Spring Classes
ROLE & PLAY
April 17 & 18, 2027
Ages 12–18 | Instructor: Luke Reed
Great acting starts with making bold choices! Role & Play is a hands-on acting workshop designed for teens who want to dig deeper into creating interesting, believable characters. Led by Totem Pole director, actor, and teaching artist Luke Reed, students will explore how actors use their bodies, voices, imaginations, and the clues found in a script to bring a character to life. Through exercises, scene work, and plenty of opportunities to get up and play, young performers will build confidence, strengthen their acting instincts, and discover that there is rarely just one “right” way to play a role. Whether you’ve already spent years onstage or are ready to stretch your skills, come prepared to make choices, take some chances, and PLAY! Registration opens December 2026.
BELT IT & BOOK IT
April 24 & 25, 2027
Ages 10–16 | Instructor: Bailey Wennick
Ready to walk into your next musical theatre audition with confidence? Belt It & Book It takes young performers inside the musical audition process—from choosing a song that shows off who you are to making strong acting choices while you sing. Led by professional performer and music director Bailey Wennick, students will work on audition cuts, vocal storytelling, presentation, and the little details that can make a big difference when you step into the room. This isn’t just a voice lesson—it’s about learning how to confidently present yourself as a young musical theatre performer. Bring your voice, your personality, and your love of musicals, and get ready to BELT IT…and hopefully BOOK IT!
Registration opens December 2026.
GLAM & GLOW-UP
May 1 & 2, 2027
Ages 10–16 | Instructor: Jessica Edwards
The transformation starts before you ever step onstage! Glam & Glow-Up takes young artists behind the scenes to discover how theatrical hair and makeup help create a character and tell a story. Led by theatrical hair and makeup artist Jessica Edwards, students will explore stage makeup techniques, learn how professional artists approach a character’s look, and experiment with some fun transformations of their own. From understanding how makeup reads under stage lights to creating a polished theatrical look, this hands-on workshop is perfect for young performers, future designers, and anyone who loves the magic that happens backstage. Come ready to experiment, create, and give your theatrical skills a serious glow-up!
Registration opens December 2026.
Fall Classes
FANTASY & FX — NEW!
Ages 12–18 October 16 & 17, 2027
Instructor: Jessica Edwards
Take theatrical makeup beyond the basics! Fantasy & FX is a brand-new hands-on workshop exploring the imaginative world of special effects, fantasy, creatures, and theatrical transformation. Led by theatrical hair and makeup artist Jessica Edwards, students will discover techniques used to create bruises, wounds, scars, aging effects, monsters, fantasy characters, and other larger-than-life looks for the stage.
Students will learn how professional makeup artists use color, texture, layering, and theatrical tricks to transform an ordinary face into something extraordinary. Perfect for creative artists who love theatre, makeup, Halloween, fantasy, or just making something wonderfully weird!
Registration opens December 2026.
BATTLE & BARD
October 23 & 24, 2027
Ages 13–18 | Instructor: Luke Reed
Shakespeare doesn’t have to be scary—and stage combat definitely shouldn’t be! Battle & Bard combines two of theatre’s most exciting skills as students explore Shakespeare’s language alongside the fundamentals of creating exciting and safetheatrical combat. Led by Totem Pole actor, director, and teaching artist Luke Reed, students will discover how movement, text, intention, and storytelling work together to make Shakespeare leap off the page.
Students will explore the Bard, learn the building blocks of stage fighting, and discover how actors make a theatrical battle look dangerous while keeping their scene partners safe. No swords required—just comfortable clothes, an adventurous spirit, and a willingness to jump into the action!
Registration opens December 2026.
CALLBACK & CRUSH IT — NEW!
November 6 & 7, 2027
Ages 16+ | Instructor: Ryan B. Gibbs, Producing Artistic Director, Totem Pole Playhouse
What happens from the moment you walk into an audition room to the moment you walk back out? Callback & Crush Itis an intensive audition workshop for actors ages 16 and up who want practical, individualized coaching on the entire audition process.
Led by Totem Pole Playhouse Producing Artistic Director Ryan B. Gibbs, students will work through everything from how to walk into the room and introduce yourself to choosing the right monologue, preparing audition material, handling sides and cold readings, taking adjustments, and navigating callbacks. Performers will also receive personal coaching on their own audition pieces, helping them make stronger choices and present the best version of themselves in the room.
Drawing on Ryan’s decades of experience working on Broadway, national tours, and in professional regional theatre, the workshop takes some of the mystery out of auditioning and replaces it with practical tools and confidence. You can’t control whether you get the job—but you can control how prepared you are when you walk through the door. Come ready to work, take some risks, and crush your next audition.
Registration opens December 2026.