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Online Classes

Writing From The Deep with Lisa Kenner Grissom

 640 433 Play Penn

Harness personal experience in your dramatic writing.

Class Description

We all have significant personal experiences that define, change or transform us—some are joyful, others painful. People often say, write what you know. But how? In this workshop, we will explore techniques to tap into your personal history in a safe way in order to enrich your characters with deep emotional resonance and subtext. Both in-class and at-home writing exercises will help you ask meaningful questions of yourself and your characters, construct compelling pieces from your own source materials, and make your story come alive with an authentic voice. This four-week online workshop is for writers who want to draw upon their personal histories to use emotions, memories and experiences to deepen the themes, characters and stories in their dramatic work.

Dates & Times

Tuesdays (online): October 29, November 5, November 12, November 19: 7 pm – 9 pm E.S.T. / 5 pm – 7 pm P.S.T.

Where

Online.

Required Prep

Enrolled students will be contacted prior to the first session with recommended reading and preliminary assignments.

Bio

Lisa Kenner Grissom is an LA-based playwright whose work explores complex social issues through intimate relationships, often through the lens of strong, complicated women. Her award-winning short film Tattoo You is based on her award-winning one-act of the same name (Winner, Samuel French Off Off Broadway Festival), and has screened at festivals nationally and internationally. Full-length plays include: Four Chambers (Winner of the Jean Kennedy Smith Award, Kennedy Center ACTF; O’Neill Playwrights Conference Finalist), Motherland (Princess Grace Fellowship and Bridge Initiative Finalist), Building The Perfect Chair (TruVoices Finalist) and Shelter (PlayPenn Semi-Finalist). In addition, her work has been recognized as a finalist for The Ashland New Play Festival, The Lark, The Playwrights’ Center and Heideman Award, among others. Her short plays are published by Smith & Kraus. Lisa twice attended the O’Neill Playwrights Conference as a Kennedy Center Fellow. Her work has been presented and/or developed at The Kennedy Center, Antaeus Theater Company, Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, Chalk Rep, Clurman Theater, Inkwell Theater, Moving Arts, Manhattan Theatre Source, Road Theatre and more. Originally from Boston, Lisa is a proud member of the Playwrights Union, Dramatist Guild and Antaeus Playwrights Lab. www.lisakennergrissom.com

$150

Tuition

Register Here

Click the link below to visit our Reservation Page, where you can view all classes and register for this course. For questions or to inquire about payment plans, please email classes@playpenn.org.

When you register for a PlayPenn class before September 20, 2019 you’ll be invited to submit your unproduced, full-length play for consideration for a professional staged reading. PlayPenn will produce one student’s play as a reading with a professional director, professional actors and a PlayPenn dramaturg in Philadelphia in early 2020. Only plays that have not had a professional production or reading will be considered. PlayPenn will cover the cost of the reading, but the student is responsible for their own housing and transportation. If you register for a class by the deadline, additional details will be emailed to you along with a submission form.

Sign Up

“This was an unbelievable learning experience for both beginners and experienced playwrights. [My teacher] was inspiring and encouraging, smart and effective, wise and warm, informed and generous.”

Emma L., 2018 Student

“PlayPenn offers wonderful courses with insightful instructors. … What a treat to be able to study with the best in playwriting for a reasonable fee.”

-Pam P., 2019 Student

New Play Dramaturgy

 1024 681 Play Penn

with Michele Volansky

PlayPenn Conference Lead Dramaturg Michele Volansky offers a class with a focus on the unique needs of new play dramaturgy.

Class Description

Join PlayPenn Conference Lead Dramaturg Michele Volansky for a class with a focus on the unique needs of new play dramaturgy. What kinds of questions to ask, how to think about structure and ways your point of view might impact the script’s development will all be covered, along with an opportunity to work on excerpts of a few new plays, and receive feedback on your approach.

Perfect for dramaturgs, directors and actors, as well as other theater artists who want to learn to use dramaturgical tools in their exploration and creation of new work.

Public Reading of YOUR New Play!

If you register for a PlayPenn class by January 14, 2018, then you can apply for the opportunity to have your unproduced full-length plays given a public, professional staged reading. PlayPenn will produce one student’s play as a reading with a professional director, professional actors and a PlayPenn Dramaturg in Philadelphia, PA in the spring/summer of 2018. The play many not have had a professional production. PlayPenn will cover the costs of the reading, but the student is responsible for their own housing and transportation. If you register for a class by the deadline then additional details will be emailed to you after January 14, along with a submission form.

Dates & Times

June 3, 2018  2pm-6pm (EST)

and

June 4, 2018 6-10pm (EST)

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of using the system but you are expected to participate independently. We will not be recording these sessions.

Bio

Michele Volansky is Chair and Associate Professor of Drama at Washington College (MD), from which she earned a B.A. in English. She has worked on nearly 200 new and established plays in her professional career, developing new works by such writers as Sam Shepard, Daniel Stern, Warren Leight, Jeffrey Hatcher, Bruce Graham, Tina Landau, Charles L. Mee and Bruce Norris, along with many others. Her work on Shepard’s rewrite of Buried Child (directed by Gary Sinise) and Dale Wasserman’s One Flew OverThe Cuckoo’s Nest (directed by Terry Kinney and starring Gary Sinise) earned her two Broadway credits and participation in the Tony Award for Best Revival of Cuckoo’s Nest. She has guest dramaturged at the Arden Theater Company, South Coast Rep, the Atlantic Theatre Company, Victory Gardens and Next Theatre, in addition to her staff time at Actors Theatre of Louisville (1992-95), Steppenwolf Theatre Company (1995-2000) and Philadelphia Theatre Company (2000-2004). Her own play Whispering City was produced as part of the Steppenwolf Arts Exchange Program in the Fall of 1999. Since its inception, Dr. Volansky has served as Conference Dramaturg and Associate Artist for the Philadelphia-based new play development conference PlayPenn. She has served as an artistic consultant for the TCG playwright residency program, a reader for the Eugene O’Neill Center’s National Playwrights Conference and the New York Shakespeare Festival/The Joseph Papp Public Theatre’s Emerging Voices Program, as well as a grants review panelist for Philadelphia-area arts organizations. She is the 1999 inaugural co-recipient of the Elliot Hayes Award for Dramaturgy and was the President of LMDA, the Literary Managers and Dramaturgs of the Americas (2002-2004). Volansky’s book on playwriting and collaboration with Bruce Graham entitled The Collaborative Playwright was published in March, 2007 by Heinemann Press. She holds an M.A. from Villanova University and a PhD from the University of Hull (England); her dissertation explores the politics and advocacy of the critics Kenneth Tynan and Frank Rich.

$200

Tuition

Register Here

Click the link below to visit our Reservation Page, where you can view all classes, select, and register for this class using our new checkout feature. For questions or to inquire about payment plans, please email classes@playpenn.org.

 

*Students must register for a class by January 14, 2018 in order to be eligible to submit for the free spring Education reading.

Sign Up

“The PlayPenn faculty members were well-organized, focused and extraordinarily helpful in their critiques. I am looking forward to learning even more in future PlayPenn classes.”

-Jane D.

“I take PlayPenn classes because I’m eager for inspiration and creative challenges, which the classes provide in a positive, nurturing environment.” 

-Mark C.
John Yearley

Playwriting Try-It Workshop Session #2

 640 433 Play Penn

with John Yearley

Popular PlayPenn Teaching Artist John Yearley returns for a special three hour, one-time session to unlock the playwright inside of you!

Class Description

If you ever wanted to try playwriting, or get back into it, this workshop is meant for you. John will give you an opportunity to try playwriting through a few short writing exercises as well as talk about the art, craft and industry of what’s involved in the work.

Perfect for those interested in trying writing and beginning writers!

Public Reading of YOUR New Play!

If you register for a PlayPenn class by January 14, 2018, then you can apply for the opportunity to have your unproduced full-length plays given a public, professional staged reading. PlayPenn will produce one student’s play as a reading with a professional director, professional actors and a PlayPenn Dramaturg in Philadelphia, PA in the spring/summer of 2018. The play many not have had a professional production. PlayPenn will cover the costs of the reading, but the student is responsible for their own housing and transportation. If you register for a class by the deadline then additional details will be emailed to you after January 14, along with a submission form.

Dates & Times

April 8, 2018 5-8pm (EST)

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of using the system but you are expected to participate independently. We will not be recording these sessions.

Required Prep

Light reading from the instructor in advance of class.

Bio

John Yearley

John Yearley is the author of The Unrepeatable Moment (Barrow Group), Leap (Kaplan New American Play Prize, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Antigone (adaptation, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Ephemera (Gassner Award, Summer Play Festival), and Another Girl (PlayPenn, Naked Angels). His plays All in Little Pieces and A Low-Lying Fog are published by Samuel French. He is currently writing for the PBS Kids show Arthur and worked as a script doctor for New Line Cinema. He’s a member of the Writer’s Guild of America, the Dramatists Guild, and twice a MacDowell Fellow.

$75

Tuition

Register Here

Click the link below to visit our Reservation Page, where you can view all classes, select, and register for this class using our new checkout feature. For questions or to inquire about payment plans, please email classes@playpenn.org.

 

*Students must register for a class by January 14, 2018 in order to be eligible to submit for the free spring Education reading.

Sign Up

“This class was amazing and it was such a pleasure to take.”

-Malika, 2017 Student.

“Your class further ignited my passion for writing and encouraged me that I could do this. You gave me the building blocks needed to understand playwriting. I look forward to using the materials and writing exercises again to boost my creativity.”

-Tashara, 2017 Student

Creating Compelling Characters

 650 433 Play Penn

with Lori Fischer

Join NYU Professor Lori Fischer for an online class combining in-class-exercises, lectures, reading and writing assignments to learn how to create detailed, compelling characters for your plays. Perfect for writers of all experience levels!

Class Description

What do Hamlet, Troy Maxon, Pee Wee Herman, Electricidad, Michael Corleone and Blanche DuBois all have in common? They are all great characters.

Whether you are a playwright, screenwriter, novelist or television writer, the ability to create compelling, unforgettable characters is key. Ultimately, it is the recognizable yet surprising and unique character that draws in readers and audience members and leads them forward. Join NYU Professor Lori Fischer for an online class combining in-class-exercises, lectures, reading and writing assignments to learn how to create detailed, compelling characters for your plays.

Public Reading of YOUR New Play!

If you register for a PlayPenn class by January 14, 2018, then you can apply for the opportunity to have your unproduced full-length plays given a public, professional staged reading. PlayPenn will produce one student’s play as a reading with a professional director, professional actors and a PlayPenn Dramaturg in Philadelphia, PA in the spring/summer of 2018. The play many not have had a professional production. PlayPenn will cover the costs of the reading, but the student is responsible for their own housing and transportation. If you register for a class by the deadline then additional details will be emailed to you after January 14, along with a submission form.

Perfect for writers of all experience levels!

Dates & Times

March 7-April 11, 2018 (Wednesday Nights)

7pm-9pm (EST)

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of using the system but you are expected to participate independently. We will not be recording these sessions.

Bio

Lori Fischer received her M.F.A. from the N.Y.U. Dramatic Writing Department. She is the author of multiple plays and screenplays including the critically acclaimed musical Barbara’s Blue Kitchen, which played at The Adirondack Theatre Festival, Cincinnati Playhouse and Off-Broadway at The Lamb’s Theatre (published by Samuel French). Lori’s musical comedy The Sparkley Clean Funeral Singers is also published by Samuel French and her feature film Chasing Taste is available on Amazon Prime. Lori’s work has been seen at the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival, the Stonestreet Film Festival, the RipFest Film Festival, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park and The Adirondack Theatre Festival. She teaches at NYU and is currently working on her next musical.

$225

Tuition

Register Here

Click the link below to visit our Reservation Page, where you can view all classes, select, and register for this class using our new checkout feature. For questions or to inquire about payment plans, please email classes@playpenn.org.

 

*Students must register for a class by January 14, 2018 in order to be eligible to submit for the free spring Education reading.

Sign Up

“PlayPenn classes offer a chance to take a break from the mundane, from the frenzy of the everyday, and to focus on your writing for a few hours, or a weekend, while gaining insight and inspiration from some truly excellent professional playwrights and teaching artists. PlayPenn’s opportunities are ones I feel lucky to be exposed to.

” -Mark C., 2017 Student

“The classes are a great opportunity for theater makers and theater lovers to gain useful insight to the playmaking process, as well as helpful tools to apply in any creative endeavor.”

-Andrew C., 2017 Student
John Yearley

Playwriting Try-It Workshop Session #1

 500 752 Play Penn

with John Yearley

Popular PlayPenn Teaching Artist John Yearley returns for a special three hour, one-time session to unlock the playwright inside of you!

Class Description

If you ever wanted to try playwriting, or get back into it, this workshop is meant for you. John will give you an opportunity to try playwriting through a few short writing exercises as well as talk about the art, craft and industry of what’s involved in the work.

Perfect for those interested in trying writing and beginning writers!

Free Reading of YOUR New Play

If you register for a PlayPenn class by January 14, 2018, then you can apply for the opportunity to have your unproduced full-length plays given a public, professional staged reading. PlayPenn will produce one student’s play as a reading with a professional director, professional actors and a PlayPenn Dramaturg in Philadelphia, PA in the spring/summer of 2018. The play many not have had a professional production. PlayPenn will cover the costs of the reading, but the student is responsible for their own housing and transportation. If you register for a class by the deadline then additional details will be emailed to you after January 14, along with a submission form.

Dates & Times

February 4, 2018

1-4pm (EST)

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of using the system but you are expected to participate independently. We will not be recording these sessions.

Bio

John Yearley

John Yearley is the author of The Unrepeatable Moment (Barrow Group), Leap (Kaplan New American Play Prize, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Antigone (adaptation, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park), Ephemera (Gassner Award, Summer Play Festival), and Another Girl (PlayPenn, Naked Angels). His plays All in Little Pieces and A Low-Lying Fog are published by Samuel French. He is currently writing for the PBS Kids show Arthur and worked as a script doctor for New Line Cinema. He’s a member of the Writer’s Guild of America, the Dramatists Guild, and twice a MacDowell Fellow.

$75

Tuition

Register Here

Click the link below to visit our Reservation Page, where you can view all classes, select, and register for this class using our new checkout feature. For questions or to inquire about payment plans, please email classes@playpenn.org.

 

*Students must register for a class by January 14, 2018 in order to be eligible to submit for the free spring Education reading.

Sign Up

“This class was amazing and it was such a pleasure to take.”

-Malika, 2017 Student.

“Your class further ignited my passion for writing and encouraged me that I could do this. You gave me the building blocks needed to understand playwriting. I look forward to using the materials and writing exercises again to boost my creativity.”

-Tashara, 2017 Student
Jeremy Stoller Headshot

Navigating the Industry

 650 433 Play Penn

with Jeremy Stoller

Learn how to be your own best advocate and get your work seen, read and produced!

Dates & Times

Both sessions will cover the same material. You will choose your preferred date below when you register.

  • Session 1 – Weekend Writers: Sunday, July 9
    from 5-8pm EDT
  • Session 2 – Night Owls: Thursday, August 31 from
    7-10pm EDT

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link (same link each week) and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of running the system but you are expected to participate independently.

Required Prep

Students should bring copies of query letters or application statements that they’ve written – something a page or less that they would like to receive feedback on. We’ll go over strategies for writing letters and statements and will get the opportunity to hear some students’ samples and discuss how to strengthen them.

Bio

Jeremy Stoller is a regular PlayPenn Conference dramaturg. He has served as the dramaturg on the US Premiere of Ken Urban’s Sense of an Ending at 59E59 Off-Broadway and on the world premieres of Urban’s Nibbler (The Amoralists/Rattlestick), Paper Canoe’s Light at Triskelion Arts, as well as for two shows at First Person Arts; Thomas Choinacky and John Jarboe’s Beaut anad R. Eric Thomas’ Will You Accept This Friend Request?. He’s currently the Director of New Work at the Keen Company in NYC. Previously, he was the Literary Manager at Two River Theater and did additional dramaturgy/literary work with Crashbox, Disney Theatrical, The Flea, George Street Playhouse, Jewish Plays Project, Luna Stage, Musical Theatre Factory, terraNOVA Collective, and Working Theater. He’s the Founder of the national Dramaturgy Open Office Hours Project.

$75

Tuition

Sold Out!

This class is designed to offer transparency about how theaters select their seasons, and why simply sending out standard query emails and script samples probably isn’t yielding the desired results. Learn ways to focus your outreach, grow your network of collaborators and champions, represent yourself clearly in queries and artist statements, and ultimately play a more active role in getting your plays where they are meant to be: in front of audiences.

Stay tuned…Fall Classes will be announced on September 12!

“PlayPenn has the ability to cultivate artists from the angles of playwright and actor…It is a great organization which connects artists and allowing them to hone their craft.”

-Iman A.

“Taking a PlayPenn Class you quickly realize how many talented playwrights and creative, generous artists are writing in Philly, and your own work benefits from the experience of working among them tremendously!”

-Joe
PlayPenn Conference 2016

Inspiration & Perspiration: A Writing Prompt Workshop

 1024 681 Play Penn

with Lauren Feldman

Perfect for writers of all experience levels!

Dates & Times

We will record each class session and make it available to you on a private, view only (no download) site until the next class period – so that if you miss a day, you can easily catch-up.

  • Session 1 – Said & Unsaid: Monday, July 31
    from 6:30-8:30PM EDT
  • Session 2 – Charged Environment: Monday, August 7
    from 6:30-8:30PM EDT
  • Session 3 – Raw Experience: Monday, August 14
    from 6:30-8:30PM EDT
  • Session 4 – Dreams & Shadows: Monday, August 21
    from 6:30-8:30PM EDT

Where

Online. We will use Zoom.us. It is a very simple system. You will receive a link prior to class. You click the link (same link each week) and are taken to a site that has multiple boxes (like The Brady Bunch opening credits) where you can see and chat with everyone in the class. You must have a working internet connection and a computer that has both speakers (so you can hear the teaching artist) and a microphone (so they can hear you; be advised, some computer systems require you purchase a headset to use the microphone). If you would like to investigate the system before registering for the class, check out: www.zoom.us. PlayPenn covers the cost of running the system but you are expected to participate independently. We use DropBox to share our work, if sharing is required in the class. We will record each class session and make it available to you on a private, view only (no download) site until the next class period – so that if you miss a day, you can easily catch-up.

Bio

Lauren Feldman is a queer, feminist playwright (and circus artist) who loves theatrically adventurous, physically ambitious, intimate, inquisitive, deeply honest plays – usually about outsiders, often about searchers, always about the human connection. Her plays include ANOTHER KIND OF SILENCE (PlayPenn, O’Neill Finalist, Playwrights Realm Fellowship, Drama League New Directors/New Works Fellowship); AMANUENSIS (Northwoods Ramah Theatre Company commission); THE EGG-LAYERS (Jane Chambers Honorable Mention, O’Neill Finalist, New Georges/Barnard College co-commission); A PEOPLE (Jewish Plays Project NYC Residency); GRACE, OR THE ART OF CLIMBING (Denver Center Theatre Company, Nice People Theatre Company, ATCA/Steinberg New Play Award Nomination, Barrymore Nomination, The Kilroys List); several ensemble-devised works, including AND IF YOU LOSE YOUR WAY, OR A FOOD ODYSSEY (The Invisible Dog, New York Innovative Theatre Award Nomination), LADY M (Philadelphia Live Arts Festival), and THE APOCRYPHAL PROJECT (Yale Cabaret), among others; as well as a dozen short plays and an autobiographical solo piece.

(Photo from Lauren’s Grace, or the Art of Climbing at the Denver Center.)

$125

Tuition

Class Concluded

Popular PlayPenn Teaching Artist and Conference Playwright Lauren Feldman leads you through a new writing prompt each week! The prompts will help get you/keep you inspired to write as well as offer a way to strengthen the craft elements in your playwriting tool kit.

Stay tuned…Fall Classes will be announced on September 12!

“Lauren was great! Organized, open, a mix of free discussion and specific tasks. Great class!”

-John D.

“Classes at PlayPenn bring together experienced writers with complete newbies in an incredibly supportive environment. No matter what your background, you definitely learn and grow in these classes.”

-Tabitha D.