Zoom Workshops in Screenwriting, Songwriting and Public Speaking Announced at Ridgefield Playhouse

In addition to keeping the performing arts available to the community through film and outdoor concerts, The Ridgefield Playhouse is also making their most popular classes available via Zoom!

Now, even if you don't live locally, you can learn from award winning instructors from you own home! Stand out on every Zoom call with Ira Joe Fisher's popular Speaking Fearlessly Workshop is returning to The Ridgefield Playhouse via Zoom. Class is on Mondays beginning August 17 through September 14 from 7:30 - 9pm. Did weeks in quarantine wake up your creativity?

Are you done watching Netflix and other online streaming platforms and thinking to yourself, "I can do that!" In her 6-week "Write Your Screenplay" Zoom class, Award winning screenwriter Katie Torpey will teach you how to turn your story idea into a well-told, formatted screenplay that you can sell to Hollywood. Celebrity Voice Coach Samantha Cole and Emmy Award-winning musician/producer Andy Gundell return with their popular Sing and Write Like a Pro Zoom Workshop at The Ridgefield Playhouse on Wednesdays, September 30 through October 28 from 7 - 9pm. This workshop is for music artists who wish to learn about performing, vocal technique, proper mic use, songwriting, recording, licensing, as well as getting tips on marketing and promotional secrets from music industry insiders.

Are you working from home or continuing classes remotely? Stand out on every Zoom call with Speaking Fearlessly! Ira Joe Fisher's popular Speaking Fearlessly Workshop is returning to The Ridgefield Playhouse via Zoom. Class is on Mondays beginning August 17 through September 14 from 7:30 - 9pm. Presenting in front of a group can be a difficult experience. Whether for business or volunteer work, online or in-person, the ability to speak in public is a valuable life skill that can advance a career and fulfill leadership aspirations. Emmy Award-winning journalist, author and emcee Ira Joe Fisher offers a life-changing, new Zoom workshop, Speaking Fearlessly, featuring career-affirmed strategies - not tricks - for effective speech, public speaking presentations and high-stakes conversations. This virtual workshop will help you learn how to communicate effectively. Students will get expert coaching to help you deliver your ideas effectively, comfortably and with confidence. Ira will show you the ability to communicate effectively - for sales, for your job and for your family relationships - is something that each of us already possesses. This class is also highly recommended for high school students as they prepare for their college interviews. Ira Joe Fisher has changed the lives of communicators in business and the private sector with his Speaking Fearlessly workshops and one-on-one coaching programs. He leads seminars that show attendees that the ability to communicate effectively. Ira has a Master of Fine Arts degree in Poetry from New England College. He has taught poetry, communications and broadcast history at New England College and he lectures and teaches at the University of Connecticut, Stamford, Western Connecticut State University and Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, New York. A prolific writer and poet, Ira was awarded two Emmy's for television writing.

Did weeks in quarantine wake up your creativity? Are you done watching Netflix and other online streaming platforms and thinking to yourself, "I can do that!" Is there a movie idea tucked away in your head that you've always wanted to write? Well, right now is the perfect time to write that screenplay. Once Hollywood fully reopens in the next few months, it will need original content. In this 6-week "Write Your Screenplay" Zoom class, Award winning screenwriter Katie Torpey will teach you how to turn your story idea into a well-told, formatted screenplay that you can sell to Hollywood. The class will take place on Wednesday evenings, August 17 through September 23 from 7 - 9pm. Students will learn the basics of screenwriting, storytelling, story structure, script format, theme, plot, characterization, dialogue and conflict. You will flesh out your story idea into a well-mapped out screenplay and walk away with the tools and confidence to write the movie you've always wanted to write. Just think - you may be the creator of the next Netflix hit movie!

Katie Torpey is an award-winning Screenwriter / Filmmaker with an MFA from UCLA School of Film and Television. She has sold several screenplays, written for television, and worked for numerous studios and networks. Her original screenplay The Perfect Man was released in theaters in June 2005 starring Hilary Duff, Heather Locklear and Chris Noth. The following year, her romantic comedy, "On the Other Side," hit theaters in Bollywood and was a big hit. She wrote and directed the independent film Truth About Kerry shot in Ireland starring Stana Katic (Castle), which was released in April 2012. She also co-created Mother Up! an animated TV series about motherhood starring Eva Longoria. It was one of Hulu's first original TV shows and premiered in 2013-14 and ran for 13 episodes on Hulu and City TV in Canada. Her latest screenplay Spaghetti Park is in pre-production. Katie is currently developing several TV shows, a digital writing product for students, and adapting her memoir into a screenplay to direct. Katie lives in CT on a lake and loves giving back to the community. For more information on Katie's career and life or to contact her directly, visit her website www.katietorpey.com

Celebrity Voice Coach Samantha Cole and Emmy Award-winning musician/producer Andy Gundell return with their popular Sing and Write Like a Pro Zoom Workshop at The Ridgefield Playhouse on Wednesdays, September 30 through October 28 from 7 - 9pm. This workshop is for music artists who wish to learn about performing, vocal technique, proper mic use, songwriting, recording, licensing, as well as getting tips on marketing and promotional secrets from music industry insiders. Guest speaker, Dave Novik, Exec. VP of A & R for Sony, RCA, Universal will be available for questions and answers during the last session. This event is part of our Classes @ The Playhouse Series and Adam Broderick Salon & Spa Whole New You Series, with support from Reliance Merchant Services. Scholarships are available through the generosity of the Beth and Bruce Becker Scholarship Fund. Students will participate in a songwriting circle, get tips on audio engineering and gear, and program tips for a home studio. Students will come away with the knowledge of how to set up, market and release their own project.

To register for classes ($240) call the box office at 203-438-5795 or visit our website ridgefieldplayhouse.org. Scholarships available through the generosity of the Beth and Bruce Becker Scholarship Fund. The Ridgefield Playhouse is a non-profit performing arts center located at 80 East Ridge, parallel to Main Street, Ridgefield, CT.

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