By: Mel Shapiro | Instructor
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Price: $550 $450
ENROLL AS PARTICIPANTPrice: $300 $200
ENROLL AS AUDITOR
A Participant is able to work and interact with peers while receiving feedback from the instructor.
ENROLL AS PARTICIPANTAn Auditor is able to observe and learn without needing to be active in front of other students.
ENROLL AS AUDITOR
Your course schedule and directions to log in will be emailed to you upon registration.
You’ll start with a short video to get acquainted with the course player, and walk through where you will find the course materials, course recordings, and more.
Your dashboard will allow you to see all of your workshop and class information, review class recordings (as applicable), and more upon login
In this module, you will develop your ability to perform without a script by tuning your capacity to listen and respond and sharpening your imagination. Hone your ability to think on your feet as a performer and learn specific techniques for improvisation for a range of productions.
This module explores the art of delivering monologues in character, from both modern and classical authors. We will focus on material from pieces that challenge students and push their abilities.
During this module, you will work with a scene partner to delve into relationships and emotion and collaborate to develop a scene. Explore dynamics, conflict, and resolution in both drama and comedy, with a focus on pieces that challenge you.
This module will delve into the art of the auto-drama. Develop a presentation of the high points of your life through metaphorical expression. We will also cover direction and insights from the instructor’s book, An Actor Performs.
We will take the learnings from the last module and apply it to a character. Craft the auto-drama of the character from your monologue or a scene you are working on.
In this module, you will learn how to develop a one-person show from your auto-drama. Or create a character, such as an activist or a person who, though ordinary, is doing something extraordinary, in The Activist Project.
Master Teacher | UCLA, Theater Film Television
Mel Shapiro, professor emeritus at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television. He was also one of the founding members of New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. During his decade-spanning career, Mel has earned a number of awards including a Tony Award and New York Drama Critics Award; served as the head of the Carnegie Mellon School of Drama; taught and directed at the Queensland University of Technology's Theatre School in Brisbane, Australia, and the National Institute of Dramatic Art in Sydney, Australia; and served on the board of the Fund for New American Plays at the Kennedy Center and Theatre of Latin America. He is the author of An Actor Performs.
His directing and his plays always rested on a distinct underpinning of human behavior.”
“Working one-on-one with Mel is like sitting at a roundtable of experts.”
“Mel is by far the best teacher I've ever had. Here is a master of the craft of Acting and Directing. If you need a challenge, this is the guy for you!”
His directing and his plays always rested on a distinct underpinning of human behavior.”
“Working one-on-one with Mel is like sitting at a roundtable of experts.”
“Mel is by far the best teacher I've ever had. Here is a master of the craft of Acting and Directing. If you need a challenge, this is the guy for you!”
All of our classes are taught online and include weekly live sessions with instructors and students hosted on the ZOOM platform. The live online experience is similar in many ways to a traditional classroom experience.
Participating students can interact with their instructors, ask questions, and connect with fellow students (all from the comfort of home). Course materials, assignments, and class recordings are all available online.
Your primary instructor for Characterization and Performance is Mel Shapiro, professor emeritus at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television.
The Characterization and Performance course spans six weeks.
Absolutely. We encourage students to take the courses they are the most excited about. Some courses are standalone offerings and some courses are a part of a larger program. This particular course is a standalone offering, but can be combined with others. See the Programs page for more.
The Characterization and Performance class will meet once per week with the instructor. The course assignments are self-paced outside of the class session. Each course is two hours in length unless specified otherwise. The date and time for each course are specified on the course page and the confirmation email sent to your inbox.
Participants in our programs should plan to attend livestream classes. However, if you cannot attend, students should make arrangements with their instructor prior to the start of class.
Many of our courses also allow students to enroll as auditors. Auditors can observe live classes and/or re-watch class recordings. If you cannot make all of the course’s live classes, auditing is a great option.
