UIC develops new ties with Barcelona conservatory

While finalizing an exchange program with a Barcelona conservatory, Yasen
Peyankov (left), head of UIC’s acting program, taught a master class.

The UIC School of Theater & Music will begin a new exchange program with a Barcelona arts conservatory that brings two Barcelona students to campus next fall. The conservatory, Eolia, focuses on studio training and is affiliated with two professional theaters, Tricicle and Dagoll Dagom.

While finalizing the details of the exchange, Yasen Peyankov, head of UIC’s acting program, taught a master class at Eolia over spring break. He found the school’s approach similar to UIC’s.

“I discovered that they spend a fair amount of time focusing on impulse work and how it connects to the physical action. They use a lot of improv in their rehearsing, which attracts me because it brings greater specificity and the actors don’t get trapped in playing the text,” Peyankov said.

“They have a 150-seat theatre that produces original work generated by faculty and performed by student and professional actors. Some of those shows, like the one I observed in rehearsals, ‘Orpheus,’ are scheduled to have professional productions.”