2008-09 Eighth through Twelfth Grade
Educational Offerings

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Audition Techniques  (Grades 8 - Adult)
Sun 2 – 3:30 pm (1.5 hrs/week)
Winter Session: 1/4 - 3/8 (10 weeks), Class #WS-MTM-8A-SU
Spring Session: 3/15 - 5/17 (9 weeks), Class #SS-MTM-8A-SU
Instructor: Michael Shoeman
Tuition: $145

Class Description:Do you feel you could be a good performer if you could just make it through the audition? Improve your audition skills in a fun and safe learning atmosphere. Audition Techniques is a workshop-based class designed to give students the opportunity to practice the audition process. Three of the class periods will provide students with the opportunity to audition for a professional Director who will assess their skills and provide feedback. During the remaining seven class periods the students will concentrate on audition etiquette, cold reading skills, and the presentation of a prepared monologue. The students will also develop interview skills including how to "read " the director and how to ask questions that can ascertain the Director's vision. The class will learn to understand expectations and how to make appropriate choices in a variety of circumstances. This class is appropriate for students who are new to theater as well as those with experience or returning for multiple sessions of Audition Techniques to continue enhancing their skills.

Youth Improv Troupe (Grades 8 – 12)
Mon 4:30 – 6:30 pm (2 hrs/week)
Second Semester, 1/5 – 5/18 (20 weeks)
Instructor: Rick Horner
Class #2NDS-YI-812-M
Tuition $290

Class Description: This class and performance troupe is appropriate for students who have studied improvisation and sketch comedy writing and demonstrate a sincere passion for and dedication to the art of acting and comedy. Students should have the ability to listen and take direction, create diverse characters, take risks and “think outside of the box”, perform with confidence, work with a team, and have a desire to have fun working hard and work hard at having fun. Members should join the Troupe with the intention of a long-term commitment to being part of the ensemble from year to year. Students will have an opportunity to enroll in this class for the First Semester (Fall) and again for the Second Semester (Spring), each year. Prerequisite: Improv I with Instructor/Artistic Director recommendation or previous extensive improv training and experience, with audition. Students will have the opportunity to present their art at certain events during the year.

Improv I (Grades 8 – 12)
Mon 5 – 6:30 pm (1.5 hrs/week)
Second Semester, 1/5 – 5/18 (20 weeks)
Instructor: Michael Shoeman
Class #2NDS-I1-812-M
Tuition: $199

Class Description: Improv I is designed for actors with a passion for the art of comedy. Students will receive training in acting and improvisation skills to enable the young actor to create diverse characters, enhance their stage presence and ability to work as a team, enjoy the experience of learning and mastering improv games, and take part in the creative process of writing sketch and improv segments. This class is appropriate for students who are new to the art of improvisation as well as those returning for multiple sessions over multiple years to enhance their skills. Although students are encouraged to enroll for a full year at a time in order to get the most out of this class, students will have an opportunity to enroll in the Fall Semester, the Spring Semester, or both, each year. Each Semester, students will create a short example of their work, which will be presented in the last week of each semester.

Acting I (Grades 8 - Adult)
Mon 6:30 – 7:30 pm (1 hr/week)
Winter Session, 1/5 – 3/9 (10 weeks); Class #WS-A1-812-M
Spring Session, 3/16 - 5/18 (10 weeks); Class #SS-A1-812-M
Instructor: Latasha Whitmore
Tuition: $95

Class Description: Acting I concentrates on basic acting skills such as stage presence, sensory understanding, communication, and focus skills (listening, relaxation, observation, vocalization), teamwork, character development and authenticity, blocking, creative movement, and pacing, using a variety of fun approaches and themes. Students will create a short example of their work, which will be presented in the last week of the session. This class is appropriate for students who are new to theater as well as those with experience or returning for multiple sessions of Acting I to continue enhancing their skills before moving on to Acting II.

Acting II (Grades 8 - Adult)
Mon 6:30 – 7:30 pm (1 hr/week)
Winter Session, 1/5 – 3/9 (10 weeks); Class #WS-A2-812-M
Spring Session, 3/16 - 5/18 (10 weeks); Class #SS-A2-812-M
Instructor: Melissa Dunphy
Tuition: $95

Class Description: Students in Acting II will extend upon concepts presented in Acting I, including stage presence, characterization, and movement, and will gain a thorough understanding of their body, breath, and voice as a dramatic and physical instrument. The class will concentrate on the beauty and meaning of words and sounds, and the effect created by text and poetry on the actor and the audience. Students will be encouraged to explore the psychology and motivations of characters and circumstances outside of their own immediate experience. The class will culminate in the creation of a performance example which will be suitable for use as an audition piece outside of the class. This class is appropriate for students who already have a solid grounding in the dramatic arts, including multiple sessions of Acting I or the equivalent, and who wish to work towards performance in community and professional settings beyond the classroom.

Scene Study (Grade 8 - Adult)
Mon 7:30 – 9 pm (1.5 hrs/week)
Winter Session, 1/5 – 3/9 (10 weeks); Class #WS-SS-8A-M
Spring Session, 3/16 - 5/18 (10 weeks); Class #SS-SS-8A-M
Instructor: Michael Shoeman
Tuition: $145

Class Description: In this class, students will explore the acting techniques developed by some of the great acting teachers of the 20th century such as Sanford Meisner, Uta Hagan, and Konstantin Stanislavski in a fun and innovative atmosphere. A portion of the class will be devoted to exercises and improvisations that develop these acting techniques, which will then be applied to specific scenes for the remaining class time. Scene study will require preparation outside of class for the memorization of lines and character study. The class will focus on character development using both an “inside/out” approach (how a character’s belief system effects their actions in a scene) and an “outside/in” approach (how a situation affects a character’s action in a scene). This class is appropriate for students who are new to theater as well as those with experience or returning for multiple sessions of Scene Study to continue enhancing their skills.

Character in Song – Presenting a Musical Theater Piece (Grade 8 through Adult)
Tues 7 – 8 pm (1 hr/week)
Winter Session, 1/5 – 3/9 (10 weeks); Class #WS-CIS-8A-TU
Spring Session, 3/17 - 5/26 (10 weeks); Class #SS-CIS-8A-TU
Instructor: Deborah Stimson Snow with John D. Smitherman
Tuition: $95

Class Description: This class will show you how to bring out the very best in you and your presentation of musical theatre repertoire. Singing is so much more than just having a nice voice. Learn how to make an immediate connection with your audience, find musical continuity without losing the meaning of the words, shape the drama inherent in each song through your phrasing and physicality, and find a vocal style that exhibits your unique gifts. Explore various character types and musical theatre genres such as torch songs or comic numbers to consider which types are most comfortable for you, those that you can present most convincingly, and those that may be a “stretch” but provide growth opportunities towards longer-term performance goals. The class will also touch upon how to approach a musical theater audition to create a positive and lasting impression.

Tri-County Youth Chorus (Grades 4 - 12)
Wed 6:30 – 7:45 pm (Grades 4 – 6); 6:30 - 8:30 pm (Grades 7 - 12)
Second Semester, 1/7 – 5/20 (19 weeks)
Director: Deborah Stimson-Snow
Class #2NDS-TCYC-412-W;
Tuition: Grades 4 - 6: $150; Grades 7 through 12: $230
Materials Fee: $15; Music Deposit: $30

Program Description: The Tri-County Youth Chorus is an opportunity for young people to develop their musicianship, vocal artistry and ensemble skills. The Director will teach vocal technique, ear training (musical intervals), sight singing, part singing, artistic interpretation, and performance skills. Rehearsals are designed with an understanding that musical expression is a physical, intellectual, and spiritual process and is tied to the healthy development of analytical and cognitive abilities. The Chorus will cover a variety of repertoire which may include classics, pop tunes, Broadway, as well as cross-cultural and multi-lingual materials. Chorus members should join the Chorus with the intention of a long-term commitment to being part of the ensemble from year to year. Students will have an opportunity to enroll in this class for the First Semester (Fall) and again for the Second Semester (Spring), each year. Performances for 2008-09 will include a Winter and Spring concert with tickets available for purchase by family, friends and the public.

Dress Code: All Chorus members must provide their own white collared shirt, black dress pants, and black shoes for performances.

Materials: Upon joining the Chorus, each singer will receive a site-reading book that they will keep. Each singer will also receive music and a music folder which must be turned in at the end of each semester.

Prerequisites: Scheduled assessment to determine readiness for the Chorus.

Community Threads – Why I Make a Difference (Age 16 - Adult)
Wed 7 – 8:30 pm (1 - 1.5 hrs/week depending on enrollment)
Winter Session, 1/7 – 3/11 (10 weeks); Class #WS-CT-16A-W
Spring Session, 3/18 - 5/27 (10 weeks); Class #SS-SS-16A-W
Facilitator: Patti Garver
Tuition: $50

Class Description: This class is intended to be the Pilot Program for a community-supported outreach program which encourages participants to use personal expression through the arts to create bridges of understanding between socially, economically, and ethnically diverse groups in the Tri-County Area. Class members will have the  opportunity to "tell their story" through the creative arts (music, poetry, journaling, acting, readings, drumming, art, collages, and more) as well as draw inspiration from the stories of others (movie clips, documentaries, literature). From our common threads, we will create our own life's fabric, for ourselves and the community.

Playwriting Club (Age 16 – Adult)
Thurs 7 – 8:30 pm (1.5 hrs/week)
Second Semester, 1/8 – 5/21 (19 weeks)
Instructor/Facilitator: Christine Emmert
Class #2NDS-PC-16A-TH
Tuition $190

Program Description: If “all the world's a stage”, then there are many dramas and comedies still to be written. Our lives provide the material. We just need to learn how to shape it. This class is an introduction to some, and a continuation to others, of the writing process of making a play come alive on the page. In this class we will learn the language of the stage, read the many kinds of plays from a single page to lengthy pieces -- comedy, tragedy, satire and all the variations, and try our own hand at making a script.

Act II Players Teen Theater Club (Grades 8 - 12)
Fri, 4:30 – 6:30 pm (2 hrs/week)
Second Semester, 1/9 – 5/22 (19 weeks)
Instructor/Facilitator: Leena Devlin
Class #2NDS-A2P-812-F
Tuition: $249; Materials Fee: $15

Program Description: Act II Players – Teen Theater Club is a self-directed and self-governed club for teenagers who are interested in the performing arts. The club is appropriate for those who are new to theater as well as those with experience. No audition is required to join the Act II Players. As this is an evolving process, students are encouraged to enroll for both the Fall and Spring Semester in order to get the most out of this club; however, students may choose to enroll for just one semester or both. With the help of an adult facilitator with a background in performing arts, Club members will create an organizational structure for the Club and develop performing arts productions that they select, design, cast, and execute (such as cabaret, one-act plays, skits, new works, scenes, or a full play). Club members will fill the various production positions, including producer, director, stage manager, crew, casting committee, materials selection committee, music chair, costumes, props, box office, house management, etc. Village Productions staff and/or the Club advisor will assist the Club members with casting decisions, materials, and scheduling performance times and dates. Students will have the opportunity to present their art at certain ticketed events during the year.

Guitar Calisthenics (Age 10 through Adult)
Sat 10 am – 12 pm (2 hours/week)
Winter Session, 1/10 – 3/14 (10 weeks); Class #WS-GC-5A-SA
Spring Session, 3/21 - 5/30 (9 weeks); Class #SS-GC-5A-SA
Instructor: Russ Ferrara
Tuition: $190