Guest Instructors
Bryce Bermingham
SAFD Fight Director, FDC Fight Director
At Rapier Wit: FDC Certification, Master Monday, Workshops
A Certified Fight Director since 1998, Bryce has taught and choreographed the violence for musical theatre, plays, opera, horror films, student films, Welsh films, and yet strangely has never done a ballet, in the United Kingdom, United States and Canada. The House that Jack Built premiered at the LA Film Festival in 2013. www.ludio.com
Casey Kaleba
SAFD Certified Teacher
At Rapier Wit: FDC Certification, Blood Workshop
Casey Kaleba is a Certified Teacher with the Society of American Fight Directors. He has staged violence for nearly three hundred productions, including work for the Folger Theatre, Round House Theatre, Signature Theatre, and the Shakespeare Theatre Company. He has been a guest artist in Sweden, Canada, and throughout the United States.www.toothandclawcombat.com
Siobhan Richardson
FDC Fight Instructor
At Rapier Wit: FDC Certification, Master Monday
Siobhan Richardson is an FDC Certified Fight Instructor, and has been a professional actor and stage combatant for over 13 years. Her teaching career has taken her across Canada, the USA and Europe. She teaches at international events including the Paddy Crean International Art of the Sword Workshop, FDC’s National Workshop, and the Nordic Stage Fight Society’s Summer Workshop. She has completed two European tours, teaching in 8 different countries “across the pond”. Siobhan’s approach to teaching stage combat includes connection to the actor’s process, strong influences from Historical Martial Arts, and biomechanics, preventing injury and expanding physical vocabulary. She believes in the necessity of continuous professional development, and so attends several workshops as a student every year.In 2009, she received a Chalmers Arts Fellowship from the Ontario Arts Council, which allowed her to travel to England, Sweden and the US to study with some of the world’s foremost Fight Directors. She is the “go-to” fight director and instructor for a number of directors, theatre companies and actors. With her husband and business partner, Matt Richardson, she runs Burning Mountain. Together they were the champions at the First Annual Live Action Fight Scene Competition at CombatCon (Las Vegas) with their scene Trespasser. For Rapier Wit, Siobhan has taught certification classes as well as Master Mondays, including “Ballet and Smallsword”, and “Longsword: Deadly Flow”
www.SiobhanRichardson.com/stagecombat
www.BurningMountain.ca/connect
Ian Rose
FDC Fight Master, SAFD Fight Master
At Rapier Wit: FDC Actor-Combatant Certification, Master Monday, Workshops
Ian has arranged fights for commercials, for film and on stage, and has been staging fights in the New York and Philadelphia areas for over twenty-five years. One of only two in the world to be counted a Fight Master in two professional fight direction organizations, a Fight Master with Fight Directors Canada and The Society of American Fight Directors.
Ian’s work has been seen at the Riverside Shakespeare and Interborough Repertory Theatre in New York, The Whole Theatre in New Jersey, the Bridewell Theatre in London, and MTM Studios in Rome. Closer to home, Ian has worked at The Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival, The Philadelphia Shakespeare Festival, the Philadelphia Theatre Company andNovel Stages in Pennsylvania. Ian has had the honour to have taught at seven Canadian National Workshops, and is one of the coordinators of the Philadelphia Stage Combat Workshop. Ian most recently was a Technical Advisor on the film A Winter’s Tale. He continues to study and be fascinated by Shotokan Karate, where he currently holds a black belt, 3rd Degree.
Ian is an adjunct professor at Temple University. For more info see Ian’s website: www.ianrosefights.com
Doug Tong
At Rapier Wit: Kenjutsu (Japanese sword)
Douglas Tong studied classical Japanese swordsmanship exclusively in Japan under some of the great masters. Mr. Tong was one of the last direct pupils of the legendary Master Yoshio Sugino, who was the swordfight choreographer for Director Akira Kurosawa’s two most famous samurai films, Seven Samurai and Yojimbo, and also for Director Hiroki Inagaki’s celebrated epic, Miyamoto Musashi (re-titled as the Samurai Trilogy in North America). The swordplay in these movies has been hailed as some of the best Japanese swordplay ever captured on film. Mr. Tong is also the leader of the official study group (keiko-kai) in North America for Yagyu Shinkage Ryu, the most famous swordfighting style in Japanese history, under the renowned Master Yasushi Kajitsuka. Due to his apprenticeship in Japan and over 20 years of study, Mr. Tong brings an expert knowledge of the ancient art of classical Japanese swordfighting.
Website: www.tokumeikan.org
Matthew R. Wilson
SAFD Certified Teacher
At Rapier Wit: Commedia dell’Arte
Matthew R. Wilson is an SAFD Certified Teacher and co-founder of Tooth & Claw Combat Arts in Washington, DC. Matt is also a union actor (AEA, SAG-AFTRA), professional director, international Commedia dell’Arte specialist, and Artistic Director of Faction of Fools Theatre Company. MFA, ACA; PhD candidate, UMCP. www.matthewrwilson.com
Tony Wolf
At Rapier Wit: Bartitsu, Tony Wolf System
New Zealand citizen and US resident Tony Wolf works internationally as a freelance fight choreographer, stage combat/martial arts instructor, author and lecturer. His action design credits include the Lord of the Rings trilogy as well as numerous feature film, theatre, opera, ballet, TV, publishing and video game projects. Learn more about the Tony Wolf System at tonywolfsystem.com.
