Golden Thread Productions and La Peña Cultural Center Present
FREE THE ACTOR INSIDE
Have you always wanted to act in a play but were afraid to try? Have you performed in a few plays but want to build your skills and confidence? Do you dream of spending the rest of your life on the stage? Well, here is your chance!
Introduction to Acting – Drawing from plays by Middle Eastern and Middle Eastern American playwrights as well as Middle Eastern performance traditions, this workshop will introduce participants to improvisation, scene study and solo performance. Each class will begin with vocal and physical warm ups, theatre games and collaborative exercises. Participants will learn how to analyze dramatic text and various approaches to building a character. By the end of the term, participants will have developed a basic knowledge of acting styles, better understanding of dramatic text and more confidence in self-expression.
No prior acting experience required. Must be 18 or older to participate.
Sundays 3-5pm
June 9 to July 28, 2013
No class on July 7th
Tuition $150 ($180 after May 31)
Includes $25 Nonrefundable Administrative Fee (register here)
About the Instructor:
Torange Yeghiazarian is the Founding Artistic Director of Golden Thread Productions, the San Francisco theatre company devoted to exploring Middle Eastern cultures and identities. Torange is a writer, director, and teacher. Her articles on contemporary theatre in Iran have been published in The Drama Review (2012), American Theatre Magazine (2010), and Theatre Bay Area Magazine (2010). Her latest play 444 Days is slated to receive its world premiere at Golden Thread in 2013. Her short play Call Me Mehdi is included in the anthology “Salaam. Peace: An Anthology of Middle Eastern-American Drama” published by TCG in 2009. Other plays include Waves, Dawn at Midnight, Behind Glass Windows, Abaga, and Publicly Resting, as well as a repertory of new plays for children based on fables and characters from the Middle East developed with Golden Thread’s Fairytale Players. She also collaborated with playwright Hal Gelb and puppeteer Janaki Ranpura to create the musical comedy Love Missile (2003), and was one of the artists of Iranian, Israeli, and American origin behind Benedictus (2007). Directing credits include I Sell Souls (which she adapted from the poetry of Simin Behbehani), A Girl’s War by Joyce Van Dyke, Nine Armenians by Leslie Ayvazian, Tamam by Betty Shamieh, and Three Stops and Scenic Routes by Yussef El Guindi. As a teaching artist, Torange has taught playwriting to at-risk youth, incorporated theatre into social sciences classes, and led acting and play development workshops for youth and adults at Golden Thread and the Islamic Center of Northern California.