Classes
Fall classes are now open for registration. To receive priority notification about class registrations and school events, please join our email list and select "School—Adult Classes" or "School—Youth/Teen Classes" under interests.
If you are interested in joining a class that has already started, please email school@berkeleyrep.org.
Q: I want to register for a class, but have a conflict for one or two dates. Is that an issue?
A: Not at all! While we encourage students to miss as few classes as possible, if you know of your absence ahead of time, let our teaching artist or School staff know and they’ll be happy to work with you to catch you up once you’re back.
Q: The dates for this quarter’s classes don’t work for me — will you offer the same classes next quarter?
A: While certain classes (Beginning through Advanced Acting and Improv) are offered every quarter, we cannot guarantee the same class or the same instructor for every quarter. Class dates, times, subjects, and teaching artists are subject to change each quarter.
Q: Is the price listed online for the whole session, or per individual class date?
A: The price listed on our website is for the entire class session (i.e. for an 8-week class at $340, the $340 tuition covers all 8 weeks).
Q: Do I have to take Beginning Acting Session 1 before taking Session 2? What’s the difference?
A: There is no difference between our two sessions of Beginning Acting, and they are not connected in any way. Both sessions cover the same curriculum; the only difference is the time and day of the week. By offering two sessions at different times, we hope to make this class as accessible as possible in accordance with demand.
Q: Do School of Theatre classes count toward academic credits?
A: No, the School of Theatre does not offer certification or transferable academic credits.
Youth and teen classes will be held in-person at the School of Theatre located at 2071 Addison Street, Berkeley. Masks are optional for all students attending School of Theatre programming.
Class protocol regarding COVID safety, what to expect, and how to get to the School of Theatre will be emailed to students several days before the class begins.
WED 4:30–6pm · 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8 · $180
Being funny is a serious business. Explore the art of comedy from every direction— physical, vocal and improvisational.Test the basics of clowning and take the next step in vaudeville and sketch comedy, before graduating to monologues and scene study - all the time improving your improvisational chops. Have fun being funny! Then share your creations with family and friends at our last class.
Instructor: Nancy Gold is a multifaceted performing artist, director, teacher, and author of Finding Your Funny Bone! The Actor’s Guide to Physical Comedy and Characters. She has studied physical theatre in Paris with Jacques LeCoq, mime with Claude Kipnis, and clowning with Ctibor Turba. She has a BFA from the University of Illinois and a Master’s equivalence. She teaches at Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, ACT Young Conservatory, Academy of Art University, California Shakespeare Theater, Marin Theatre, UCLA, and public and private schools throughout the country. Directing credits include A Servant of Two Masters, Pippi Longstocking, Madeline and the Gypsies, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, as well as numerous original plays about empowering women for young audiences and adaptations based on literature. Nancy performs comedy and vaudeville with her partner, Lol Levy.
MON 4:30–6pm · 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20 · $180
Being funny is a serious business. Explore the art of comedy from every direction— physical, vocal and improvisational.Test the basics of clowning and take the next step in vaudeville and sketch comedy, before graduating to monologues and scene study - all the time improving your improvisational chops. Have fun being funny! Then share your creations with family and friends at our last class.
Instructor: Nancy Gold is a multifaceted performing artist, director, teacher, and author of Finding Your Funny Bone! The Actor’s Guide to Physical Comedy and Characters. She has studied physical theatre in Paris with Jacques LeCoq, mime with Claude Kipnis, and clowning with Ctibor Turba. She has a BFA from the University of Illinois and a Master’s equivalence. She teaches at Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, ACT Young Conservatory, Academy of Art University, California Shakespeare Theater, Marin Theatre, UCLA, and public and private schools throughout the country. Directing credits include A Servant of Two Masters, Pippi Longstocking, Madeline and the Gypsies, The Caucasian Chalk Circle, as well as numerous original plays about empowering women for young audiences and adaptations based on literature. Nancy performs comedy and vaudeville with her partner, Lol Levy.
TUE 4:30–6pm · 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 10/31, 11/7 · $180
Tell your story and curate your artistic voice through filmmaking! We will begin by exploring film as an expressive art form and how artistic vision is anchored in each filmmaker’s unique point of view. Students will concentrate on developing their visual storytelling and critical thinking skills through a series of exercises as well as short film and feature length scene viewings towards that end. Other elements the course will cover, are collaborating between filmmakers and actors, blocking and camera placement, generation of ideas, pitches and loglines, and scripts. Students will have an opportunity to make short, five minute films together in the final classes and potentially screen these for family and friends.
Instructor: Samuel Tomfohr is a filmmaker and actor who holds a BA in Film from UC Berkeley and an MFA in Film Directing from Columbia University. He is also a former Fulbright Scholarship recipient in filmmaking to Brazil. His past short films have screened in film festivals throughout the US. He has taught courses and workshops in screenwriting and filmmaking in New York and Brazil. More recently Sam has been acting in Bay Area theatre and short films. Sam loves the collaborative nature of film and continues to write scripts and stories for future work. He lives in Oakland.
MON 4:30–6pm · 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20 · $180
Students will explore the tools of the actor through monologue and scene work by analyzing scripts and performing for one another. This is an opportunity for students to gain valuable rehearsal and stage experience with feedback on their work, improve stage presence and confidence as a performer, and sharpen their text analysis!
Instructor: Eleanor Maples is a local emerging theater artist. As an East Bay native, she has had a long-standing love affair with the Berkeley Rep, and has chased a passion for critically-minded contemporary theatre through her recent years in Berlin, Germany and New York City. As an alum of both Oakland School for the Arts and NYU's Playwrights Horizons Studio, Eleanor has a combined 7 years of advanced conservatory training, and greatly enjoys sharing the lessons she has learned with the next generation of artists. Her creative passions include directing, acting, writing, and costume design, as well as visual arts. Her favorite playwright is Caryl Churchill, and she was most recently seen co-directing "The Albatross" by Alex Moggridge at Berkeley Rep's 2023 Highschool Summer Intensive with Dylan Russell.
WED 4:15–5:30pm · 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8 · $150
The Music Theater Workshop is designed to give aspiring singers/actors a chance to be coached in a supportive group setting. Freed from the pressure and complications of a staged production, students can focus on building a repertoire of several songs that fit their voice type. With the help of expert coaching, participants can both develop their vocal technique and learn how to make vocal choices that compliment the dramatic context of the chosen piece of music.
Instructor: Joshua Feltman is a multi-faceted musician working in such diverse environments as arranging, music theater direction, and orchestral administration. He is founder and lead arranger for ArrangeThat and has performed as a pianist with Santa Cruz Symphony and Lamplighters. He currently teaches at the Urban School and JCHS in San Francisco, MCDS in Marin County, and serves as music director at Hillcrest Congregational Church. With an emphasis on sight-reading and playing-by-ear, Joshua’s skills as a leader from the keyboard are in demand. His compositions have been performed by orchestras, wind ensembles, and chamber groups and recorded on a major label. During his tenure in New York, he led a chapter of Classical Revolution and took on several roles in the Philharmonic Orchestra of the Americas. He also conducted the Contemporary Ensemble at the Graduate Center for five seasons and ConTempo at Brooklyn College for two while completing his PhD in the City University system.
Special offers
Register your student for two classes and save 10%! Simply add both classes to your cart, and our multi-class discount will automatically apply.
Financial aid for youth and teen classes
Our financial situation, like many art organizations, has dramatically shifted. We will still be able to offer a limited number of partial financial aid scholarships for students enrolling in our youth and teen classes.
Families applying for financial aid must complete our application form first, before submitting a $25 deposit per student at the time of registration. This amount secures the student’s place in the program while their financial aid application is under consideration.
Complete our application form or email school@berkeleyrep.org.
In-person classes will be held at the School of Theatre located at 2071 Addison Street, Berkeley. Masks are optional for all students attending School of Theatre programming.
Class protocol regarding COVID safety, what to expect, and how to get to the School of Theatre will be emailed to students several days before the class begins.
MON 7–9:30pm · 10/2, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13 · $285
Students will analyze and perform scenes straight from dramatic literature. Special emphasis is placed on encouraging students to make dramatically effective choices by playing provocative actions, discovering the event within the scene, and finding creative obstacles. May be repeated.
Prerequisite: Prior acting experience or previous acting classes at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre or another reputable theatre studio that stressed the fundamentals of text analysis, beat breakdown, and character objectives.
Instructor: William Thomas Hodgson’s regional credits include Romeo (Oregon Shakespeare Festival), It Can’t Happen Here (Berkeley Rep), Calligraphy (TheatreWorks), Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame (La Jolla Playhouse), An Octoroon (Mixed Blood Theatre), Trufaldino Says No (Shotgun Players), Seussical the Musical (Berkeley Playhouse), and I Am My Own Wife (Oakland Theater Project). He received his MFA from UC San Diego, and he is co-artistic director of the Oakland Theater Project. He has taught for Berkeley Rep School of Theatre, Berkeley Playhouse, ACT, UCSD, OSF, Park Day Middle School, Chatauqua Center, Roads Scholars, and more.
WED 7–9:30pm · 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8 · $285
Build a strong portfolio of audition pieces for both film and theater! Your monologue is your handshake. It’s your way of reaching out and introducing yourself to a director, casting director or agent. Monologues are an important tool to help you thrive in the audition process, and they are a tool that many actors overlook.
In this class we’ll look at types of monologues and situations that call for different kinds of pieces. We’ll examine in depth how to take a monologue apart, rehearse it, and set it on its feet. We will discuss the kinds of monologues that every auditioning actor should have in their portfolio. Lastly, we’ll experiment with the difference between using monologues for theater and for film. The etiquette for each type of audition will be discussed and practiced. Best practices for filming your own auditions will also be emphasized as self-submissions are becoming more common and necessary.
Instructor: Marvin Greene is a professional actor and has performed with major regional theatres such as ACT, Aurora Theatre Company, Marin Theatre Company, Westport Country Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and San Jose Rep. Marvin served as an instructor at ACT for over a decade and also teaches at the Academy of Art College and Voice One in San Francisco. Marvin has taught at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre since 2003.
WED 7–9:30pm · 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8, 11/15, 11/29 · $345
Directing is the art of making the invisible visible. It's a dynamic dance between words and action; creativity and craft; actor, director and audience.
This hands-on workshop is focused on manifesting your vision and strengthening your director’s tool box, no matter what level of experience. Analyze text; create theatrical space; explore rehearsal process and collaborate with actors. Practical experiments and scene work will culminate in a showcase with invited guests for feedback. We will reference important directors including Stanislavski, Brecht, Brook, Bogart, Lepage. Dive in, stimulate your creativity and hone your craft.
Instructor: Patricia Miller is a freelance director/producer whose credits include Magic Theatre, Ashby Stage, Marine’s Memorial, Custom Made, Ross Valley Players, Taube Atrium as well as Edinburgh Festival and London venues. Favorite acting credits include Theatreworks, Magic Theatre, NCTC and film roles. Miller has been on the Acting faculty at Mountview Conservatory, London; City Colleges of San Francisco and Berkeley; Berkeley Rep; as well as educating citizen artists at Cal Shakes, SF Shakes, Aurora Theatre, UC Riverside (visiting Professor) and UC Davis (guest artist).
Miller’s teaching and coaching integrates a practical working knowledge of professional theatre, film and broadcasting with creative inspiration and craft. She collaborates with performers across all genres, from classical plays to contemporary performance, from commercials to indie features. She has an MFA from UC Davis and is artistic director of Pollinator Arts and Panto SF.
THU 7–9:30pm · 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2, 11/9 · $285
Fundamentally, an actor’s job is to read a script, understand the story, know what the author is asking of you, and then execute it. Simple and straightforward. But a clear grasp of how to accurately analyze a script — for film, theatre or television — is crucial to an actor’s ability in making those relevant choices. This class will help you to develop an individual and reliable method for understanding theme, plot, character and situation in order to help you make artistically resonant choices. This session we’ll be looking at Bulrusher written by Eisa Davis which will be performed at Berkeley Rep at the same time the class is scheduled. Each student will receive one free ticket to the show's final dress rehearsal on October 25.
Instructor: Robin Dolan has been leading post show talks with audience members at the Aurora Theatre, and pre-show talks at California Shakespeare Theatre for over 10 years. She works as a theatre administrator, and loves research and delving into the heart of the creative process. She was Co-Artistic Director of Magical Acts Ritual Theatre where she directed the ensemble-created piece Heretics, Harlots and Heroes. She has taught classes in audition prep, singing, improvisation, and acting.
MON 7–9:30pm · 10/2, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13 · $285
Shakespeare’s plays are written with some of the most spectacular and masterfully crafted language in Western literature. In this class we will focus on what it is that makes this language so unique, including analysis of his poetics, rhetoric, word choice, imagery and sound-painting. Together we'll explore how Shakespeare’s techniques yield the most resonant and colorful characters, as well as the best ways for actors to approach his language with fluidity and ease to make each character all the more believable. We'll recommend books and resources for figuring out meanings that may seem challenging at first, and students will be asked to prepare a monologue or other piece of Shakespearean text and to make exciting, text-based choices for their characters.
Instructor: Julian Lopez-Morillas has been working as an actor, director and teacher in the Bay Area for the past fifty years. He spent many years with the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival (subsequently California Shakespeare Theatre) as an actor, director, dramaturge and board member. Other acting assignments have included Berkeley Rep, ACT, San Jose Stage, the Aurora Theatre and many others. He has taught locally at UC Berkeley, Mills College, San Jose State, Sonoma State and elsewhere. Julian has directed half of Shakespeare's plays and appeared professionally in all 37 of them.
THU 7–10pm · 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 11/2, 11/9, 11/16 · $325
Storytelling is an art form as old as human civilization and there has never been a better time to explore personal stories from the heart than in this current moment. Our personal stories are dovetailing into the global narrative, resulting in powerful tales yearning to be told. Whether you have a solo show dying to be birthed or you want to hone your storytelling skills for professional reasons, this class will help you harness your creativity, trust your instincts, quiet your inner critic, and find your unique voice. Through acting, improv, and writing exercises, we will get that story out of your head and into the world. There will be a final showcase of work on the last night of the class for an invited audience.
Instructor: Joyful Simpson is an actress, writer, and creativity educator who combines improv theatre, behavioral sciences, and mindfulness to create dynamic trainings for businesses and institutions. She studied theatre and psychology at Sarah Lawrence College in New York and earned an MFA in Dramatic Art from UC Davis. While at Davis, she spearheaded an applied improv-based training program for the Graduate School of Management. In 2013 she founded Pro-CreativeArts—an applied theatre organization—and is hired throughout the United States to lead trainings that foster creativity, collaboration, and communication for teams and leaders. Born into an iconic theatre family, she brings to her classes a unique body of experience gained from creating and performing theatre professionally since childhood. Her solo comedy recently won Best of Fringe at the 2016 San Francisco Fringe Festival. Her theatre credits include lead actor and co-author of four plays for “Prize of Hope”-winning company Human Nature and co-founder of the ensemble-driven theatre company Rococo Risqué, winner of SF Weekly Best Theater Ensemble 2005. Joyful has also appeared as an actor in many projects on stage and film, including Odyssey Works, an immersive theatre project; The Pursuit of Happiness, with Will Smith; and Spring Awakening, directed by Broadway and West End director Stafford Arima.
WED 7–10pm · 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8 · $285
Theatre of the Oppressed, conceived by Augusto Boal, is a collection of games, techniques, and exercises for using theatre as a vehicle for personal and social transformation. It uses the dynamized human body and the charged theatrical space as laboratories for exploring power, transforming oppression, and finding solutions to the fundamental problems of conflict, inequality, injustice, and human suffering. This class will introduce basic techniques (demechanization, dynamization, image theatre, forum theatre) from the Theatre of the Oppressed, with an end to understanding their application as practical and essential tools for artistic development, creative expression, social engagement, and personal transformation. This class is open to both experienced and beginning performers, as well as anyone interested in exploring art as a method for social and personal change, while developing spontaneity, fluidity, presence, creativity, and critical intelligence.
Instructor: Jiwon Chung is a professional actor, director, and a key theorist of Theatre of the Oppressed. He is the Artistic Director of Kairos Theater Ensemble, adjunct professor of Theater and Social Justice at Starr King School at the Graduate Theological Union, and past President of the national organization for Theatre of the Oppressed. Author of numerous books, articles, and performances, he is considered a pioneer in the integration of somatics, Theatre of the Oppressed, and socially engaged art. The focus of his work is in the application of theatre as a tool for social and political change, using Theatre of the Oppressed to challenge, resist, and transform systemic oppression and structural violence and to redress large-scale historical atrocity and injustice. His approach to performance and social change is informed by his background as a veteran, a martial artist, and three decades of vipassana meditation.
SAT 1–4pm · 10/7 · $65
“Within this fathom-long body, lies the world of suffering, its cause, and its liberation.” - Gautama Buddha
All oppression involves the body – the body holds and reflects the experience of its oppression. Fear, anxiety, and oppression bleed their way into the habits of our human expression, trapping, binding, and shutting down our natural spontaneity and aliveness, making us mechanized, divided, and imbalanced in our bodies and our minds and isolated, aggressive, or confused in our relationships and interactions. The original form of mindfulness — the mind’s capacity to observe itself, reflect, and transform — is theatre. This workshop will explore the rich, deep, powerful practices of mindfulness, dishabituation, and embodiment within the corpus of Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed, focusing on practical techniques for transforming and finding liberation through somatic and energetic awareness in the personal, interpersonal, and political dimensions. We will use demechanization, dynamization, image theatre, forum theatre, and rainbow of desire while developing presence, focus, and a strong capacity for meditative awareness. Open to anyone with a desire to use theatre, art, and meditation to explore a powerful approach to transforming self and society.
Please dress comfortably to move.
Instructor: Jiwon Chung is a professional actor, director, and a key theorist of Theatre of the Oppressed. He is the Artistic Director of Kairos Theater Ensemble, adjunct professor of Theater and Social Justice at Starr King School at the Graduate Theological Union, and past President of the national organization for Theatre of the Oppressed. Author of numerous books, articles, and performances, he is considered a pioneer in the integration of somatics, Theatre of the Oppressed, and socially engaged art. The focus of his work is in the application of theatre as a tool for social and political change, using Theatre of the Oppressed to challenge, resist, and transform systemic oppression and structural violence and to redress large-scale historical atrocity and injustice. His approach to performance and social change is informed by his background as a veteran, a martial artist, and three decades of vipassana meditation.
SAT 10:30am–1pm · 11/4, 11/11, 11/18, 12/2, 12/9 · $285
Play helps us stay connected—through improv you can bring play and laughter into your life during these times of uncertainty! This class is designed to introduce you to the thrills and chills of improv and to develop your acting and narrative skills to boot, all while reconnecting with others in real time. Tap into your sense of joy, connection, and creativity as you learn the basic building blocks of improv!
Instructor: Diana Brown is an award winning performing and teaching artist, a producer, director and playwright. She was named Most Valuable Mentor and Teacher at the San Francisco Improv Festival. She’s taught with Laguna Playhouse, Grupology, and as a guest teaching artist at City College San Francisco. She is Director of Community and Senior Producer with Leela Improv Theatre Companyin San Francisco. She serves as director for the improv ensemble The Professionals. Diana is also a communication facilitator, working with physicians and business leaders, helping them to interact with patients and clients in ways that promote empathy and cultural equity. She is half of the nationally touring improv comedy duo Bingewatch. Bingewatch was awarded Best Improv at the Fringe Festival of Pittsburgh. She’s performed and presented workshops at festivals around the country including San Francisco Sketch Fest, New York Improv Festival, Twin Cities Improv Festival, New Orleans Improv Fest, Vintage Improv Fest, Denver Improv Festival, 2nd Best Comedy Fest, San Francisco Improv Fest, Tucson Comedy Arts Fest. She’s appeared in theater productions in New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. Diana has studied with master improv teachers from Second City, IO, Annoyance Theatre, UCB, The Pack Theatre. She studied performing arts with the Arizona Theatre Company Conservatory. Diana co-authored and performed the solo play When You Are Called with award winning playwright Susan Jackson.
THU 7–9:30pm · 9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19, 10/26, 11/2 · $285
Play helps us stay connected—through improv you can bring play and laughter into your life during these times of uncertainty! This class is designed to introduce you to the thrills and chills of improv and to develop your acting and narrative skills to boot, all while reconnecting with others in real time. Tap into your sense of joy, connection, and creativity as you learn the basic building blocks of improv!
Instructor: Erica Blue is an international dance theater maker and teacher. She has a BA in Dance and Theater from Sarah Lawrence College and has studied at Dell Arte School of physical theater and Performance Art at Wesleyan University. After co-founding The Raw Material Performance Ensemble in Amsterdam, she then traveled and studied dance extensively in Southern Asia. Once arriving in the Bay Area, she began teaching, directing, and performing with her ensemble, Teatro Auzzura. Her solo work has been performed at La Mama in NY, The Cleveland Performance Art Festival, and has won Best of the Fringe in SF and Seattle. She also received an SF Goldie award in 2000 for her role as Salvador Dali’s wife Gala. She is proud to teach Improv at Berkeley Rep.
SAT 1:30–4:30pm · 11/18, 12/2, 12/9 · $210
This 3-week class is a combination of the methods of Kristen Linklater, The Tao of Voice, and Deborah’s own approach. Hand-outs will be given prior to classes. We will practice warm up exercises designed to release unique vocal freedom, which will serve to build and sustain a safely supported voice and access each clients’ whole range. Each week texts will be chosen in order to build upon vocal variety. Sides and scenes will be practiced incorporating pace pitch power and pauses, and expanding range and resonance. Passion pieces will be chosen by clients in order to weave together unique creative imaging and unique interpretation thereby authentically embodying language, in order to bring the words alive, and truly own the text.
Instructor: Deborah Eubanks been teaching and directing voice and speech to actors and non-actors for over 3 decades in UK and US. She is currently in her 7th year with Strictly Speaking Group, coaching under EDI, and in her 12th year at Academy of Art University, where she has built classes and is teaching Acting and Voice. Deb has been with BRT for over 15 years. She received her Theater Arts degree in UK at Harold Pinter Studios, UEA, and has written and performed in Covent Garden Arts Center, Cambridge. Deb has also toured the UK with a series of one woman shows. Deborah has taught Voice, Acting Techniques and Dialects at American Conservatory Theatre, University of San Francisco and S.F. Shakespeare. Deborah was the 2021, inspirational speaker at Google Women’s summit, and has created workshops specifically for LGBTQ vocal transitioning. She is a trained Registered Nursing Instructor and has an extensive understanding of anatomy of voice and speech. She was in residence with Stephen Hawking’s company and has an acting resume which includes many classic and contemporary roles. She is an SF Divafest Playwright, and in October 2021, she was guest to Ralph Fiennes’s dialect coach for The Dig, on BBC radio.
SAT 10am–1pm · 11/18, 12/2, 12/9 · $210
Redirect physical responses to stress in high stakes scenarios and learn how to fuel your zealousness while developing soft skills with your team. We will work with improvisation exercises based on the leading principle of "yes and" and work to explore each student’s unique goals. Students will receive practical tools, take aways, and detailed handouts which address how to control your breathing and redirect anxiety, as well as best ways to open yourself to spontaneity.
Instructor: Deborah Eubanks been teaching and directing voice and speech to actors and non-actors for over 3 decades in UK and US. She is currently in her 7th year with Strictly Speaking Group, coaching under EDI, and in her 12th year at Academy of Art University, where she has built classes and is teaching Acting and Voice. Deb has been with BRT for over 15 years. She received her Theater Arts degree in UK at Harold Pinter Studios, UEA, and has written and performed in Covent Garden Arts Center, Cambridge. Deb has also toured the UK with a series of one woman shows. Deborah has taught Voice, Acting Techniques and Dialects at American Conservatory Theatre, University of San Francisco and S.F. Shakespeare. Deborah was the 2021, inspirational speaker at Google Women’s summit, and has created workshops specifically for LGBTQ vocal transitioning. She is a trained Registered Nursing Instructor and has an extensive understanding of anatomy of voice and speech. She was in residence with Stephen Hawking’s company and has an acting resume which includes many classic and contemporary roles. She is an SF Divafest Playwright, and in October 2021, she was guest to Ralph Fiennes’s dialect coach for The Dig, on BBC radio.
Whether you’re brand new to stage combat or a seasoned swashbuckler, this workshop weekend offers the opportunity to learn or brush up on the fundamentals of both unarmed combat and basic blade work using a single rapier.
Unarmed Combat
SAT 1–4pm · 11/11 · $65
This session will cover the safe execution of faints, falls, punches, slaps, kicks, hair-pulling, chokes and head-slamming, creating the effective ‘knap’ and how to effectively create the illusion of violence.
Armed Combat: Single Sword
SUN 1–4pm · 11/12 · $65
With a focus of disciplined accuracy and utmost safety, this session will cover basic blade moves – attacks and parries, proper footwork, responsible and safe weapon etiquette, and culminate in a learned series of choreographed moves into a finished ‘fight sequence’.
Instructor: Louis Lotorto, certified and Recommended through the S.A.F.D. is an actor/combatant and has choreographed stage violence and/or been Fight Captain on numerous regional theatre productions over his 32 year career. He adheres to the cardinal rule of SAFETY FIRST and leads participants in learning convincing and safe moves giving the illusion of violence, coming from character-driven choices and supporting good story-telling.
Special offers
Sign up for two classes and save 10%! Simply add both classes to your cart, and our multi-class discount will automatically apply.
Current Berkeley Rep season subscribers receive 10% off classes.
Blue Star families receive 15% off classes. Please email school@berkeleyrep.org to register.
Any student registered for a School of Theatre class is entitled to two half-price tickets to any currently running Berkeley Rep production for select Sunday evening performances. Offer details and booking instructions will be emailed along with class protocol before the first day of class.
Discounts cannot be combined or applied retroactively. Certain specialty classes may not be eligible for discounts.
Payment plans available
Email school@berkeleyrep.org to set up a payment plan for classes.
Lead education funders
Gisele & Kenneth F. Miller
The Woodlawn Foundation
Executive education funders
Adult classes | Online
Online classes will be held through Zoom meetings. Zoom links will be emailed to students the day before class starts. If you do not receive your link, please email school@berkeleyrep.org.
MON 6:30–9:30pm · 10/2, 10/9 10/16, 10/23, 10/30 · $360
From audiobooks to dubbing, narration of web videos and documentaries, commercial VO and of course characters in videogame and animation voice acting continues to grow and expand. This voiceover class introduces and establishes the core skills required to perform different genres of voice acting. Beginning and professional actors will learn the techniques and current styles through exploring and reading commercial, narration, and character copy - with an emphasis on authentic “real” reads. Students also learn professional microphone techniques, home-recording tips, as well as steps to create a freelance voiceover career. Script performances will be recorded for students to keep for their records. Class size is limited.
Instructor: Jim Edgar has been captivated by voice-over and recording his whole life. As a full-time VO, he has voiced a Star Wars Stormtrooper ornament warning kids to stay away from presents, the Levi’s Stadium Talking Scoreboard campaign, and appeared as an ongoing voice for John Muir Health. He works across all areas of voice-over with commercial, narrative, eLearning clients including Adobe, Exploratorium, Samsung, Visa International, Oracle, Cisco, and Eisenhower Healthcare. You may have heard him as several characters in Helheim Hassle, Captain Thorn and the Evil Dr. Houser in the Deadwood Mansion VR Escape Room, Blackfeather the Assassin in VainGlory, Quigley the Robot in Leapfrog’s Letter Machine Rescue Team, The Birdman of Alcatraz in 1954 Alcatraz, or the laconic (and holographic) Bartender in Emerald Theater. With a lifelong love of teaching, Jim has led voiceover classes through the Global Voice Acting Academy and Google Arts. Jim also works as an audio consultant training voice actors to set up home studios and is on the faculty at Voice One, San Francisco.
Classes In Progress
If you would like to join a class already in progress, please email school@berkeleyrep.org. We do not offer pro-rated tuition prices for those joining late.
SAT 10–11am · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 10/28, 11/4, 11/11, 11/18, 12/1 (late afternoon/evening dress rehearsal), 12/2 (final presentation) · $200
Welcome to The Time Machine! Students will be introduced to acting and improvisational techniques while gaining confidence as a performer , by being a part of a theatre ensemble. Students will explore both fantastically fictional and really, real science. In our first few weeks, we will make blue-prints of our Time Machine and then travel to the beginning of time and re-enact the Big Bang, the formation of the universe and our solar system. Then we will explore early civilizations before traveling to the future and beyond There will be a presentation of student’s original script, with costumes and light and sound design for family and friends.
Instructor: Erica Blue is an international dance/theater director and teacher. She received her BA in Dance/Theater and Child Development from Sarah Lawrence College and has studied with The Dell Arte and Wesleyan University. For the past 20 years, she has taught and directed children and young people at organizations such as the Berkeley Rep., Mocha (Museum of Children’s Art), Jr. Center for the Arts, Young Performers Theater, The YMCA, Oddfellows Playhouse Children’s Theater and Circus. Erica was the director of the Children’s Theater Program and Summer Theater Arts Camp at Fairyland in Oakland, CA, and was commissioned by the Bay Area Discovery Museum to compile the curriculum for their summer programs. She continues to teach and create an integrated curriculum for young people.
TUE 4:30–6pm · 9/26, 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 10/31 · $180
Expand your imagination through improvisation! As an ensemble, students explore technique, theory, games, and tricks that help them open up to the kind of spontaneity that breeds better comedic timing on stage, stronger reactions in rehearsals, laughter at parties, and a lot more fun at family functions. All levels welcome. Returning students will be challenged with more advanced exercises.
Instructor: Hans Probst has been teaching acting and improv to young actors for the past year at Berkeley Rep. He has been acting since middle school. He attended a Summer Camp production of Guys and Dolls and immediately fell in love with the theatre. While attending San Francisco State University’s Theatre Arts program, he directed with Tri-Valley Young Performer’s Academy. Hans led the Kinderdrama Program and the Center Stage Players Program with TVYPA. The Kinderdrama program, a class designed for very young actors ages 4-6, would teach the basics of stage performance using children’s books as inspiration. The Center Stage Players was a company of 20-25 young actors from ages 7 and up that performed a variety of plays such as Fools, Metamorphosis, and A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream. Teaching children the art of theatre is a passion he holds dearly!
WED 4:30–6pm · 9/27, 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1 · $180
Expand your imagination through improvisation! As an ensemble, students explore technique, theory, games, and tricks that help them open up to the kind of spontaneity that breeds better comedic timing on stage, stronger reactions in rehearsals, laughter at parties, and a lot more fun at family functions. All levels welcome. Returning students will be challenged with more advanced exercises.
Instructor: Hans Probst has been teaching acting and improv to young actors for the past year at Berkeley Rep. He has been acting since middle school. He attended a Summer Camp production of Guys and Dolls and immediately fell in love with the theatre. While attending San Francisco State University’s Theatre Arts program, he directed with Tri-Valley Young Performer’s Academy. Hans led the Kinderdrama Program and the Center Stage Players Program with TVYPA. The Kinderdrama program, a class designed for very young actors ages 4-6, would teach the basics of stage performance using children’s books as inspiration. The Center Stage Players was a company of 20-25 young actors from ages 7 and up that performed a variety of plays such as Fools, Metamorphosis, and A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream. Teaching children the art of theatre is a passion he holds dearly!
WED 4:30–6pm · 9/27, 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1 · $180
Students will explore the tools of the actor through monologue and scene work by analyzing scripts and performing for one another. This is an opportunity for students to gain valuable rehearsal and stage experience with feedback on their work, improve stage presence and confidence as a performer, and sharpen their text analysis!
Instructor: Eleanor Maples is a local emerging theater artist. As an East Bay native, she has had a long-standing love affair with the Berkeley Rep, and has chased a passion for critically-minded contemporary theatre through her recent years in Berlin, Germany and New York City. As an alum of both Oakland School for the Arts and NYU's Playwrights Horizons Studio, Eleanor has a combined 7 years of advanced conservatory training, and greatly enjoys sharing the lessons she has learned with the next generation of artists. Her creative passions include directing, acting, writing, and costume design, as well as visual arts. Her favorite playwright is Caryl Churchill, and she was most recently seen co-directing The Albatross by Alex Moggridge at Berkeley Rep's 2023 Highschool Summer Intensive with Dylan Russell.
TUE 7–9:30pm · 9/26, 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 10/31, 11/7, 11/14 · $345
This course explores the art of acting in a playful, encouraging, collaborative atmosphere, and offers a dynamic and engaging introduction to the craft of acting. Develop a basic understanding of acting fundamentals through Stanislavski-based practice. Using exercises and scene work, this class introduces students to the elements of dramatic action, text analysis, and character development, as well as the tools for releasing inhibitions and expanding vocal and physical range. May be repeated.
Instructor: Marvin Greene is a professional actor and has performed with major regional theatres such as ACT, Aurora Theatre Company, Marin Theatre Company, Westport Country Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and San Jose Rep. Marvin served as an instructor at ACT for over a decade and also teaches at the Academy of Art College and Voice One in San Francisco. Marvin has taught at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre since 2003.
SAT 11am–1:30pm · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 10/28, 11/4, 11/11, 11/18 · $345
This course explores the art of acting in a playful, encouraging, collaborative atmosphere, and offers a dynamic and engaging introduction to the craft of acting. Develop a basic understanding of acting fundamentals through Stanislavski-based practice. Using exercises and scene work, this class introduces students to the elements of dramatic action, text analysis, and character development, as well as the tools for releasing inhibitions and expanding vocal and physical range. May be repeated.
Instructor: Bobby August, Jr. is an actor, improviser, and teacher. Bobby is also a recipient of the prestigious NBC Bob Curry fellowship at Second City. His group just finished an extended run of completely sold out performances at Second City Hollywood. He earned an MFA in Acting from the University of California, Davis. Some of his favorite past performances include portraying Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing, Howie in Rabbit Hole, Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew, and The Player in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. Bobby also devises physical theatre pieces with long-time collaborator Iu-Hui Chua. In addition, Bobby is the owner and director of the award-winning Made Up Theatre (MUT) in Fremont, California. His theatre specializes in presenting completely improvised plays. He has performed with MUT at improv festivals throughout the country—most recently winning Best Improv Group at the Sacramento Comedy Festival. His improv education includes training at the world-famous Second City and Annoyance Theatre in Chicago.
SAT 10am–12:30pm · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21,10/28 11/4, 11/11, 11/18 · $345
Students will focus on creating character by thoroughly understanding the relationship between the text, situation, and the technical aspects of camera work. When these fundamental tools are genuinely understood and used correctly, only then can actors be free to work to the best of their ability in front of a camera. Areas of study will include script analysis, scene study, and character development, as well as camera technique, set discipline, and set etiquette. All scenes will be rehearsed with direction from the instructor, and copies will be given to students for their reference; please bring a 16GB SD card. A variety of other subjects will also be discussed relating to the business side of show business, including audition technique, agents, union membership, photographs, and websites.
Instructor: Marvin Greene is a professional actor and has performed with major regional theatres such as ACT, Aurora Theatre Company, Marin Theatre Company, Westport Country Playhouse, Long Wharf Theatre, and San Jose Rep. Marvin served as an instructor at ACT for over a decade and also teaches at the Academy of Art College and Voice One in San Francisco. Marvin has taught at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre since 2003.
WED 6:30–9:30pm · 9/27, 10/4, 10/11, 10/18, 10/25, 11/1, 11/8 · $360
This scene study class is designed for students who have participated in one of Berkeley Rep's previous Taste of Meisner Workshop or Meisner Technique: Repetition classes or have some previous experience with the Meisner technique. The 7 weeks will build on Meisner's foundational "repetition exercise" and start applying the same skills of attunement to text work with the concept of "conversational reality."
The instructor will then introduce tools of emotional preparation, objectives, actions, and particularizations as students learn to carve out more meaning and specificity in their scenes. Students should have some acting experience paired with a desire to deepen their listening skills, vulnerability, spontaneity, imagination, and sense of truth when performing in a scene.
This course requires consistent attendance and work outside of class, including weekly rehearsals with scene partners and additional imaginative private homework. Students will be asked to show up as the most authentic versions of themselves, with a willingness to look at the social habits and defenses that may be getting in the way of honest human connection.
Instructor: Carolyn McCandlish has taught the Meisner acting technique at NYU Tisch’s Experimental Theatre Wing, the Terry Knickerbocker Studio, Acting Studio Chicago, the Actors' Center D.C., and the Greenbrier Valley Theatre. Carolyn trained with Terry Knickerbocker in two subsequent 2-year Meisner conservatory programs, first as an actor at the William Esper Studio, then again as a teaching apprentice while assisting the opening of his own Terry Knickerbocker Studio. Other creative mentors over the years include Maggie Flanigan, Fay Simpson, Richard Armstrong, Elena McGhee, Alisa Endsley, Ted Morin, and Jeff Wirth. Some of Carolyn's favorite theatre credits are The Spoon River Project (Green-Wood Cemetery), Crimes of the Heart (Fable Farm Theatre), Stomp and Shout (Babel Theatre Project), and Donnie Darko (American Repertory Theater). She was a founding member of art.party.theater.company, which specialized in designing creative performance installations and reinvigorating classical texts through site-specific, physical theater, and she co-founded the interactive, dramatic improv ensemble Playing With Reality, with which she performed and taught in Amsterdam and across New York City. Carolyn co-wrote, co-produced, assistant directed and acted in Whispers in the Dark, an interactive 24-hour film project for the New York Film Festival at Lincoln Center. She received a B.A. from Harvard and a Master's in Social Work from NYU with an additional focus on therapeutic drama techniques. She is a firm believer in the healing and transformative powers of acting.
MON 7–9:30pm · 9/25, 10/2, 10/16, 10/23, 10/30, 11/6, 11/13, 11/20, 11/27, 12/4 · $475
The Actors’ Performance Lab is an intensive course for actors working towards a career in performance. This class provides students with the unique opportunity to apply their skills-based learning through practical application of preparing and presenting a performance. Students apply skills built in intermediate and advanced acting classes, learn professional arts protocols and practice, work collaboratively with the ensemble, and develop live performance ability.
Coursework includes class time plus weekly rehearsal as an ensemble or in small groups outside of class; additionally, there will be several required evening rehearsals during the final week of classes, prior to the performance. There will be one scheduled performance during the week of December 4, 2023. Students should anticipate an additional 3–4-hour rehearsal in the final week of class. The class will have up to 10 participants.
Instructor: Dylan Russell is a director, teaching artist, new play developer and community engagement specialist. Dylan has directed productions at American Conservatory Theatre Conservatory, TheatreFirst, New Conservatory Theatre, and Actors Lab Arizona. Most recently, Dylan was the Director of Education and Community Engagement at Laguna Playhouse. Dylan envisioned and created the OUR STORIES program at Laguna Playhouse, which utilizes generative theatre practices to create awareness about mental health and amplify the voices of youth and young adults ages 16-25. Dylan created the Drama Department at Jewish Community High School of the Bay, which was recognized as one of the top high school theatre programs in America by Stage Directions Magazine and twice performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Scotland. She has taught at Laguna Playhouse, California Shakespeare Theatre, Northwestern University's National High School Institute, Marin Theatre Company and New Conservatory Theatre Center.
SAT 10:30am–1pm · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 10/28 · $285
Dive into the possibilities of improvised theatre! In this class we’ll do lots of scene work to deepen comfort and spontaneity in a variety of genres. Students will work on establishing character, building and exploring the world of the scene, and co-creating a cohesive story together. Students will receive direct, tailored, and supportive feedback. No matter what, we will play and laugh—a lot.
Instructor: Diana Brown is an award winning performing and teaching artist, a producer, director and playwright. She was named Most Valuable Mentor and Teacher at the San Francisco Improv Festival. She’s taught with Laguna Playhouse, Grupology, and as a guest teaching artist at City College San Francisco. She is Director of Community and Senior Producer with Leela Improv Theatre Company in San Francisco. She serves as director for the improv ensemble The Professionals. Diana is also a communication facilitator, working with physicians and business leaders, helping them to interact with patients and clients in ways that promote empathy and cultural equity. She is half of the nationally touring improv comedy duo Bingewatch. Bingewatch was awarded Best Improv at the Fringe Festival of Pittsburgh. She’s performed and presented workshops at festivals around the country including San Francisco Sketch Fest, New York Improv Festival, Twin Cities Improv Festival, New Orleans Improv Fest, Vintage Improv Fest, Denver Improv Festival, 2nd Best Comedy Fest, San Francisco Improv Fest, Tucson Comedy Arts Fest. She’s appeared in theater productions in New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. Diana has studied with master improv teachers from Second City, IO, Annoyance Theatre, UCB, The Pack Theatre. She studied performing arts with the Arizona Theatre Company Conservatory. Diana co-authored and performed the solo play When You Are Called with award winning playwright Susan Jackson.
TUE 7–9:30pm · 9/26, 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 11/3 (performance), 11/7, 11/14, 11/28 (performance), 12/5 · $475
This class introduces the skill of performing improvisational games and stories in a light and generous atmosphere. Students explore the philosophy of “giving” rather than “shining,” and practice interaction techniques that demystify the perceived barriers between performers and an audience. There will be two scheduled performances during the five-week time frame. The class will have up to 10 participants.
Prerequisite: Approval from instructor prior to registration.
Instructor: Diana Brown is an award winning performing and teaching artist, a producer, director and playwright. She was named Most Valuable Mentor and Teacher at the San Francisco Improv Festival. She’s taught with Laguna Playhouse, Grupology, and as a guest teaching artist at City College San Francisco. She is Director of Community and Senior Producer with Leela Improv Theatre Company in San Francisco. She serves as director for the improv ensemble The Professionals. Diana is also a communication facilitator, working with physicians and business leaders, helping them to interact with patients and clients in ways that promote empathy and cultural equity. She is half of the nationally touring improv comedy duo Bingewatch. Bingewatch was awarded Best Improv at the Fringe Festival of Pittsburgh. She’s performed and presented workshops at festivals around the country including San Francisco Sketch Fest, New York Improv Festival, Twin Cities Improv Festival, New Orleans Improv Fest, Vintage Improv Fest, Denver Improv Festival, 2nd Best Comedy Fest, San Francisco Improv Fest, Tucson Comedy Arts Fest. She’s appeared in theater productions in New York, San Francisco and Washington D.C. Diana has studied with master improv teachers from Second City, IO, Annoyance Theatre, UCB, The Pack Theatre. She studied performing arts with the Arizona Theatre Company Conservatory. Diana co-authored and performed the solo play When You Are Called with award winning playwright Susan Jackson.
TUE 7–9:30pm · 9/26, 10/3, 10/10, 10/17, 10/24, 10/31, 11/7, 11/14, 11/28, 12/5 · $475
Ever wanted to write a play? Got a little time on your hands? Push that dream forward in a 10-week playwriting workshop. We’ll meet weekly, discuss the basics of playwriting, and share excerpts of developing scripts. If you’ve never written a play before, this is a good way to get started. If you’ve got a script in the works, but no one to share it with, here’s a writer’s group ready to listen and respond supportively. Do you find (like most playwrights) that nothing motivates you like a deadline? We’ll provide that, too. Join us, and start working on that play you’ve always wanted to write.
Instructor: Gary Graves is a playwright and director living in the San Francisco Bay Area. Since 1998, he has been a company co-director of Central Works “The New Play Theater” in Berkeley, California, where he has overseen the development of over 65 world premiere productions. He received a PhD in dramatic art at UC Berkeley in 1994, and he teaches playwriting at the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre throughout the year.
THU 7–9pm · 9/21, 9/28, 10/5, 10/12, 10/19 · $220
In this class, we will learn physical triggers that will help you quickly find the placement, melody, and general sound changes for the dialect. We will study the dialect in a multi-sensorial way, with a focus on the physical changes, the phonetic sound changes, and immersion.
Instructor: Rebecca Castelli holds a BA in voice and theatre and an MFA in acting. Previously from Seattle, she won a Seattle Times Footlight Award for her role of Mabel in The Pirates of Penzance, and also had the honor of acting with Tony award-winning actress Judy Kaye in Gypsy at 5th Avenue Musical Theatre Company. She was a company member of the Marin-based Porchlight Theatre Company for five years and had leads in many of their main stage productions, including Chekhov’s Three Sisters and Oscar Wilde’s An Ideal Husband. Locally, Rebecca has also acted with Shotgun Players and Cinnabar Theater Company. She dialect coaches for various Bay Area theatres, including Shotgun Players, Theatre Rhinoceros, Town Hall Theatre Company, Mendocino Theatre Company, Virago Theatre Company, and Ross Valley Players. She is a founding member of The Incidentalists, a long-form improvisational group based in Oakland.
SAT 10:30am–12:30pm · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 11/4 · $200
Connect with your body and discover new depths of your mind! Butoh is an avant-garde Japanese physical-theatre dance form developed in the 1950s by Tatsumi Hijikata and Kazuo Ono. It illuminates the wonders of the unconscious, the abstract, and the integrated imagination through the body. The fundamental movement work of this class will enable students to more consciously engage body, mind, and feelings simultaneously. This class will help participants develop sensory awareness and engage in embodied expression through durational and imagery-based work that engages the somatic-imagination. Using sense-memory and visualizations, we will embark on embodied explorations of different landscapes, states of being, and the connections that create the world within and around us.
Hybrid classes may be attended online via Zoom, or in-person at the School of Theatre.
Instructor: Iu-Hui Chua choreographs, performs, directs, and devises experimental physical theatre, dance, and video performance. Chua has performed professionally with Anna Halprin, Dandelion Dancetheater, Headmistress, Inkboat, Disneyland, and was a founding member of the butoh company, Ledoh and Salt Farm, for 14 years. She is an award-winning dance-film artist whose video and live performance works have been supported nationally and presented in North America, Asia, and Europe. She directed Gruesome Playground Injuries, nominated for “Outstanding Production of a Play” by the Theatre Bay Area Awards in 2015. Chua has taught dance as a lecturer at the University of California Davis and currently works as a professional expert teaching movement for actors at Tamalpais High School’s Conservatory Theatre Ensemble program.
SAT 12:45pm–2pm · 9/30, 10/7, 10/14, 10/21, 10/28 · $125
Tap classes are great for spirit, mind, and body, and a terrific way to get in tiptop shape while having fun. Learn how to tap in the tradition of the old masters and break ground with some of the new contemporary styles. Ear training, weight transfer, balance, stamina, style, and a chance to experiment with choreography are just a few benefits of the tap class. Whether you are a professional dancer or just starting out, come study with a world-renowned tapper who has danced with Gregory Hines, Savion Glover, Nicholas Brothers, and Michelle Dorrance! Open to all levels.
Instructor: Joe Orrach is a choreographer, director, performer and educator. Orrach started out as a boxer, but soon realized he had better ways to communicate and entertain. The ballet he studied for his boxing footwork led him to tap dance and performing vaudeville throughout the US and Europe. Orrach has conceived, written, performed, and directed original plays and solo shows for live stages worldwide. His dramatic pieces are frequently in collaboration with a jazz trio. Orrach choreographed and was featured in Terrence Blanchard’s opera Champion at SF Jazz and with National Opera at the Kennedy Center. Orrach gives back to the community through Joe Orrach Performance Project (JOPP) a 501 © (3) nonprofit and has taught for LA’s Urban Peace Institute and the Latino Leadership Institute. Orrach has created performance workshops with lockdown juveniles in San Francisco General Hospital, for formerly incarcerated at Delancey Street Foundation Headquarters, and for the general population at San Quentin State Prison. Joe is the recipient of the Dance Studio Life "Generous Heart” Teaching Award, for his work with at-risk communities. He has taught acting and movement as far away as St Petersburg, Russia as the American cultural ambassador for Track Two Diplomacy Institute. Mr. Orrach has an MFA from University of Southern California’s School of Dramatic Arts.