Improv expert Lulu French (Maplewood) will teach a 5-week Improv Comedy for Teens and Adults class, running from September 20 through October 18 on Saturdays from 12:00-2:00 pm. The class delves deep into the craft of improv with more complex games as the weeks progress. This class is great for all levels of improvisers, and also for actors who want to add another dimension to their skills. Improv is a valuable skill for countless situations such as public speaking, auditions and job interviews as well. Lulu French has long performed with and taught for Gotham City Improv in New York City, and has taught improv to theatre students at the Tisch School of the Arts at NYU, among many other places. The cost for this class is $200.
Acting Skills for Middle and High School Students will run October 25 through November 22 on Saturdays from 12:00-2:00 pm, and will be taught by Harry Patrick Christian (Montclair). In a supportive, fun environment, students will hone their talents and explore new dimensions to their acting ability. Through a variety of games and exercises, they will learn the skills they'll need to develop characters, be great collaborators, and make active choices. This class empowers and inspires students to acknowledge their own creative abilities and fosters collaboration and teamwork in a creative setting. Harry Patrick Christian is a member of Dreamcatcher's acting company with a long career acting onstage and onscreen, and is an experienced teaching artist with such organizations as the Pushcart Players and Essex Youth Theatre. The cost for this class is $200.
Laura Ekstrand (Livingston), Artistic Director of Dreamcatcher, will teach Monologue Prep for College and Professional Auditions on January 3, 10 and 17, Saturdays from 12:00-2:00 pm. This class is ideal for students preparing for college auditions or actors working on a new monologue (or brushing up a familiar one). The instructor will give the feedback and coaching needed to make the best possible impression, and to make sure the monologue communicates the particular strengths and individuality of the actor while telling a cohesive and compelling story in a matter of a few minutes. Laura Ekstrand, a former casting director, has been coaching auditions both privately and in class settings for over twenty years, with students enrolled in such programs as NYU, Carnegie Mellon and Mason Gross School of the Arts. The cost for this class is $120.
Classes will be held at The Oakes Center, located at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit. Parking is available in the lot behind the theatre on Ashwood Avenue and at the Summit Recreation Center on Morris Avenue. The facility is wheelchair accessible. To register for the classes or for information on any of Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre's programs, please visit www.dreamcatcherrep.org or contact Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre at The Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue, Summit, NJ 07901, 908-514-9654.
About Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre:
Dreamcatcher was founded in 1994, and is a non-profit professional ensemble of actors who build community with the audience by sharing life-affirming stories in an intimate environment. We seek to expose theatregoers to ideas and lives like and unlike their own, to awaken their imaginations and create empathy for others. The company focuses on deepening the experience of our patrons by supplementing the performances with personal contact through receptions, talkbacks, and interactive programs.
Dreamcatcher's core company of professional local actors performs contemporary work that entertains and challenges, and has at its heart a belief in the essential goodness of people. The company's activities include mainstage productions, improvisational comedy and cabarets, new play readings and a variety of educational and senior outreach programs.
Dreamcatcher's programs are funded by the New Jersey State council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, Dramatist Guild Fund, The Summit Area Public Foundation, the Manley-Winser Foundation, and many other corporations, foundations and individuals. Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre is a senior member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.
