Directing the Actor

• Regardless of content—virtual or in-person, classical or contemporary—the one constant in directing is the need to effectively and generously communicate with your actors to get the best performance possible and fully actualize your vision. This 8-week class is for directors of all levels to actively and collaboratively refine your approach to text, explore the rehearsal process, and create with your actors no matter the medium.
  

This class might be for you if you:

• Are an experienced director wanting to expand your versatility and refine your technique as a director by focusing on your work and communication with actors.
• Are a newer director looking to get experience directing multiple types of work.
• Want to create work guided by John in a safe environment where exploration and experimentation are encouraged.
• Are ready to dedicate at least 3 hours of out-of-class time per scene to rehearse with your actors.

In this class, you will:

• Focus on communicating with the actor, creating relationships that will bring out their best possible performances and the best representation of your vision for a piece.
• Prior to the first class, receive audition self-tapes from ESPA actors available for your class sessions, which you should watch before the first class as you start to think about potential scenes you would like to tackle.
• Spend the first two class sessions delving into one scene together, provided by John, where he will demonstrate how to conduct scene study and then have you direct each other.
• Cast actors and create a rehearsal schedule for each of your pieces, ideally using actors from the class audition self-tapes. A focus of your work will then be on communicating with the actor, creating relationships that will bring out their best possible performances and the best representation of your vision for a piece.
• Starting in week 3, work intensively on three scenes over the course of the class - one classical, one 19th century, and one contemporary. The limited class size of 8 means that you will show work every other week in order to incorporate notes and feedback on your feet with your actors when you present.
• Give constructive feedback to your fellow directors (as led and modeled by John), honing your ability to analyze what is working well and what is not working so well in a scene.
  
  
• By the end of this workshop you will:
  

• Understand how to effectively discover and communicate your artistic vision in any type of rehearsal room.
• Be able to focus on the actor in any project, knowing that the success or failure of a piece is predicated on your relationships with your actors.
• Possess the tools to approach any rehearsal process with confidence.