Classes and Workshops

KCPT members receive a discount on class and workshop fees.  (You're a member of KCPT if you have donated $30 or volunteered for KCPT in any capacity this year.)

Theatre Adventure Club for Jefferson Co Youth

KCPT is joining forces with the YMCA to offer Theatre Adventure Club for grades K - 8 on Early Release Wednesdays to increase literacy skills and self expression.

The Club is open to all students throughout Jefferson County. 

-- The next eight-week session begins on Feb 8 (running Feb 8 - March 28). 

-- A third eight-week session will be held April 11 - May 30.

At Theatre Adventure Club, self-expression and literacy skills are emphasized through improvisation, storytelling and reading aloud for an audience.
 

When and Where? 

----  For Grades K - 3  ----

at Mountain View Commons Gymnasium

on Early Release Wednesdays from 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m.     

(Grant Street Elementary kids can take the bus from school to the site and it drops them off at 12:55 p.m.)

[Sign Up for Mountain View session Feb 8 - Mar 28]

[Sign Up for Mountain View session Apr 11 - May 30]

Immediate payment is not required. After you sign up, we'll contact you
to confirm your registration and arrange payment of the fee.
 

----  For Grades 4 - 8  ----

at Blue Heron Middle School Gymnasium
on Early Release Wednesdays from 1:15 p.m. - 3:15 p.m.

[Sign Up for Blue Heron session Feb 8 - Mar 28]

[Sign Up for Blue Heron session Apr 11 - May 30]

Immediate payment is not required. After you sign up, we'll contact you
to confirm your registration and arrange payment of the fee.
 

The three 8-week sessions for 2011-2012 are:

-- Nov. 30th - Feb. 1st
-- Feb. 8th - March 28th
-- April 11th - May 30th
 

Why?

-- Parents of both Grant Street Elementary and Blue Heron Middle School have come to us at KCPT saying that there is need for continued education on Early Release Wednesdays and especially theatre arts education.

How?

-- $65 for each eight-week session.  Scholarships are available through the Grant Street PTA and provided through KCPT with a generous grant from Target Corporation. 

Sign up

-- Students can sign up through the main offices at Grant Street or Blue Heron or here online by clicking the appropriate "Sign Up" link above.  Immediate payment is not required.  After you sign up, we'll contact you
to confirm your registration and arrange payment of the fee.


There are special KCPT membership discounts available.

Theatre Arts Education encompasses a variety of different skill sets. It is a combination of all art forms, visual arts, audio, dance, literature, you name it, theatre can embrace it! Theatre education teaches a variety of skills including literacy, public speech and body awareness, which instills confidence, leadership and team-oriented experiential learning for our students.

See bios and photos of our Theatre Adventure Club instructors...

2011 Key City Kids Summer Theatre Camps

Acting!  Acting!  Acting!

A dramatic experience for young actors who just can't get enough!

                            Camp dates for 2011

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-- Weeklong session for ages 13 to 18 -- July 11 - 15

-- Weeklong session for ages 8 to 12 -- July 18 - 22

-- Theatre Adventure Club for ages 5 to 8 -- July 27 - 28

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Pictures from our 2010 theatre camp (ages 8 - 12):

Here's an opportunity for young theater artists to deepen these skills:

I mprov           A uditioning            S cene Study
M onologues            S inging for Actors

Key City Kids will work with Key City Public Theatre's teaching artists to:

• Refine and improve acting skills

• Expand abilities in character development

• Develop greater performance confidence

• Increase knowledge of the audition process

During this intensive summer theater camp each young actor will choose and develop a monologue and song piece to be performed at the end of the week. Camp participants will also have an opportunity to perform for KCPT directors and receive feedback.

All young actors will leave summer camp with an increased audition repertoire, prepared for their next performance opportunity or KCPT General Audition.

Seriously Fun!!

KCPT Education and Theatre Camp Instructors

CHARLIE BETHEL is a writer/actor based in New York. He trained at the North Carolina School of the Arts, and has taught at Northwestern University's National High School Institute (aka"Cherubs," Evanston, IL), Illusion Theatre (Minneapolis, MN), the Community Initiatives Project (Greenwood, SC), and the Esalen Institute (Big Sur, CA), as well as workshops and master classes for high schools in Minnesota, Ohio, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.  He directed Teen Lab at Key City Public Theatre last autumn, and is looking forward to repeating the experiment this autumn. His specialties are Voice and Movement, Shakespeare, and monologue/solo performance.

ANGELA AMOS is a teaching artist for KCPT's youth theatre programs. An enthusiastic actor and director, she has been a member and participant of Key City Public Theatre for over eight years. She is also an instructor of Kinesiology at Port Townsend School of Massage and brings body awareness and movement exercises to the theatre's education program.

AMY E. SOUSA received her BFA in theater from New York University’s Tisch school of the arts. She studied acting at the Stella Adler Conservatory of Acting. She has worked as a teaching artist for the last fifteen years in the New York City School district, teaching acting, writing, storytelling, voice and movement classes. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in Depth Psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute. She is also a member of Sootsprites Productions, a Port Townsend based production company.

AMANDA STUERER received her B.F.A. from New York University in Theater.  She studied at the Stella Adler Conservatory.  After graduation she returned to teach movement, voice and be an assistant to the Master Teacher, Milton Justice.  Early in her career she taught drama at a music, art and drama summer camp for 4-6th graders in the North Cascade Mountains.

 

MICHELLE HENSEL has a passion for theater, imagination, and play.  Teaching kids in a fun and safe environment fulfills this passion.  Michelle's training has been in acting and improvisation in L.A. and Seattle.  She has taught improvisation for all ages at the Chameleon Theater and was the choreographer for last year's musical "Bat Boy".  Michelle has performed improvisation with two of Joey Pipia's troupes and is an actor in Port Townsend and Seattle.

DENISE WINTER received her BA in drama and English at Kenyon College in Gambier, OH. Denise has 20 years professional theatre experience and has served on the artistic staff of 6 Tony Award-winning regional theatres including 5 ½ years with Children’s Theatre Company in Minneapolis, MN. At Children’s Theatre Company, she was responsible for the casting of all young actors ages 8 – 18. Denise has performed in 48 states, Canada and China with companies such as American Repertory Theatre, Children’s Theatre Company, New York City Opera, Nickelodeon/SFX and Radio City (Music Hall) Entertainment. As of May 2005, Denise is the Artistic Director of Key City Public Theatre in Port Townsend where she directed the Northwest premieres of “A New War” and “So Far: The Children of the Elvi.” Most recently she directed KCPT’s 2008 Shakespeare in the Park production “As You Like It” and this season’s “Birnham Woods.” She has also choreographed a number of KCPT productions including the award-winning “The Spitfire Grill,” and “Working.” Denise is a member of Actors’ Equity Association the union of professional actors and stage managers.

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Past Event: Commedia dell'Arte Workshop

All workshop sessions are being held at the uptown KCPT Office, 1128 Lawrence Street, Port Townsend.

Commedia dell’Arte Workshop --- an intensive introduction to the traditional Commedia style of dramatic expression with Germano Rubbi and Brittney Williams. This workshop is in anticipation of an exciting Commedia-style production that will highlight KCPT's 2011 theatre season.

Four weeks of sessions available either:

--- Sunday afternoons 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. from Oct 24 to Nov 14

     or

--- Monday evenings 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. from Oct 25 to Nov 15

Age --- Note this workshop is for ages 17 and older. (A workshop specifically for youth is in the planning stages. Updates will be posted on this page.)

Course Description --- This four-week course focuses on an introduction to various techniques and approaches toward dramatic expression. Students are taught in a manner that familiarizies them with their body so as to utilize it onstage in the traditional style of Commedia dell’Arte, creating what Moriaki Wantabe calls “corpus fictif,” the awareness of total interaction between the physical body of the actor, the stage, and the text which they are inhabiting. Participants will learn some of the key expressive methodologies of Commedia dell’Arte in group exercises that emphasize theatrical expression through movement.

Tools --- Relaxing breathing --- Dramatization exercises --- The Mime --- The Voice --- Verbal and nonverbal language --- Exploration of Movement --- Theater theory gestures --- Improvisation --- Coreutica & Cinesica

Cost:  Workshop is free for KCPT members.  For non-members, cost is $125 per person, with financial assistance available (call KCPT office for details).

New participants can join any of the classes by dropping in -- or by filling out the online form below.

Instructors

Germano Rubbi --- An actor, author and director, Germano is the artistic director of Digitalis Purpurea. During his studies at La Sapienza, he frequented the company of major Italian and foreign educators in the field of directing, drama and screenplay. Focusing and specializing on the study of Greek theater messincena (staging), Commedia dell’Arte, contemporary theater, and analysis of cinematographic language, he has directed numerous theater shows and short films in various international festivals, as well as interpreted numerous theater and TV roles. Since 2009, Germano has been the artistic director of the medieval festival organization, Ente Corsa all’Anello in Narni, Italy.

Brittney Williams --- A visual artist, singer/songwriter and Italian translator, Brittney is the president of Digitalis Purpurea, an international arts organization. She earned her BA in Italian and in Anthropology from the University of Washington in 2006 and is currently a sustainable MBA candidate at Bainbridge Graduate Institute. She has collaborated internationally as an artist, singer, performer, artistic director, costume designer, and translator on projects and exhibitions with Digitalis Purpurea, the Art Monastery Project, in Seattle with the band Cassandra Speaks, and with other musical and performance groups.

Recent event: Songwriting with Friedman and Deardorff

“SONGWRITING FROM THE ROOTS UP” on Sunday July 10
 

Vocalist/composer Judith-Kate Friedman and author/mythsinger Daniel Deardorff will bring their workshop “SONGWRITING FROM THE ROOTS UP: A Workshop on the Creative Process” to Key City Playhouse on Sunday July 10 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

The Playhouse is located at 419 Washington Street, Port Townsend, and is wheelchair accessible.

Tickets available by reservation (will call) and at the door are $25.00 (pay what you can for low income and those who can contribute additional funds).  Price for members of KCPT and Key Card holders is $20. 

Advance registration is via e-mail.  (Then payment is made at the door.)

Friedman and Deardorff, both internationally recognized for their musical and creative work, will address the relationships between authenticity and imagination, spontaneity and structure, blocks, breakdowns and breakthroughs in encountering one’s truest voice.

“We are interested in sharing what we’ve learned and opening up conversation on a deep level about how life experience, our roots in culture, geography, spirituality, class background and age all play into our voices as artists,” said Friedman. “Music is everywhere and authenticity is at the heart of the Creative Process. When we practice authenticity with fellow artists on the path, originality becomes easier to access. We find greater freedom in conveying our creativity to others, be it in song, poetry, movement, art or everyday life.”

The workshop is open to all ages and levels of experience. Participants are invited to bring a question or conundrum with whichthey’re grappling. Tools and hands-on exercises for increasing receptivity, inspiration and developing fluency of turning ideas and feelings into composed and improvised songs will be offered. While songwriting will be the focal point, those interested in orchestral music, dance choreography, visual tapestries, theatre and epic poetry, fiction and non-fiction will find common ground. “All art forms are connected, as we are connected to each other, our audiences, and the living world around us.”

THE ARTISTS

Judith-Kate Friedman is a life-long vocalist, songwriter, and music producer. She enjoys writing songs that blend heart, humor, chutzpah, grace, and groove. Winner of honors from the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, West Coast Songwriters Association, and Kerrville New Folk, she celebrates heritage, justice, and everyday courage in her songs. (www.judithkate.com) In addition to concerts and recordings, Friedman works extensively with communities across the U.S. A resident of Port Townsend, she teaches sound and movement classes at Fort Worden's Madrona Mindbody Institute (www.madronamindbody.com) and conducts intergenerational song projects and trainings for music facilitators as director of Songwriting Works Educational Foundation (www.songwritingworks.org). “It’s awesome to have someone with your talent take the time to teach…We’re all really lucky.” –K. Hjerstedt, singer-songwriter “I’ve never sung before in my life and now I’m singing!” – E. Neubauer, age 90

Daniel Deardorff is a "Singer" in the old sense of the word: a musician, storyteller, and maker of ritual. He has been a composer, producer, and performing artist for more than four decades. His music career credits include ten years touring with Seals & Crofts, and producing recordings for Michael Tomlinson, Tingstad & Rumbel, Jim Valley and theRainbow Planet, and Tickle Tune Typhoon, among others.

In recent years Deardoff has focused his work as an independent scholar of myth, emphasizing mythopoesis [myth-making] and the performative aspects of mythic expression. He is the author of The Other Within: The Genius of Deformity in Myth, Culture, & Psyche (2nd edition, 2008, North Atlantic Books). (www.mythsinger.com) Deardorff has worked closely with poet Robert Bly and co-presented lectures and workshops with Bly around the U.S. In hisIntroduction to Deardorff's book, The Other Within, Bly wrote: “Deardorff is a true inheritor of Joseph Campbell…No one else writing today is able to follow these associative roads to the unconscious.” As founder of the Mythsinger Foundation Deardorff offers courses and individual sessions on myth, storytelling and rites of passage work. Learn more at www.mythsinger.org or join the online community at www.mythsinger.net

Playwrights' Works-In-Progress (PWIP)

General PWIP Information:  Local Playwrights are invited to participate in Key City Public Theatre’s Works-In-Progress program, a chance for local playwrights to hear their working scripts read and receive feedback. This program is designed to provide a supportive atmosphere to develop playwrights’ skills, to enable them to hear their work out loud, to hear other writers’ work, and to gain insight from feedback presented.

We encourage interested playwrights to attend even if you don't have material prepared — come and be a part of the process!

Works-In-Progress is a FREE SERVICE TO KCPT MEMBERS, or provided for a suggested sliding fee of $2 to $5 per session for non-members.

Works-In-Progress meetings are held at 7:00 p.m. at KCPT's uptown offices, 1128 Lawrence Street, Port Townsend.

PWIP Update:  Our PWIP program is going on hiatus for the months of April and May, 2011.

Come this summer, three monthly meetings will focus on preparing one-act scripts for the 2011 P.T. Arts Commission's One-Act Play Competition deadline on September 1, 2011.

Come this autumn, three monthly meetings will focus on full-length scripts.  Details of all these programs -- and how to sign-up for them -- will be posted here in May.

Email David Schroeder with questions.
 

The Playwrights' Works-In-Progress Folks
Denise Winter, KCPT Artistic Director

Mara Lathrop, KCPT Literary Manager

David Schroeder, PWIP Admin

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2012 Playwriting Workshop features Constance Congdon

More information on Constance Congdon's visit

to the Sixteen Annual Playwrights' Festival

and her Playwriting Workshops is here...

Archive: 2011 Playwriting Workshop featured Lee Blessing

The 2011 Playwrights' Workshop featured Tony and Pulitzer Prize nominee Lee Blessing (A Walk in the Woods, Eleemosynary, Nice People Dancing To Good Country Music).

        Saturday, February 12, 2011 at the Pope Marine Building

The morning session (10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.) is the annual free playwriting workshop

sponsored by the Port Townsend Arts Commission.

The afternoon session (2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.) is an advanced intensive.  Attending the morning session is required for those signing up for the afternoon session.  Cost is $100 for members of KCPT; $125 for non-members.  Register for the afternoon session by calling our KCPT office at 360.379.0195.

More about Lee Blessing's 2011 visit to KCPT...

Archive: 2010 Playwriting Workshops featured Andrea Stolowitz

In collaboration with the PT Arts Commission, a nationally recognized playwright conducts a free workshop annually.

Last year 2010, the Playwriting Workshops became part of the expanded 14th Annual Playwrights' Festival and featured noted Portland playwright Andrea Stolowitz.

Andrea Stolowitz is a graduate of the MFA playwriting program at UC San Diego. She has had her plays developed and presented at many venues including The Cherry Lane (NYC), The Old Globe (SD), The Long Wharf (CT), New York Stage and Film (NY), and Portland Center Stage (OR).

Her play KNOWING CAIRO had its professional world premiere at The Old Globe Theater (San Diego) where it earned a San Diego “Billie” Best New Play Award and was named as an LA Times Critic’s Pick. It has had subsequent national and international productions.

Her play TALES OF DOOMED LOVE received a staged reading as part of the Fourteenth Annual Playwrights' Festival on Sunday evenings.

As a screenwriter, she has written episodes for The Sopranos and The West Wing, and had two feature length screenplays optioned by Axial Entertainment.

Her latest play BAD FAMILY was workshopped this summer (2009) as part of the JAW Playwrights Festival at Portland Center Stage.

Other full-length plays have been finalists and winners for various awards and prizes including the Jerome Foundation Grant, PlayLabs, the JET theater New Play Prize, the O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, and The Princess Grace Award.

Andrea currently teaches at Willamette University and the University of Portland, and has served
on the theater studies faculty at Duke University and UC-San Diego.

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Playwrighting Workshop Archives

Past visiting playwrights have included:

• 2006: Gip Hoppe ("A New War" and "Boyce and Melinda's Investment Strategies for the Post-Money World")

• 2007: Constance Congdon ("So Far -- The Children of the Elvi")

• 2009: Wendy MacLeod ("Birnham Woods")

• 2010: Andrea Stolowitz ("Tales of Doomed Love","Antarktikos")

• 2011: Lee Blessing ("A Walk in the Woods", "Eleemosynary")

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