“I gotta do some sad scenes. Why, I never tried to make anyone cry in my life!” -Buster Keaton
Drama for Comedians is a scene study class focused on the craft of storytelling for actors and performers used to funny business, who yearn to sink their teeth into a dramatic theater role. The skills that make a dramatic performance sing are also crucial to comedy. After all, we use the same muscles to laugh as to cry…Comedians understand that their material is at its funniest when they are at their most authentic and specific, connecting to what makes their jokes unique, and delivering the goods as only they can. By delving into the script analysis and acting of great scenes, students will gain a new perspective on their own writing and performance habits, and develop practical tools to help their work—whether in a scene, a sketch, stand-up, or beyond—feel fresh, truthful, and impulsively alive every time.
Students will be cast in a two-person scene from a modern or contemporary stage play (circa 1900-now). The scene will be chosen weeks ahead of class in collaboration with Jacquelyn. With a strong emphasis on script analysis, intention-driven practical technique, and improvisational moment work, we will focus on how to fall deeply in love with the material, make vivid and nuanced choices, and bring the most dynamic range of expressivity to our work, so that characters we play reflect the multitudes that we contain. Prepare to improvise will be a major theme: when we’re given a script, be it comic or tragic, how can we prepare in a way that allows us to transcend self-consciousness and feel playful, curious, spontaneous, wild, and free inside the structure of the given circumstances?
What students are saying:
"Watching what our class was capable of achieving in a matter of weeks kind of blew my mind. People who are used to getting a laugh, were able to give extremely moving and vulnerable performances under Jacquelyn's expert instruction. Plays that seemed kind of boring or maybe even bad on the first read, came to life in a way that made us weep. I cried at a scene from Our Town! She helped us find and relate to the deep humanity in the characters, which made for such great theater -- the kind that gives you goosebumps and makes you sit on the edge of your seat. I loved this class!" -Shelly Gossman (SNL, AP Bio)
“Drama for Comedians was the most effective scene study class I have ever taken. My fellow students were each unique and driven, and we were well paired in captivating scenes from some of the best in classic and contemporary theater. Jacquelyn's ability to see every student's strengths and shortcomings and give useful feedback in real time enabled every student to experience an honest emotional arc in collaboration with their scene partner and supported by the text. Yes, this class is full of comedians, but it works for anyone looking for a practical entry into stageworthy performance.” -Andrew L.
“I'm new to drama and theater, and reading plays have always intimidated me. Jacquelyn's way of analysing and breaking down scenes made the process approachable, and scratched an itchy part of my brain that was previously unscratchable. Plus, not only did I thoroughly enjoy working on my assigned scene with my scene partner, I learned so much from watching my classmates' scenes and hearing their process.” -Hélène P.
“Jacquelyn's passion for theater is infectious. She pushes you to dig deeper than you're comfortable and strive for excellence. I came in as a confident improviser, I left a hungry actor. Drama for Comedians is STEAK for anyone with an inkling of intrigue in scene study." -Lexi K.
Class Information:
MONDAYS & WEDNESDAYS from October 28th - November 13th
11AM - 3PM
Tuition: $550
The workshop will be capped at 16 students, with a waitlist.
Required:
-Application and interview before registration. Application does not guarantee a spot due to limited availability and casting logistics.
-Significant time for rehearsal outside of class. Please only consider taking the class if you have the time to rehearse with your partner in the 3 weeks before class begins, and between the first round and bring back of your scene.
About the instructor:
Jacquelyn Landgraf is the Artistic Director of the Elysian Theater. She is an actor, director, writer, and teacher. For over fifteen years, she was on the acting faculty at NYU Tisch School of the Arts/Atlantic Acting School, where she is a master teacher of Practical Aesthetics, teaching scene study for Atlantic’s NYU Studio and Professional Conservatory. For those programs, she created the class Moment Lab, a study of chasing the sincere and unplanned moment in performance and deepening connection between actors. She teaches performance and writing workshops across the country and internationally, including at the Williamstown Theater Festival, Austin Film Festival, London’s Central Film School, Hollins University MFA program in Berlin, On Time Productions in Mexico City, Brave Studios in Melbourne, Australia, and the U.S. State Department. As an actor, Jacquelyn was in the original cast of the U.S. premieres of Deaf West’s Orpheé, Anna Nicole the Opera at BAM/New York City Opera, John Guare’s 3 Kinds of Exile at the Atlantic Theater, Suzan Lori Parks’ 365 Days/365 Plays at The Public, and The Complete and Condensed Stage Directions of Eugene O’Neill, vol. 1, which was nominated for a Drama Desk Award for “Unique Theatrical Experience.” She is the creator of the musical fiction podcast It Makes A Sound, and produced its original soundtrack album, Wim Faros: the Attic Tape. Alum of the experimental theater collective The New York Neo-Futurists, the writer/performers of Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind, The Infinite Wrench, and a long roster of downtown performance pieces.