Join us in our new home!
All classes and workshops are suitable for ages 16 and up and take place at 528 Main Street in South Portland.
**Please note that tuition payments are non-refundable unless we have to cancel the class**
- Masterclass Voice Workshop – (Saturday, July 20)
- Intro to Acting -FREE class- (Wednesday, June 12)
- Monologue Workshop (June 18-July 9)
- Physical Character Intensive (workshop – Saturday, June 22)
- Acting for Ordinary People (Mondays, June 24-July 22)
- Acting II (Thursdays, June 27-August 22)
- Writer’s Improv (Wednesdays, June 19-Aug 7)
- The Business of Acting (workshop- Saturday, June 29)
Intro to Acting – Free Class
Come experience what acting classes are all about in a FREE workshop hosted by Acorn’s Producing Director Michael Levine. Whether you are curious to know how an actor thinks or are wondering if an actor’s life is for you, we invite you to come to the Acorn Studio to participate in a series of acting games and theater exercises that will introduce you to many common acting terms. No experience necessary, but pre-registration required.
Instructor: Michael Levine
When: Wednesday, June 12 – 6:30-9pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: FREE
Monologue Workshop
Monologues can be incredibly difficult to find and prepare, however with the right tools this can become a valuable part of a performers arsenal. In this four week course where we will explore techniques for preparing a monologue audition. There will be text work each class and students will leave with material that has been selected for them by the instructor to use for future auditions. Sign up today and never miss an audition again because you aren’t ready.
Instructor: Jared Culverhouse
When: Tuesdays (June 18 – July 9) 6:30-8:30pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $80
Physical Character Intensive
This workshop is intended to teach participants how to discover and develop strong, consistent physical characters, and how to use them in performance. The foundation of this work lies in the study of MIME, the use of the body to communicate. The only universal language, spoken and understood around the world, not only by humans, but by every sentient species, is Body Language. Mime is the study of that Language. Anyone wishing to communicate with another living being already possesses a fundamental understanding of body language. The task is to become more aware of it, and to use that language intentionally and purposefully. The shape of the body, the speed of movement, the imitation of another person or animal gives us specific character traits. Understanding how to mold that information will help performers create character. Students will be required to play, have fun, and be open to discovery.
Instructor: Michael Trautman
When: Saturday, June 22nd 10am-1pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $40
The Business of Acting
This workshop will cover headshots, resumes, websites, opportunities to audition locally, and where to find auditions locally. We will also have local artists come in to discuss working in the Portland theatre scene and different avenues for engagement with local theatres in the Greater Portland area.
Instructor: Various
When: Saturday, June 29nd 10:30am-1pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $40
Masterclass Voice Workshop
“Get out of your head!” It’s a classic note given to many actors as a way to encourage them to stop thinking of a past note, idea, rehearsal or future outcome, review, applause, etc. But how does one ACTUALLY do that? Aren’t we always ‘in our heads?’
The get-out-of-your-head challenge is solvable by a seemingly simple and effective tool: breathing. When humans access certain parts of the visual memory (like recalling a page with lines on it), spatial relations or even math computations, it is facilitated by a holding of breath. This removes a present interaction with the outside world (gaseous exchange) to focus on the internal mind. This is death for the audience, and thus the actor. In these small holds, the audience is released from a focus on the moment at hand, because the actor has done so as well.
This workshop will include a combination of exercises to tone and coordinate the breathing apparatus so the actor can learn to breathe through these moments. It’s human to hold through fear, stress, and tension. The actor must be super-human here to have a shot at embodying humanity for an audience.
Instructor: Liam Joynt
When: Saturday, July 20, 10am-2pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $55
Acting for Ordinary People
An introductory course for everyone! If you’ve ever wondered what an actor does, this is the class for you! This class creates a fun and safe environment for beginning students looking to gain confidence in their public presentation skills while taking some first steps into acting. Students in the class will use monologues to explore the basic choices an actor must make while working on a role. The emphasis will be on doing — students will be performing in class regularly throughout the semester. No experience necessary!
Instructor: Jared Culverhouse
When: Mondays (June 24-July 22) 6:30-8:30pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $190 New Students, $160 Returning Students, $95 College Students
Writer’s Improv
A unique class that uses classic improvisation techniques to help develop new scripts by playwrights. Actors will hone their skills at scene improv – a great rehearsal tool – and apply those skills to characters and situations from work still in progress. The class is taught by Acorn’s Producing Director Michael Levine, who has overseen the development of countless new scripts through Acorn’s annual Maine Playwrights Festival. Both actors and playwrights are welcome in the course, which concludes with an evening of dramatic readings of the new plays developed over the course of the six weeks. A great class for actors who struggle to live in the moment on stage, as well as playwrights wishing to work on that great idea that has not quite yet been fully realized in a completed script.
Instructor: Michael Levine
When: Wednesdays (June 19-Aug 7) from 6:30-9pm
Where: Acorn Studio
Price: $190 New Students, $160 Returning Students, $95 College Students
