Classes

Leap into the new year with us and create your next great work! We happily accept students from all around the world and invite you to study with us virtually. Take the leap and join us here at Chicago Dramatists!!


Summer Classes


Intermediate Playwriting (Online)
7 Sundays
Jun 11 – Jul 30
10:00am – 1:00pm CST
Instructor: Ean Miles Kessler

This generative/workshop-based class is dedicated to helping dramatists hone their artistic voice, and deepen their understanding of the craft of playwriting. Writers will explore character development, plot structure, theatricality, and how to craft dynamic and vibrant action between their characters. The course will culminate in an online reading of student work, read by professional actors and performed for an invited audience.

Class Description

This generative/workshop-based class is dedicated to empowering emerging dramatists to hone the timbre of their voice, and deepen their understanding of the craft of playwriting. Sessions will be an even mix of generating/workshopping student material, dissecting the work of great dramatists, open discussion, and a variety of writing exercises and prompts all dedicated towards sparking students’ creative impulse. Writers will be led on an in-depth exploration of character development, the essence of plot structure, the importance of theatricality, and how to write dynamic and vibrant action between characters, in order to propel their play forward. All students will have the option to bring in work they’ve developed previously to be workshopped within class, or can develop pieces during the course of the class itself. The course will culminate in an online reading of student work, read by professional actors and performed for an invited audience.

Teacher Bio

Ean Miles Kessler is a playwright, theater educator, storyteller, and horse trainer. His jobs have run the gamut: he’s processed poultry, worked briefly at Fedex loading trucks, bartended in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and is currently a ranch hand in Montana, where he gentles mustangs. A Rutgers BFA Acting graduate, Ean studied at Shakespeare’s Globe in England under esteemed director and Tony nominee Tim Carroll. His plays have been produced nationally and internationally, and his work has been published by Vintage Books. His plays have been developed with a variety of companies, including: The Playwrights’ Center, Chicago Dramatists Saturday Series, and Naked Angels among others. Previously, Ean was the Network Director at Chicago Dramatists, where he taught “Deconstructing the American West,” and “Thieves of Shakespeare.” He is thrilled to be back working with his Chicago family.

Course Details

Session DatesJune 11, 25
July 02, 09, 16, 23

July 30: Class Showcase
(No class on June 18.)
Experience LevelThis class is specifically designed for writers at the intermediate level.
Prerequisite – Intro to Playwriting, or permission from the instructor.
Available DiscountsEarly Bird, New Student, Network

Solo Show & Storytelling: Lost and Found (Online)
7 Tuesdays
Jun 27 – Aug 15
6:00 – 9:00pm CST
Instructor: Arlene Malinowski

Get your voice onto a stage and into the world. This workshop is designed for storytellers, actors, solo artists and writers of all levels – who want to work on the development of a one-person show or story for the stage.

Class Description

This hands-on workshop is for writers, actors & storytellers at all levels who want to work on the development of a solo show or story for the stage. This can include work at any stage of development from an idea to a finished piece. The class will focus on finding your unique voice and the voice of your story, plot, structure, character development, and techniques to manipulate the storyteller/audience relationship. This class offers an opportunity to develop material, class exercises, one-on-one coaching, AND cheerleading. I am here to be your vision keeper with the goal of getting your work into the world. We will work hard and have big fun!

Teacher Bio

Arlene Malinowski has been performing and teaching Solo & Story for over 25 years. Her award-winning solo works have been performed throughout the US and internationally. She views her solo work as an artistic expression of her social justice work in the area of Deafness and disability. Her plays include, A Little Bit Not Normal, Full Disclosure, Aiming for Sainthood, What Does the Sun Sound Like, Interrobang and It’s Whampo, Time. She is the recipient of 3Arts/UIC fellowship, LA Ovations award, LA Garland Award. Finalist in New Plays from Heartland, semi-finalist Blue Ink award, and the O’Neil. As an actor and storyteller, she has performed on stages in LA and Chicago including Goodman, Steppenwolf and Victory Gardens. She has taught at College of the Canyons and Master-classes nationwide. She is a Resident Playwright at Chicago Dramatists where she’s developed the Solo & Story curriculum.

Course Details

Session DatesJune 27
July 11, 18, 25
August 01, 08
Showcase: August 15
Experience LevelBeginner, Intermediate, Advanced
Available DiscountsNetwork

The Cohort: A Dramaturgy Master Class (Online)
7 Wednesdays
Jul 05 – Aug 16
6:00 – 9:00pm CST
Instructor: Ean Miles Kessler

A holistic approach to dramaturgy. Writers will workshop one full length play, with each piece receiving an in depth script evaluation from the instructor. Writers will then receive notes in a workshop-based approach from their fellow students. Writers accepted by submission only.

Class Description

A holistic approach to dramaturgy, this master class focuses on a writer’s play as a whole, allowing students to examine both the micro and macro within their work. Writers will bring in one complete, full length play to be workshopped over the course of the class. Each play will receive an in depth script evaluation from the instructor, and every session will focus on the work of 2-3 writers, ensuring that each play receives the full attention it deserves. Utilizing a specific set of dramaturgical questions, (as led by the instructor) writers will then receive notes and critiques, in a workshop-based approach from their fellow students. With a strong emphasis on dramatic structure, thematic layering, character development, and the importance of change over the course of a play, writers will be asked to explore both the minutiae of each scene, as well as the larger themes and arcs they are working to create. Students will be required to read the work of their fellow writers each week, in order to facilitate in depth critique. The course will culminate in a Saturday Series Reading of select scenes. Writers accepted by submission only.

Teacher Bio

Ean Miles Kessler is a playwright, theater educator, storyteller, and horse trainer. His jobs have run the gamut: he’s processed poultry, worked briefly at Fedex loading trucks, bartended in New Orleans for Mardi Gras, and is currently a ranch hand in Montana, where he gentles mustangs. A Rutgers BFA Acting graduate, Ean studied at Shakespeare’s Globe in England under esteemed director and Tony nominee Tim Carroll. His plays have been produced nationally and internationally, and his work has been published by Vintage Books. His plays have been developed with a variety of companies, including: The Playwrights’ Center, Chicago Dramatists Saturday Series, and Naked Angels among others. Previously, Ean was the Network Director at Chicago Dramatists, where he taught “Deconstructing the American West,” and “Thieves of Shakespeare.” He is thrilled to be back working with his Chicago family.

Course Details

Session DatesJuly 05, 12, 19, 26
August 02, 09, 16

Class Showcase: Live @ Chicago Dramatists – August 26, 2pm.
Experience LevelThis class is specifically designed for writers at the advanced level.
Available DiscountsNetwork

Scene Shop” Play Development: Thursday Nights (Online)
7 Thursdays
Jul 06 – Aug 24
6:30pm – 9:30pm


OR

“Scene Shop” Play Development: Saturday Mornings (Online)
7 Saturdays
Jul 08 – Aug 26
10:00am – 1:00pm

Instructor: Will Dunne

Designed as an ongoing resource for experienced playwrights and now in its 16th year, Scene Shop offers weekly character, scene, and story tools to help you develop your script, professional actors to read your work, and constructive group feedback to help you evaluate your progress.

Class Description

Designed as an ongoing resource for experienced playwrights and now in its 16th year, Scene Shop offers weekly character, scene, and story tools to help you develop your script, professional actors to read your work, and constructive group feedback to help you evaluate your progress. If you ever need to miss a session, you can always make it up in the other Scene Shop section that week. Workshop members are eligible to participate in the Scene Shop Showcase, a night of staged readings presented twice yearly in the Russ Tutterow Theatre.

Teacher Bio

Will Dunne is the author of THE DRAMATIC WRITER’S COMPANION (2009, Second Edition 2017), THE ARCHITECTURE OF STORY (2016), and CHARACTER, SCENE, AND STORY (2017) all published internationally by the University of Chicago Press. His plays have been presented worldwide in three languages and earned numerous honors, including three selections by the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center for the U.S. National Playwrights Conference, a Charles MacArthur Fellowship awarded by the O’Neill for outstanding comedy, four Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, two DramaLogue Playwriting Awards, and a Best-of-Year mention from the San Francisco Examiner. He also has been nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Play and twice been named a finalist for the Heideman Award at the Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Thursday Details

Session DatesJuly 06, 13, 20, 27
August 10, 17, 24
(No class on August 3rd)
Experience LevelIntermediate, Advanced
Available DiscountsNetwork
Saturday Details

Session DatesJuly 08, 15, 22, 29
August 12, 19, 26
(No class on August 05)
Experience LevelIntermediate, Advanced
Available DiscountsNetwork


Playwriting Fundamentals (Online)
7 Saturdays
Jul 22 – Sept 09
10:00am – 1:00pm CT
Instructor: Michael Bassett

Looking to kick off your playwriting career?  Get started with “Playwriting Fundamentals,” at Chicago Dramatists!  Study the core essentials of writing your first play, and cover everything from dramatic structure to character development, to writing realistic and vibrant dialogue.  Led by Michael Bassett, this course is dedicated to helping you find your unique voice as a dramatist. The course will culminate with a LIVE workshop of a 10-minute play, on the Chicago Dramatists stage, and students applying all that they’ve learned over the course of the class.

Class Description

Discover, Explore, Experiment, and write!
Discover the core principles of dramatic writing by reading established plays.
Explore your unique voice through writing exercises.

In Fundamentals, you will become familiar with the components of dramatic structure and format, receive tools to explore your unique voice and how to give and receive usable feedback, grasp the difference between dialog and conversation, and will write a 10-minute play or 1st 10 pages of a larger work by applying what you have learned.

Teacher Bio

For over a decade, Michael Bassett has taught playwriting, screenwriting, and dramatic structure & theatrical process at Loyola University Chicago. As an actor & playwright, Michael was a member of the celebrated Circle Rep Lab (Circle East) in New York. His plays have been produced in New York, Chicago and Los Angeles. He is a two-time Hawthorndon Fellowship recipient, received a Sloan Science and Technology Commission, and was a keynote speaker for the Arts/Science International Conference at the Museum of Natural History in New York City. He has won honors at the Hiroshima, Athens and Rochester Film and Video festivals respectively for his experimental film, The Other. He was one of the film editors for Hyperbaric Productions award-winning documentary, By the People. He has written and directed a number of projects through 13Carat Productions, (13carat.com) including Theatre, Dance, Film, Photography, and Multi-Media installations.

Course Details

Session DatesJuly 22, 29
August 05, 12, 19
Sept 02, 09
LIVE at Chicago Dramatists: Sept 16

(No class on Aug 26)
Experience LevelBeginner
Available DiscountsEarly Bird, Network

Scene Shop” Sampler Thursday Nights (Online)
3 Thursdays
6:30pm – 9:30pm
Sep 07, 14, 21

OR

“Scene Shop” Sampler Saturday Mornings (Online)
3 Saturdays
10:00am – 1:00pm
Sep 09, 16, 23

Instructor: Will Dunne

The Scene Shop Sampler is a once-a-year opportunity to give “Scene Shop” Play Development a try without having to make a full-quarter commitment.

Class Description

Now starting its 16th year, this weekly workshop for experienced playwrights offers writing tools, professional actors, and constructive group feedback to help you write or revise your play. If you ever need to miss a session, you can always make it up in the other Scene Shop section that week. Workshop members are eligible to participate in the Scene Shop Showcase, a night of staged readings presented twice yearly in the Russ Tutterow Theatre.

Teacher Bio

Will Dunne is the author of THE DRAMATIC WRITER’S COMPANION (2009, Second Edition 2017), THE ARCHITECTURE OF STORY (2016), and CHARACTER, SCENE, AND STORY (2017) all published internationally by the University of Chicago Press. His plays have been presented worldwide in three languages and earned numerous honors, including three selections by the Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center for the U.S. National Playwrights Conference, a Charles MacArthur Fellowship awarded by the O’Neill for outstanding comedy, four Bay Area Theatre Critics Circle Awards, two DramaLogue Playwriting Awards, and a Best-of-Year mention from the San Francisco Examiner. He also has been nominated for a Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Play and twice been named a finalist for the Heideman Award at the Actors Theatre of Louisville.

Thursday Details

Session DatesSep 07, 14, 21
Experience LevelIntermediate, Advanced
Available DiscountsNetwork
Saturday Details

Session DatesSep 09, 16, 23
Experience LevelIntermediate, Advanced
Available DiscountsNetwork


Chicago Dramatists Class Fee Policies 

  • If you cancel your registration more than ten days in advance of the class start date, you will be entitled to either a full refund of your money or a full credit applied to your account for future CD classes. 
  • If you cancel your registration fewer than ten days but more than three days before the class start date, you will be entitled to 50% of your class fee (minus a $20 administrative fee) applied to your account as a credit. 
  • If you cancel your registration less than three days before the class start date, there is unfortunately neither a credit nor refund option available.
  • Classes that fail to meet the 50% minimum registrant requirement within 48 hours of class start time will be cancelled. In this case, registrants will receive a 100% refund.
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