We are proud to offer classes and workshops at the new Lafayette Library and Learning Center as part of our participation in the Glenn Seaborg Learning Consortium.

Join Cal Shakes after school! Our programs take place on your Bay Area school’s campus and offer six-to-15-week sessions focusing on acting, improvisation, Shakespeare, and/or any other theatrical discipline you might like for your students.

We offer many kinds of after school programs. Here are some examples of our classes; please call or email jstich@calshakes.org to schedule.

Storybook theater (recommended for grades K-2)
There's a lot to be learned from a children's story–how to be nimble and quick enough to jump over a candlestick; how to, like the three little pigs, learn from experience and work together; and much, much more. Each week in Storybook Theater, students explore and experience a new story from around the world, building skills in acting, ensemble, movement, and creative problem solving while bringing literature to life.
Recommended: eight one-hour sessions.
 
Acting/performance workshop (recommended for elementary & middle school)
Students explore their imagination in Cal Shakes’ Acting/Performance Workshop. In this class, students will transform themselves into a variety of characters while learning acting fundamentals and theatrical skills, improving their capacity for vocal expression and physicality. They will also work as an ensemble towards a final production (play TBD). Using scenes from contemporary playwrights, our budding actors will learn lines, explore improvisation and other theater games, and discover how to best tap into their creativity.
Recommended: 10 one-hour sessions.
 
Intro to Shakespeare (recommended for grades 3-5)
In this class, students explore acting basics through the lens of one of the greatest playwrights of all time. In addition to theater games, young actors will learn how to break down Shakespeare’s language, practice basic stage combat techniques, and rehearse and perform scenes. Families are invited to fill the role of enthusiastic audience for a final presentation.
Recommended: 10 one-hour sessions.
 
Intermediate Shakespeare (recommended for grades 6-8)
In this class, middle-school students delve more deeply into Shakespeare’s most famous plays. Developing acting, voice, movement, and text skills, students will apply their work performing scenes from Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and others. Designed for young actors with some familiarity with Shakespeare, students will have fun and be challenged as they continue to discover Shakespeare's characters through the original text, culminating in a performance for friends and family. 
Recommended: 10 one-hour sessions.

Lafayette Library Classes:
Jenna Stich, Artistic Learning Coordinator
510.548.3422 x136 or jstich@calshakes.org

After School Classes:
Trish Tillman, Director of Artistic Learning
510.548.3455 x113 or ttillman@calshakes.org