Stage & Screen Fighting

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As the eldest of three children Dan has been play fighting for as long as he can remember. He is now a skilled fight performer, teacher and co-ordinator in various styles of both armed and unarmed combat for stage and screen.

Dan has used stage combat in performances since high school (and has played with swords since a very young age). In that time he has gained a great deal of experience in direction, instruction, choreography and performance.

Dan is a qualified instructor for the British Academy of Dramatic Combat (BADC). As an instructor or assistant instructor Dan has worked at Mountview, Arts Educational, East 15 School of Performing Arts, Rose Bruford, Academy of Live and Recorded Arts, Italia Conti School of Performing Arts, Redroofs Theatre School, Central School of Ballet, The Globe Exhibition, RC-Annie, Youngblood, Independent Drama, The London Shakespeare Workout, Edinburgh Festival, West End Stage, Take Action Martial Dance (@ Royal Festival Hall), The Lambeth Festival, All British Weapons and Combat Competition, The Phoenix Festival, The Academy of Musical Theatre, Oxford Spires Academy, Hazlitt Arts Centre, Mousetrap Theatre, Brady Arts and Community Centre, OK Club Kilburn, Havering Museum, Westminster Under School, Berkhamstead School, Preston Manor High School and Tulse Hill School..

He is also a member of two of the three stage combat organisations in the UK; the British Academy of Dramatic Combat (BADC) and Academy of Performance Combat (APC).

Dan has completed three British Academy of Dramatic Combat (BADC) stage fighting awards (basic, intermediate and advanced), with a gold qualification in each, plus a recommendation at advanced level – the highest grade achievable. He has also achieved a first with recommendation in eskrima stick for the APC

He has trained with Youngblood, RC-Annie and Independent Drama stage fighting classes, BADC, BASSC (British Academy of Stage and Screen Combat), and APC courses, and has attended workshops under acclaimed teachers, fight directors and stunt co-ordinators: Tony Wolfe (Lord of the Rings) Richard Ryan (Troy, Batman Begins, Stardust, Sherlock Holmes), Phillip Stafford (Royal Ballet), Kev McCurdy (Globe theatre), Allen Suddeth, John Lennox, Lloyd Caldwell, Tim Klotz, Nick Hall, Johnathon Leverett, Cameron Kendrick, Robert Westley, Roger Bartlett, Chris Main and many more. For more details see ‘Skills and Statistics’.

Dan has also achieved British Standard Gold Star Awards in Fencing Proficiency with Foil, Epee and Sabre and took part in the Salle Joseph Fencing Marathon to raise money for St. Christopher's Hospice.

Proficiencies include: Foil, epee, sabre, great sword/two-handed broadsword, single-handed broad sword, sword & shield, treatise I.33 arming sword & buckler, rapier, rapier & dagger, rapier & cloak, rapier & buckler, small sword, axe & shield, axe, spear, spear & shield, quarterstaff, eskrima stick, seax, knife, dagger, unarmed combat, boxing, (period and modern), grappling, ground fighting, street fighting, Hollywood swashbuckling, Viking fighting styles and formation drill, Lord of the Rings, Orc and Ranger fighting styles, archery (Long bow, recurve bow) hand guns (various), 22. rifle, M1 rifle, L98 rifle, blood effects and devices.

Further training and research includes: Roman gladius, Italian rapier, Spanish rapier, rapier & gauntlet, Fiore dei Liberi, military sabre, tomahawk & knife, lightsabre, karate, tae-kwondo, sanjuro, kung fu, ninjutsu, baritsu, wrestling, Samurai/Katana, Inca fighting (Rumi Maki).

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In Performance

Dan is currently working on a Universal Pictures feature ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’; an epic action-adventure retelling of the fairy tale starring Kristen Stewart (Twilight), Chris Hemsworth (Thor) and Charlize Theron (Hancock). Dan is part of the ‘Special Action’ team – or fight team – performing medieval style swordfights in mass battles between good and evil. Dan plays a variety of soldiers on both sides, but you’d be hard pressed to spot him in the melee.

One of Dan’s most recent performances and possibly one of the most exciting in his career was as a musketeer on Blue Peter. Dan, along with other members of the ID fight unit, assisted in training Blue Peter presenter, Helen Skelton, in the art of swordsmanship so that she could become an honorary Musketeer for the première of ‘The Three Musketeers’ film that evening. Her training culminated in a test of bravery, honour and skill in which she had to face and defeat not just one, but three of the cardinal’s guards (Dan & Co.). She literally kicked their arses. This episode aired on Tuesday 11^th October on BBC1 at 4:30pm. You may still be able to catch this on BBC iplayer.

Earlier this year Dan was doing some motion capture on the next edition of a popular computer game for the Playstation.

At the beginning of the year he had to perform a violent sex scene in feature film ‘Charlene’. This was no easy task as both the safety and sensitivities of the actors had to be protected.

In 2010 Dan joined the fight team on ‘Primary Faction’ and ‘Tycan Tournament’, a new ongoing sci-fi webseries and spinoff series. More details can be found on Primary Faction and Tycan.

In 2009 Dan performed at the 60th anniversary of the British Academy of Fencing at Warwick Castle. The show ‘Diamond Swords’ chartered the history of fencing since Henry VIII. There Dan had the great pleasure of meeting the legend, Bob Anderson, not only the 87 year old president of honour of the BAF and an Olympic fencer, but also the sword master/fight arranger on such iconic films such as: Star Wars, James Bond, Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Princess Bride, and many more.

Dan can be seen as part of the fight team in two independent Lord of the Rings fan films – ‘Born of Hope’ and ‘The Hunt for Gollum’. Just as in the Peter Jackson films the core fight team went through a ‘boot camp’ of learning the fighting styles of the Rangers and the Orcs and performing as both races in various battles and skirmishes throughout the films. Find out more on Born of Hope and The Hunt for Gollum.

You can see Dan occasionally performing as a knight at Medieval Banquets in St Katherine’s Docks, near Tower Bridge. He plays the King’s champion Sir William Kingston honourably fighting any challenger in the king’s tournament. Find out more at Medieval Banquets.

You can also see Dan in regular sword displays at the Globe Theatre Exhibition on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10:30am-1pm.

Dan has performed fights in many other productions; ranging from music videos to feature films, stage plays to huge scale re-enactments. He also works as a stage combat instructor and fight arranger.

Dan has choreographed, arranged and co-ordinated fights/violence for:

Theatre

As a fight arranger Dan has choreographed and co-ordinated fights for ‘Romeo & Juliet' (Oxford Spires Academy, tour and open air tour), ‘Macbeth’ (tour), ‘As You Like It’ (x2 open air tours), ‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ (open air tour), ‘Henry V’ (Lambeth Country Show), ‘The Three Musketeers’ (Berkhamstead, Westminster Upper School), ‘Lord of the Flies’ (Catford, Broadway), ‘Of Mice and Men’ (Catford, Broadway and tour), ‘A Clockwork Orange’ (Southwark Playhouse), ‘Troilus & Cressida’ (LOST), ‘The Madness of King George’ (tour), ‘Playboy of the Western World’ (Rose Bruford), ‘A View From the Bridge’ (tour), ‘The Legend of Beowulf’ (Cockpit), ‘Bugsy Malone’ (x3 Her Majesty’s Theatre), ‘Chorus Line’ (x3 Her Majesty’s Theatre), ‘Journey’s End’ (tour), ‘ ‘Wild Oats’ (tairs at the Gatehouse), ‘Foreskin’s Lament’ (Pleasance Courtyard, Edinburgh & Hackney Empire), ‘High School Musical’ (x3 Her Majesty’s Theatre), ‘Hairspray’ (x3 Her Majesty’s Theatre), ‘1001 Nights’ (Mousetrap Theatre), ‘Primrose Hill Ladies Club’ (Courtyard Theatre) ‘Aladdin’ (x3 Various), ‘Snow White and The Seven Dwarfs’ (x2 Various), ‘Dick Whittington’ (Ashton-Under-Lyme Hippodrome), ‘Life on Earth’ (London Palladium), ‘The Comicall Historie of Alphonsus, King of Aragon’ (stage), ‘A Fivers Worth of Courage’ (tour), ‘A Feast of Fights’ (stage), ‘Creative Swing’ (stage), ‘Loyalty’ (stage),

Film

‘Tooting Broadway’ (feature), ‘Harsh Light of Day’ (feature),, ‘Fossil’ (feature), ‘Consequences’ (feature), ‘Charlene’ (feature), ‘Damian – Fall From Innocence’ (TV pilot), ‘Primary Faction – Tycan Tournament’ (webisode), ‘The Scourge’ (3D short film), ‘Ask Jeeves – Bow Tie’ (viral), ‘Corruption’ (music video), ‘Ace Face’ (music video), ‘Charge’ (music video), ‘Magnesium’ (short film), ‘School Run’ (short film), ‘Merry Christmas’ (short film), ‘Hold the Lift’ (short film), ‘Relentless’ (short film), ‘The Other Side’ (short film), ‘Boxing Day’ (short film), ‘Marlowe’ (short film), ‘Eye of the Observer’ (short film), ‘Hope’ (short film), ‘Nunjas’ (short film), ‘Swashbuckling on the Golden Hinde’ (short film), ‘Ain’t Life a Bitch’ (short film), ‘Pick a Fight, Any Fight’ (documentary).

Live Events

Medieval Banquets (x2 themed restaurant), Phoenix Festival (x2 event), fighting pirates at Gloucester Quays (promo),

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Organisations

• The British Academy of Dramatic Combat
• The British Academy of Stage and Screen Combat
• The Academy of Performance Combat
• Independent Drama – Dramatic Action Specialists
• RC-Annie
• Youngblood
• Live Blades
• The Globe Theatre Exhibition

Each of these groups have a team of qualified actor/combatants, martial artists and fight directors who are available to teach stage combat and/or to do fight displays, film & stage productions, corporate events, team building, themed parties, medieval banquets, weddings, christenings, birthdays, bah mitzvah's and so on…

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The Vikings

Dan takes part in historical re-enactments; performing full-scale (unchoreographed!) battles on open battlefields as a Viking, Saxon or Norman warrior. These events also include, weapons displays, one on one combat and small performances to show the events and attitudes of the period. To find out about up-coming shows or how to join visit Vikings Online

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Displays, Teaching and Fight Arranging

Live Performance Fight Team

Dan works closely with a team of trained, experienced fight performers and choreographers all of which can be available for your show, event, or party. Between them they can arrange and perform fights in any style, in any period, in any location you wish, and in many cases can also provide the weapons and costumes too!

Fights can be tailored to suit your event, whether it be an open air festival, a shopping centre, a historical site or a theatre, Dan and his team can create fights from Roman gladiatorial to 18th century duels, swashbuckling pirates to bar room brawls, Robin hood style quarterstaff to slap-stick knockabout clowns. These fights guarantee to excite, entertain and in some cases amuse.

Instruction

Dan is available to work with groups of adults or children at schools, clubs, theatres, events and parties to teach the ‘tricks of the trade’. You can learn how to punch, kick, slap, bite, stamp, and throw with complete safety and control, and even create your own fights to show your friend and colleagues.

Choreography

Fights can be choreographed for stage, screen or live events. Trained in a variety of armed and unarmed combat styles, Dan can choreograph fights for your production taking into account performance space, historical integrity, performers’ skill, and cast, crew and audience safety.

For further information about how you can introduce combat into your production or event email Dan.

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Copyright © 2005-2012 Dan Styles

Page updated on 19^th October 2011