines the way the institution works. At Moveo, we have chosen to be a small, crafts school. We believe that, far from being exclusively academic knowledge, theatre practice is a craft.

Nowadays, the emphasis on university degrees, the result of a strong lobby in Spain, is damaging the educational structure in the performing arts by imposing methods that are more theoretical than practical. This penalises small structures, which cannot adapt to these criteria. We defend another educational model: a small school is flexible and at the service of the student. Here, everyone knows each other and there is a proximity that allows for more individualised work.

What is the biggest challenge?

Creating a theatre school in Barcelona and keeping it active for over 20 years, overcoming economic crises, pandemics, and other obstacles, fills us with joy. But what delights us the most is when students return, sometimes years later, and tell us how important the training was for them, both artistically and personally. We are also thrilled to see how a new generation of teachers, trained here and elsewhere, believes in this project and now works at Centro Moveo.

The greatest success, for me, would be that one day the school could continue to function and evolve, even without Sophie and me.