FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Professor Andrei Malaev-Babel Delivered Keynote Address and Masterclass at the 2025 Stanislavsky Symposium in Malta
Valletta, Malta – November 2025 —
Professor Andrei Malaev-Babel, Head and Certifying Master Teacher of the International Demidov Association, and Professor of Theatre and Head of Acting at the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training, delivered a keynote address and led a masterclass at the Stanislavsky Symposium, held November 6–9, 2025 at the University of Malta’s Valletta Campus.
This premier annual gathering—organized by the Stanislavsky Research Centre (University of Leeds, UK) in collaboration with the Department of Theatre Studies at the University of Malta—is the leading international forum devoted to the study and practice of Konstantin Stanislavsky’s enduring influence on modern performance. The symposium, titled “Stanislavsky’s Many Faces: Then and Now,” is part of The S Word project, a long-running series uniting scholars and practitioners from around the world.
Professor Malaev-Babel opened the symposium with his keynote address:
“The Role of the Subconscious in the Actor’s Creative Process: The Influence of the Demidov School of Acting on the Stanislavsky System.”
In this lecture, he explored the decisive influence of Nikolai Demidov—Stanislavsky’s closest collaborator and co-founder of the Moscow Art Theatre’s Fourth Studio—on the final evolution of the Stanislavsky System. Drawing on archival sources and pedagogical documentation, Malaev-Babel illuminated Demidov’s radical shift away from will-driven technique toward a psychotechnique grounded in involuntariness, receptivity, and organic spontaneity—principles that guided Stanislavsky’s later development of Active Analysis and the Method of Physical Actions.
In addition to the keynote, Professor Malaev-Babel led a hands-on masterclass:
“The Demidov School in Practice: Unlocking the Actor’s Subconscious Creativity.”
This rare practical session offered participants direct engagement with Demidov’s revolutionary technique—teaching actors to relinquish control, bypass conscious will, and awaken subconscious sources of inspiration. Through Demidov etudes and guided exploration, the class demonstrated how this organic technique restores emotional freedom and truth in performance.
The symposium featured contributions from over sixty scholars and practitioners representing twenty countries. Previous keynote speakers have included distinguished figures such as Jonathan Pitches, Laurence Senelick, Sharon Carnicke, and Maria Shevtsova.