Registration for our summer youth workshop is now open!
BEFORE YOU REGISTER your child, we encourage you to read the workshop descriptions and take note of both the dates and the times. All workshops related to Shakespeare in the Valley (Acting, Music, Costumes, Tech) have an intense schedule during Tech week which is the last week of the workshops. The Shakespeare this year will be Measure for Measure **Be advised, this play deals with sexual assault and is even more ribald than the average Shakespeare play**
IF YOU CHOOSE MULTIPLE WORKSHOPS:
- Please only sign your child up for multiple workshops if you think they can handle the long days. All the students work hard when they are here - and some also spend hours practicing at home. They each play an important role - so we need them for the entire workshop.
- There is a 10% discount on tuition for signing kids up for multiple workshops - please use the discount code TENOFF during registration to receive the discount.
- Some of the workshops have an hour overlap - the instructors will coordinate accordingly for the students enrolled in more than one workshop.
SCHOLARSHIPS are available and we are holding a few spots in each workshop for scholarship students
Theater Games will introduce kids (6-9) to the most essential aspect of acting and performance: Play! In this one week workshop, we will explore acting fundamentals such as improv games and movement exercises. Using these games as a foundation we will create a devised performance for parents and friends!
This is an opportunity for young artists to share their creativity with their peers, and see their imagination come to life by collaborating and communicating those ideas. We will focus on supporting one another, practicing being good audience members as well as performers as we watch each other grow.
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
July 6-10 (Mon-Fri)
THEATER GAMES (AGES 6-9)
9am-1pm — With A Break For Lunch
Performance July 10 At 12pm
Workshop Fee: $180 (Local) / $200 (Non-Local) — See Pricing Notes In Registration For Details.
Instructor (TBD)
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
July 6-July 24 (Mon-Fri)
FILMMAKING (AGES 14-20)
9am – 1pm (Mon-Fri)
Film Screening: Friday July 24
Workshop fee: $540 (local) / $800 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructors: Matthew Landfield & Olivia Cuartero-Briggs
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The Young People’s Filmmaking Workshop introduces teen filmmakers to the process of movie-making in the beautiful hills and valleys of East Meredith, NY. Teens will collaborate on a comprehensive, collaborative filmmaking process from start to finish, culminating in a screening of a final 5-10 minute original film project.
Skills and activities include:
● Collaborative creativity
● Working on a team
● Story & script structure
● Generating characters
● Improvisation
● Script writing
● Acting and directing for the camera
● Cinematography & lighting (and camera tricks!)
● Audio recording & sound effects
● Editing and Post-Production (even visual effects!)
And attending the film’s premiere!
No experience necessary. Enthusiasm and readiness to play is the main thing!
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An award-winning dramatic writer, fitness junky, and girl mom, born and raised in New York City. She holds an M.F.A. from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, and is currently enjoying a career writing for TV, film, stage, and comic books in sunny Los Angeles. Recent credits include staff writer on The Arrangement, staff writer on Queen of the South, and co-producer on Mike Schur’s Field of Dreams. Published comic books include, Mary Shelley Monster Hunter and Silver City with AfterShock Comics, Jill and the Killers with Oni Press and Kill Train with Mad Cave Studios. Awards include The Jane Chambers Playwriting Award, The New York Theater Festival’s Best Original Play Award, Hollywood Comedy Shorts Best of Fest Award, and the Flint Film Festival’s Best Screenplay Award.
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Director/Cinematographer is a New Yorker born and raised. Landfield has 20 years of experience as a filmmaker for narrative, documentary and interactive content including film, video, and live broadcasting. He is a co-founder of TimeTravlr Creative, a social-impact focused production company in Brooklyn, New York. He recently served as cinematographer on the feature documentary Here Lived (2024), directed by Jane Wells, about the Stolpersteine Project in the Netherlands and Germany. The From the Ground Updocumentary series about community development in Brownsville, Brooklyn that he conceived and developed for JPMorgan Chase won the 2015 Contently Award. Recently, Matt Landfield directed and produced the feature documentary Educating Leaders in an Uncertain World: The McGowan Fellowship, which received a silver award at the Spotlight Documentary Film Awards. Landfield’s cinematography work also includes the narrative short films Plot, winner of best mockumentary at the Austin Comedy Short Film Festival, and Consider the Sparrow, nominated for best short at New York Shorts International Film Festival. He is currently directing and producing Private Money Public Power, a documentary about the history of philanthropy in the United States.
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
**Be advised, this play deals with sexual assault and is even more ribald than the average Shakespeare play**
July 6-Aug 2 (Mon-Fri)
ACTING FOR SHAKESPEARE (AGES 13-19)
1pm – 5pm (Mon-Fri) — with extended hours for late night dress rehearsal from 1pm – 11pm Wednesday July 30th & Thursday July 31st.
Performances July 31 & August 1 starting at 8pm
Workshop fee: $765 (local) / $850 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructor: Lillian Meredith & Stephen Bennett with Mary Wenner assisting.
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Students will learn how to understand, interpret, and ultimately perform Shakespeare’s text. Instructor Lillian Meredith combines in-depth text analysis and verse study with more contemporary approaches like Viewpoints and Michael Chekhov character development techniques to help students develop a deep understanding of the play and introduce them to the craft of acting. Over four weeks, the students will rehearse this summer’s play, memorizing their lines, taking ownership over their roles, and developing themselves as actors and members of an ensemble, all while learning what goes into putting on a full production of a Shakespeare play. The workshop culminates in two outdoor performances that showcase the students’ work.
Actors are expected to help with Sunday Strike on Sunday, August 3rd. -
A director, teacher, and theater artist who has led Shakespeare in the Valley for the past nine years. Professional credits include Rattlestick Playwrights Theatre, Theatre for a New Audience, Ars Nova, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and Boise Contemporary Theater, among others. She is the founder and Artistic Director of The Motor Company, where she produces site-responsive, free theater for public spaces around New York, a former directing intern with Actors Theatre of Louisville, and a member of the Lincoln Center Directors Lab, the Soho Rep Writer/Director Lab, and the inaugural Clubbed Thumb Directing Fellowship. Proud alumna: Brooklyn College (MFA), Vassar College (BA), the National Theater Institute, and Shakespeare in the Valley (1999-2001).
www.lillianmeredith.com -
A composer and writer based in San Francisco. He spent his early years in New York City as an actor, before figuring out that he really loves writing music for actors onstage. Stephen holds an MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.
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An actor based in the San Diego area. Much of her time is spent working as a teaching assistant for the acting program at John Paul the Great Catholic University; she’s normally found either stage managing and/or assistant directing the university’s productions and guessing when each student will win their Oscar/Tony/BAFTA/etc. Proud alumna of JPCatholic (BA) and WKC’s Shakespeare in the Valley (2017-2019)
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
Please note: This workshop is focused on composing music for theater. Participants are not required to but may also sign up for Music II which forms the band for the play.
July 7-18 (Mon-Fri)
Music I: Modern Shakespeare Composers & Lyricists (AGES 12-19)
10:00am – 12pm — with extended hours for late night rehearsals Wednesday July 29th & Thursday July 30th..
Performances Friday July 31st & Saturday August 1st, starting at 8pmWorkshop fee: $180 (local) / $200 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructor: Stephen Bennett
Open to singers and musicians of all types. No experience required! The workshop will develop the score for Shakespeare in the Valley’s production of Romeo & Juliet on August 1st and 2nd, and composer/lyricists will work with the Modern Shakespeare Band play and sing the score for the show. During the workshop, participants will be guided through dramatic songwriting, musical styles, collaborating and recording music (played and sung).
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Aa composer and writer based in San Francisco. He spent his early years in New York City as an actor, before figuring out that he really loves writing music for actors onstage. Stephen holds an MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
July 20-Aug 01 (Mon-Fri)
INTRODUCTION TO ACTING (AGES 9-12)
1pm – 5pm (Mon-Fri)
Performances July 31st & August 1st starting at 6pm
Workshop fee: $400 (local) / $450 (non-local)
Actors will focus on character development, stagecraft basics, movement, stage presence, music, and improvisational skills, all while developing a strong sense of tribe and passion for theater. The workshop will culminate in two performances on July 31st & August 1st (rain or shine) as part of the annual Shakespeare in the Valley productions.
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Vanessa grew up in the valley that surrounds The West Kortright Centre and holds her experience as an actor in the Shakespeare in the Valley productions as one of the most important influences in her life. Vanessa returned as the teacher of Theater Games for three years and was Assistant Director for Introduction to Acting for four years. This is her eleventh year as co-director of Intro to Acting. She is a founder and staff member at the Hudson Valley Sudbury School, a self-directed democratic school in the Hudson Valley. Vanessa is a parent of seven, a soccer player, photographer, adventurer and an advocate for children’s rights.
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A violinist, singer, and assistant professor of ethnomusicology at the CUNY Graduate Center. She grew up next door to the West Kortright Centre and is a proud alumna of the YPTAW and Shakespeare in the Valley programs, which shaped her creatively from ages 6-18. In addition to her creative and intellectual activities, she is the proud mama of two kiddos and a cat.
Nini Kauffman-O’Hehir has attended programs at the West Kortright since childhood; as an alum of both the Intro to Acting and Shakespeare programs they're very excited to be returning here as an Assistant Director this year! They are currently studying theater and education at Bard College.
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Nini has attended programs at the West Kortright since childhood; as an alum of both the Intro to Acting and Shakespeare programs they're very excited to be returning here as an Assistant Director this year! They are currently studying theater and education at Bard College.
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
**Be advised, this play deals with sexual assault and is even more ribald than the average Shakespeare play**
July 20-Aug 02 (Mon-Fri)
COSTUMES FOR SHAKESPEARE (AGES 12-19)
10am – 2pm with lunch break included. Late night dress rehearsals Wednesday July 29th and Thursday July 30th (1pm – 11pm)
Workshop fee: $315 (local) / $350 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructors: Helen Quinn assistant TBD
The Measure for Measure Costume Workshop will be led by artist/stylist Helen Quinn. Participants will be involved in the planning, production, dressing, and make up for the entire cast. For this production, we will embrace bright colors and patterns. We will organize clothes by palette, overdye existing garments in bold colors, as well as painting and sewing new garments to make lush, layered outfits. We are so excited to work with a creative and energetic group of costume makers to make a beautiful production.
Participants are expected to help with Strike on Sunday, August 03.
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Helen Quinn is an artist, stylist, and educator based in Queens, New York. Her multidisciplinary career includes paint color development, sustainable textile design, and prop and set styling for television, magazines, and retail projects. She has also been a graduate-level instructor in color and materials at Parsons/The New School. There she led student workshops for the Aftertaste series for the MFA Interior Design Department.
Education has been a central thread in Helen’s practice for over 15 years. From teaching at Parsons, to leading community workshops on the Jackson Heights Open Street, to designing summer arts camps, she has consistently sought to make learning accessible and engaging. In 2025, she began a new role in the NYC public schools as a middle school teacher for English Language Arts and Technical Theater.
Helen has attended numerous artist residencies and exhibits her work internationally, with shows spanning Queens, the Czech Republic, and Norway. She holds a BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design, an MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art, and is currently pursuing a Masters in Education.
More information can be found on her website here: https://www.helenquinnnyc.com/
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Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
Please note this workshop is focused on playing music and forming the band for the play. Attendance in Music I for Composers & Lyricists is not required to attend this workshop.
July 20-Aug 03 (Mon-Fri)
Music II: Modern Shakespeare Band (AGES 12-19)
10:00am – 12pm — with extended hours for late night rehearsals Wednesday July 29th & Thursday July 31st.
Performances Friday July 31st & Saturday August 1st, starting at 8pm
Workshop fee: $180 (local) / $200 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructor: Stephen Bennett
Open to singers and musicians of all types. No experience required! The workshop will form the band for Shakespeare in the Valley’s production of Romeo & Juliet on August 1st and 2nd, and will play and sing the score for the show. During the workshop, participants will practice reading music, playing solo, and playing as an ensemble.
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A composer and writer based in San Francisco. He spent his early years in New York City as an actor, before figuring out that he really loves writing music for actors onstage. Stephen holds an MFA from NYU’s Graduate Musical Theatre Writing Program.
Scholarships are available: Please don’t hesitate to apply if you need it. Scholarship forms are available here.
July 21-Aug 03 (Mon-Fri)
Theater Tech for Shakespeare in the Valley (ages 12-19)
10am – 2pm with late night dress rehearsals Wednesday July 29th and Thursday July 30th (1pm – 11pm)
Workshop fee: $315 (local) / $350 (non-local) — See pricing notes in registration for details.
Instructor: Zena Gurbo w. Simone Mantellassi.
The Tech Workshop is for anyone ages 12-19 with an interest in art, performance, lighting, leadership, sound effects, building, or just plain fun. Participants will learn about, and participate in, all aspects of producing a play, from designing sets, lighting, props, and sounds, to building and painting scenery, creating and sourcing props, and finally to working on stage and with actors and directors to rehearse and run the play.
All students are required to help with strike on August 4.
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An artist, mother and instructor who has worked with students of all ages for over 25 years. Zena is excited to help the Tech kids design and create the set, to work on lighting and sound and especially looking forward to prop making. This will be her third season working on Shakespeare in the Valley but she has been a fan for as long as she has been driving her kids there every summer for quite a while now.