INTERACTING WORKSHOPS
When:
First Monday of each month*
Virtual: 10:00-11:30am PT,
In-person in LA: 7pm-9pm PT
*September's workshop will be on Monday the 9th because of the Labor Day holiday
Where:
Virtual: Zoom
In-person in LA: For September 9th, we will meet at my home in Culver City (address will be sent in a follow up email). I am looking into affordable (and hopefully centrally located) studios for future months and welcome suggestions!
What:
These workshops will focus on performance techniques to actively engage audience members in immersive story-worlds. Because performers tend to play an integral role in developing interactive work, we will also cover writing and experience design techniques.
The training is based on foundations from the work of Jeff Wirth, who wrote the book Interactive Acting. I was lucky enough to train with Jeff for 9 months as part of the Interactive Deep Dive, where we worked full-time on participant-driven experiences. The best way I've found to describe our team's work is to compare it to The Truman Show (or Jury Duty) if Truman (or Ronald), knowingly opted into their fictional reality. If you're interested, you can read more about that work in this article series in The Verge.
Who:
Performers with past experience in immersive/ interactive work are highly encouraged to join, but anyone with acting, improv, devising and/or script-writing experience who is interested in interactive work is welcome.
We will focus mainly on performance techniques but will also cover writing and design for interactive experiences. If you are not an actor, you are still welcome to join!
Cost:
To make these workshops as accessible as possible, these workshops are very reasonably priced at $28 per session.
The main value I get from teaching these workshops is growing a network of performers who are familiar with interactive techniques. For those who are concerned about finances, I offer the option to reverse your payment. This means that you pay in advance, but if you show up and participate, after the workshop you will be reimbursed your payment amount minus an equal share of any cost for space (if applicable). Just check the box in the registration form. I do this instead of offering free workshops because too often students don't show up when it doesn't cost them anything. This is how I remove financial barriers while ensuring my time and effort are valued.