EMU Theatre Drama Day 2023
The Eastern Michigan University Theatre Department is excited to present Drama Day 2023 on Saturday, October 21st! The event is a day of fun, theatre-focused workshops and educational opportunities planned for high school students & teachers. The event features an afternoon matinee of our current production. This year's performance will be the musical Sweet Charity, directed by Phil Simmons with Music Direction by R. MacKenzie Lewis.
The price is $16 per student. This includes three workshops, lunch and a ticket to the production of Sweet Charity. There is no charge for (up to three) teachers or sponsors per school. If bringing more than three, additional sponsors will be charged at student rates. All workshops will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. The registration deadline is Friday, October 13.
Drama Day schedule
- 8-8:55 a.m. Registration and orientation
- 9-10:10 a.m. First workshop
- 10:15-11:25 a.m. Second workshop
- 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Lunch
- 12:35-1:45 p.m. Third workshop
- 2 p.m. Curtain time for Sweet Charity, followed by a post-show discussion. Run time is approximately 2 hours & 30 minutes.
- We estimate the day ending by 4:45 p.m., groups needing to leave before the talkback should be done by 4:30 p.m.
Workshop options, 1-19
W1 Auditions: Cold-Reads & Monologues, J. Seibert
Learn professional strategies that will help you to “get the part.” Featuring work with cold-reads and information on how to select and prepare monologues.
W2 Musical Theatre Performance, R. MacKenzie Lewis
Learn a short musical selection and do a 16-bar performance/audition. Immediate feedback from peers and leaders will work to improve your musical theatre skills.
W3 Musical Theatre Dance, P. Simmons, M. Cardella
Come dance with us! We’ll learn a portion of choreography from a Broadway show, and then use it in a mock audition situation!
W4 Beginning Acting, R. Stewart
Participants will be introduced to the basic elements of acting. Come prepared to move and be ready for theatre games, actor warm-ups, and improvised scenes.
W5 High Stakes Acting, M. Sage
Explore Patsy Rodenberg’s “circles of energy” and “objective/tactic/obstacle.” Experience the process through games, play, and a bit of improvised scene work.
W6 Improvisation, C. Draheim, S. Dahlgren
Think fast! Students in this workshop will learn the basic foundation of improv and test their new skills in several games and skits. Fast-paced and fun with lots of participation opportunity.
W7 Movement for the Actor, C. Prevatte
Performers will explore comedy and character through movement and physical characterization.
W8 Interp. Performance - Forensics Style, Forensics Team Members
Explore the ideas of interpretation as a variation of acting. Practice the techniques of off-stage focus, visualization and adapting the body to perform characters without the aid of costumes and make-up.
W9 Devised Theatre, O. Allen & M. Murphree
Participants will choose socially relevant topics and work collaboratively to create non-traditional theatre scenes.
W10 Dialects, L. Stille
Students will learn the basics of stage dialects. This year’s session will focus on various British dialects.
W11 Stage Combat, J. Felts
Work with unarmed stage combat, specifically working with slaps, punches, kicks and hair pulls/drags. Students will learn how to perform these moves while keeping themselves and their partners safe.
W12 Stage Manager’s Bootcamp, EMU SM Team
Learn to troubleshoot typical production issues that arise. Students will be able to mock-call a show. There will be time for Q&A as well as reviewing Stage Manager Production Books from previous EMU productions.
W13 Directing for the Stage, W. Bridges
Fundamentals of directing techniques. Including use of space, movement, levels, diagonals, triangles, gestures, etc. By the end of the class, students will have experimented with these tools, and can use them for practical application when working on monologues, scenes and plays.
W14 Sound: The “Audacity” of it!, B. Scruggs
Introduction to the free software, Audacity, that allows you to build soundscapes and edit sound effects for a theatrical production.
W15 MakeUp: Wounds & Bruises*, M. Schuessler Bond
“Who wants a black eye?”. Students will learn how to create two-dimensional and three-dimensional wounds and bruises with stage makeup. *Limited to a total of 12 students per session. Available sessions 1 & 2 only.
W16 Costume Basics: Drawstring Bags*, M. Huggins
Question and answer session on costuming basics. Students will then design and decorate their own drawstring bags to take home during this workshop. *Limited to a total of 12 students per session. Available sessions 1 & 2 only.
W17 Lighting in Focus, D. Miller, TLS Productions
Lights! Color! Motion! This workshop will exhibit moving lights and LED fixtures and gives students hands-on experience with intelligent lighting. Learn basic knowledge of how to properly circuit, focus and program.
W18 Projection Design Playground, J. Hopgood
Play with projections in a workshop where students learn the basics of projections through QLab. Fun for technicians and actors alike!
W19 Promotion & Problem-Solving on Social Media, K. Danko, O. Robinson
Learn tips and techniques to promote your show and learn creative solutions to problem-solving in various social media platforms.