Burning Coal Announces Free Theatre Workshops Online

Burning Coal Theatre Company has announced that it will host a free series of workshops for young and emerging theatre professionals. This series will feature experienced professionals both local and national, and will provide critical, foundational training in subjects like theatrical lighting design, stage management, and movement and choreography. Workshops will be made available to the public via Zoom, and will be held on Mondays at 6:00 PM beginning on August 3rd and August 10th, with future dates to be announced. To register, please email us at info@burningcoal.org.

Gabby Abrams will lead a workshop on Stage Management on Monday, August 3rd. Gabby received her BFA in Theatre from UNC Greensboro where she studied Stage Management. She has gone on to stage manage Ashe in Johannesburg, A Midsummer Night's Dream, The Great Celestial Cow, The Container, and Animal Farm for Burning Coal Theatre. She has also worked with other companies such as the Berkshire Theatre Group (Children of a Lesser God and Arsenic and Old Lace), Sacramento Theatre Company (Kings of America, The Musical of Musicals: The Musical!, and Mothers and Sons), and Broadway Sacramento (Costume Rental Coordinator and Costume Shopper). Gabby loves theatre that moves you, and thrives on supporting the team which makes it happen. Outside of theatre, she's a coffee lover, audiobook fan, and Poppy's mom.

Matthew E. Adelson will lead a workshop on Theatrical Lighting Design on Monday, August 10th. Matthew is a Massachusetts based lighting designer and has worked extensively with Burning Coal. His credits include: 2020 Second Stage Series, Talley's Folly, The Container, Churchill's Shorts, Ashe in Johannesburg, Iphigenia in Splott, Darkside, The Greeks, Written on the Heart, Dark Vanilla Jungle (London/Cockpit), Spoonface Steinberg, The Iron Curtain Trilogy (Raleigh and London/Cockpit), The Diary of Anne Frank, Ruined, Shining City, The Shape of the Table, The Seafarer, The Prisoner's Dilemma, Inherit the Wind, Pentecost, Einstein's Dreams (1998 and 2006), Miss Julie, James Joyce's The Dead, The Man Who Tried to Save the World, Travesties, The Doll's House, and Romeo and Juliet. Matthew is the Production Manager for the Five College Dance Department (Amherst, Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, Smith, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst), is a graduate of the Yale Drama School and a member of the United Scenic Artists (IATSE Local USA 829).

Avis Hatcher Puzzo will lead a workshop on Movement and Choreography on a date to be announced. Known regionally as the founder/choreographer of the Triangle's Koffee Dance Company, Avis began working in Triangle theatre as an ensemble dancer in The Color Purple (Justice Theatre Project) and choreographer on Burning Coal's production of The Wiz. In 2017, the Connecticut native received critical acclaim for her directorial debut on The Royale (Burning Coal Theatre Company), A Soldier's Play (Justice Theatre Project), and her choreography for Caroline or Change (Cape Fear Regional Theater). Most recently, she returned to Burning Coal as the choreographer for a new play, Ashe in Johannesburg, and to direct Clare Bayley's The Container. Avis is the Associate Professor of Dance/Theater at Fayetteville State University.