SEASON 30 - 2023
Upcoming Towne Street Workshops
Check back for more information.
This summer we had the absolute privilege of facilitating a 10-Minute Playwriting class with @YoungStorytellers led by TST Member Writer, Dara Frazier.
At the end of July, the plays were presented with TST Company Members, at the beautiful Ebell of Los Angeles, (one of our nonprofit partners) with their parents and other TST Company & Board Members in attendance.
The short plays these young writers wrote were absolutely INCREDIBLE! Unless you knew they were between 11-19 you never would have known from their work.
Here are some fun pictures from the event!
Young Storytellers: L-R: Michael A., Ophelia T., Miracle W., Cloe P.
TST Actors: L-R: Daphne Jones, Taylor Edwards, RJ Wayne, Raf Mauro, Veronica Thompson, RCB, Ray Meaddough
Hiphop Theatre with RJ Wayne
Stay tuned for next workshop date!
Not only does it permeate every facet of modern existence, but you can use the parts of it that are in you to create dynamic performances and sharpen the skills you already have.
Based on the teachings of the Hiphop Shakespeare Theatre in London, founded by BAFTA and MOBO Award-winning Hiphop Artist "AKALA", RJ has already created a Book of Hiphop Monologues for Theatre (Milkcrate Monologues Vol. 1) and Turned these techniques into a Critical success as a Theatre Class for youth in the Bay Area of California, and a New Towne Street Theatre Show that debuted at the Stella Adler to Standing Ovations and Warm reception.
in the class we'll cover:
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A brief history of the Roots of Hiphop Culture: Shakespeare, Gospel, And The Remains of the civil rights movement, and how it applies to Substance and technique.
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The core Rhyme schemes that make Rap possible, and the African lineage that makes our biorhythm so unique and Rap so advanced.
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How the Iambic pentameter provides the blueprint for applying it to the stage.
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Writing your own piece and putting it on its feet. incorporating your style and finesse.
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And Finally, a Performance showcase to bring it full circle.
Whether you are Young or Old, everyone's invite to the Cypher .
"If you can talk, you can sing, if you can walk, you can dance." - African Proverb
Who is RJ Wayne?
RJ WAYNE (Ron Johnson Jr.) is a veteran Performer, Author, Producer, and Recording Artist with a career spanning over 20 years in the California Bay and Los Angeles areas. He is a proud member of the Screen Actors Guild of America with a Degree in Theater Arts, Television, and Performance, as well as a graduate of the MCTC Conservatory program in San Diego, Ca.
When he’s not doing TV, Film, Teaching, or Producing. He goes by the Alias PHILASIFER as a recording artist for Ellisbeetle Entertainment. Music and Albums are available on all major streaming and digital platforms. (Former Recording Artist for Labels associated with Sony BMG, and Universal Music Group).
Writing A 10-Minute Play
with Mildred Lewis
$150
Stay tuned for next workshop date!
Individual feedback provided. Overview of Playwriting: Formatting, Styles, Basic principles.
Who is Mildred Lewis?
An MFA and MA graduate of UCLA, MILDRED INEZ LEWIS writes and directs for theater, film and the digital space. A Dramatists Guild member, she belongs to the Antaeus, EST-LA, PlayGround-LA and Towne Street Theatre writing groups. She is an associate artist with the Rogue Artists Ensemble. She has been commissioned by A Different Myth (Asheville, NC) and a Lucille Lortel/Harlem9/National Black Theatre collaboration.
In 2022, her full-length comedy THE MUSEUM ANNEX, an homage to George C. Wolfe’s THE COLORED MUSEUM opened at Central Works (Berkeley, CA). BONWIT TELLER’S REVENGE appeared at the Workshop Theatre. Earlier productions include JUKED presented by Towne Street Theatre at Noise Now!
Her one-act plays have been produced across the country and in the United Kingdom where she was a British Theatre Challenge finalist. In 2022, WE JUMP BROOM was read by Towne Street Theatre, was a Best of PlayGround-LA winner, Samuel French Off-Off Broadway Festival finalist and the Bradford Gromelski Jury Award from Fusion Theatre (Albuquerque, NM). Her one-act plays have been published by LazyBee (UK), NextStage Press and Applause Books’ Best 10-minute Plays collections.
Left to Right: Row 1: Veronica Thompson, Jacqueline Castaneda, Karen Therese Law
Left to Right: Row 2: Sonia Jackson, Colette Rosario
Left to Right: Row 3: Veronica McClelland, Leslie Perez, Ashley Denise Robinson
IMPROV with Twon Pope
$150
Stay tuned for next workshop date!
The first 4 weeks will be dedicated to the players studying the elements of short-form improvisation. Players will learn technique, character development and how improv shows up in auditions.
The final two weeks will focus on improv as it relates to performing. There will be a live public performance that players can invite their friends, fam, industry folk out to.
Who is Twon Pope?
Twon Marcel Pope is an Actor/Director/Curator hailing from Oakland, CA. After graduating Oakland School for the Arts, Twon became an acting coach for the International Performing Arts Showcase while teaching young performers in various schools & programs around the Bay Area. Twon spent two years studying at the African American Shakespeare Co, prior to landing in LA in 2016. In 2017, Twon received a Scenie Theatre Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role for of CROOKS in Of Mice and Men. Some personal favorite roles include, (CLAUDIO) Much Ado About Nothing; (ZONITA) in African American Shakespeare Co. rendition of Cinderella; (GUS GREENLEE) Blackballed: The Rise and Fall of Negro League Baseball and (MS. ROJ) in The Colored Museum. Twon is a proud company member at Towne Street Theatre (LA) and the creator of “A Tribe Called Melanin” an award winning improv & comedy group, that offers workshops for short form improvisation while building community within LA.
From the students!
"So good to be back with TST training. Twon is fantastic. I've studied improv all over and for a long long time. I don't think I've ever had as much fun being trained in improv as we had last night. And learned a few things I'd never heard about before. And the class is the perfect size." - Bob Rodriguez
