September 18, 25, October 2, 9, 16, November 6, 13, 20, December 4, 11

Thursdays from 5:00pm – 8:00pm ET

via Zoom

NEW STUDENT RATE: $580

RETURNING STUDENT RATE: $560

Whether you're writing your first play or your hundredth, it's not always easy to set the creative wheels in motion. This 10-week class will guide you through the development of your first draft.

More about class with Caridad: This class is run as a writers’ workshop. Caridad believes in an equitable and respectful writing room, sensitive to each person’s respective process, but also one where a vigorous, rigorous, and intuitive approach is manifest in establishing a group atmosphere. The sessions will be structured around response to work turned in (on average 5 to 8 pages a week) with pieces read out loud in the virtual room live in class with peer and instructor response time after each sharing of work using the Liz Lerman approach. At the beginning of the semester, you will determine if everyone will share work at every session or every other session. There will be occasional in-class writing exercises, and homework will be limited to recommended reading, prompts, and/or viewings assigned. In other words, the focus will be on your generative process, and as such, homework will be minimal outside of that.

Caridad’s writing focuses on human and environmental rights from a Latinx feminist perspective for the most part, though her work also explores deeply the reconfiguration of classic and modern texts, gender fluidity, and porous borders aesthetically and formally. She has also adapted novels to the stage and sustains a parallel career as a theatrical translator, editor, and artivist. Caridad’s work is often labeled by others as “poetic realism” or “atomized realism.”

Learn more about Caridad here.

Learn more about First Draft here.

September 18, 25, October 2, 9, 16, 23, 30, November 6, 13, 20

Thursdays from 6:30pm – 9:30pm ET

In-Person at ART/NY Studios Midtown, located at 520 8th Avenue

NEW STUDENT RATE: $580

RETURNING STUDENT RATE: $560

STUDIO FEE: $40

Due to the increasing cost of studio space, our in-person classes will now include a $40 studio space fee to help us offset these costs.

For playwrights who are in process with a first draft or ready to embark on a rewrite, this 10-week class with playwright, director, and dramaturg Mêlisa Annis will encourage you to focus not on an end product, but on what your play needs to deepen in this moment. Run like a professional playwriting group, this class will give you the community and support you need to move your play forward.

This class might be for you if you:

• Are a playwright who has a complete or almost complete draft of a new play, or a writer who may be embarking on a rewrite.
• If you are coming in with a new idea that you want to start writing, we would encourage you to take The First Draft.

In this class you will:

• Share pages every other week (apart from the first week where all writers will share the beginnings of their plays). This will allow the group more time to be in conversation with their plays and in turn have a more rigorous workshopping session. 
• Engage in in-depth discussions around the work, with comments and conversation shepherded by Mêlisa.
• Participate and attend class even when you are not sharing pages. Conversation about and around the text can be both illuminating and clarifying for the playwright; it can also be terrifying, and Mêlisa prides herself on creating a warm environment where playwrights can stretch their creative muscles while feeling supported and energized.

By the end of this class you will:

• Have made significant forward motion on your play, with a clear understanding of how to keep your work moving forward.

More on taking class with Mêlisa: Mêlisa believes that playwriting is very rewarding and can also be deeply personal – we all need to be good community members and support each other. This class will be a safe space to share, while also challenging each playwright to explore their subconscious, their subtext, and hopefully ultimately help them reach their goals. She will often send you essays on playwriting and theater, and suggest plays to read, all of which are optional but chosen to help you in your process. Mêlisa is always encouraging and supportive to any playwright who is brave enough to put words on a page, and hopes that anyone who joins this class is willing to support their colleagues in the room.

Learn more about Mêlisa here.

This class will be fully digital for sharing and reading pages. All pages will be shared via a class Google Drive folder, and we will use devices in class to read each other’s pages. Please come to class with a device (laptop, tablet, etc) and a charger/power cord for your device. If you are unable to bring your own device, please contact ESPA Administration

Thursday, November 20

from 6:00pm – 7:30pm

via Zoom

Join Primary Stages Artistic Director Erin Daley to go behind the scenes for what it takes to bring a new play from the page to the stage.

For our upcoming production of Laowang by Alex Lin, you will read the script and watch the production in advance of class and then delve into the work with Erin with an eye toward dramaturgy and the new play development process. You’ll explore how an idea evolves into a cohesive production, fueled by inquiry and collaboration. Beyond getting a deeper understanding of Laowang, you'll be able to incorporate dramaturgical practice into your work as a writer, actor, producer, or director.

This workshop might be for you if you:

• Would like the ability to translate what you see on stage to your own work.
• Are a theater artist seeking to refine your analytical skills when talking about live theater.
• Are a theater lover who would like a new perspective on what you see.

In this workshop you will:

• Read the script and watch a performance of the Primary Stages production of Alex Lin's Laowang. (Tickets will be provided for students at no additional cost.)
• Meet with your class after viewing the production. Erin will facilitate a class discussion about the production, exploring the questions of why this play, in this place, at this time.
• Discuss what it means to be a dramaturg, how new play development works, and how you can incorporate dramaturgical practice into your work no matter your role in a production.

By the end of this workshop you will:

• Have a better understanding of new play development and dramaturgy.
• Be able to bring dramaturgy into your work as a writer, actor, or director.
• Be equipped to see any production with a more discerning eye.

Learn more about Erin here.