Teachers: Christopher Shaw and Sarah Zinsser Explore the basics of acting, which is always the starting point and at the heart of even the most accomplished actor’s craft. Following a fun and creative path from the freedom of “play” (improvisation, theatre games) to more advanced acting exercises (based on the work of Strasberg, Meisner and Stanislavsky) and a strong focus on detailed scene work from published plays. The class focuses on the group as an ensemble as well as discovering, exploring, and strengthening the unique talents of each individual actor.

Teacher: Brad Greenquist In this class, students get an introduction to the rigors of acting for the camera, as well as plenty of practical application. The students adapt a scene for the camera from their conservatory acting class. All students act in front of the camera, as well as crew the shots (holding the boom, marking the shots, etc). Basic camera technique is applied: thinking in shots (long, medium, two-shot, close-up, etc); how to pull your face to the lens; how to speak to the mics; and how to block yourself for camera

Teacher: Nancy Linehan Charles In the Acting Shakespeare class, students are initially thrown into the muscular energy of Shakespeare’s language with an exercise in Elizabethan insults. After hurling verbal venom at one another for a couple of hours, amid much laughter, they seem to get the connection between language and intention. We move on from there to monologues and scenes from Shakespeare’s plays Students seem to emerge from the class with a visceral sense of the poetry. History and context are left to the teachers of those areas. At PRT, we want to give young actors a vibrant sense of performing the Bard.

Teacher: Matt McKenzie The purpose of this course is to introduce young students to the art of performing stage violence, with a concentration on the three elements of illusion, repeatability and, above all, safety. Students will learn hand-to-hand techniques and classical weapons techniques.

Teacher: Elina de Santos Explore your creativity: – Story writing – Casting – Staging/Filming – Editing There is a place where a super-hero sock saves the day, where an imaginative 11 year-old can rob a bank, where an electric toothbrush is a lethal weapon; a place where children learn the art of storytelling through the process of movie-making and theatre; a place where a kid says, “I want to be an actor,” and is told, “You already are one.” The place is Storytelling for Film and Theatre.

Teacher: Thea Mercouffer This class is an intensive introduction to some of the most respected forms of movement training for actors. We explore body language and stage presence through games and age-appropriate exercises, and we reconnect young actors to their innate playfulness and expressivity.

Teacher: Carolyn Mignini Voice/Singing is a class that focuses on vocal technique and applying those skill to the acting of a song. Work with exercises and sheet music, so that even those without musical “training” can learn musical notation, enables students to approach a piece of music from multiple entry points. Songs are learned and used as monologues with which to improvise and work as an actor. The goal is for the young actor to discover the power of their voice and freedom of expression through song.