James Lecesne to Offer SOLO STORY WORKSHOP This December at Abingdon

Abingdon Theatre Company launches its new Master Class Series with THE SOLO STORY WORKSHOP, a three-day intensive workshop with award-winning writer and actor James Lecesne, to be held December 11-13 at Abingdon Theatre Company (312 West 36th Street).

THE SOLO STORY WORKSHOP offers the tools needed to develop the story of a solo show. Participants will find a voice to speak their emotional, political and personal truth. Students will learn to create a structure that carries the story further into the world with power and clarity.

Each participant will have the opportunity to present his or her story to the group, to puzzle out the underlying conflict, illuminate the characters, uncover deeply held beliefs, and create a vivid map of the story.

Over the course of one evening and two days, the work focuses on how to structure a story. By the end of the three days, attendees will be familiar with the landscape of their story and have a clear idea of where to dig for treasure and a plan to continue.

"Storytelling, in any form, is hard work that requires honesty, courage, craft and above all determination. But being a solo performer requires even more because it is the individual telling the story onstage in real time before a live audience," says Lecesne whose solo work includes the Off-Broadway hits The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey and Word of Mouth.

James Lecesne has been telling stories for over 25 years. His most recent solo play, The Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, opened Off-Broadway at The Westside Theater and received rave reviews. James wrote the screenplay for the Academy Award-winning short film Trevor, which went on to inspire the founding of The Trevor Project, the only nationwide 24-hour suicide prevention helpline for LGBT & questioning youth. His solo show, Word of Mouth, was presented Off-Broadway by Mike Nichols and Elaine May and directed by Eve Ensler; he was awarded the NY Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for best solo performance, as well as the LA Theater Weekly Award. He also wrote the book for his solo musical, One Man Band, with music and lyrics by Larry Hochman and Marc Eliot.

As a writer, James adapted Armistead Maupin's Further Tales of the City as a mini-series for Showtime (Emmy nomination) and wrote one of the final episodes of the TV series "Will & Grace." He created the stage play, The Road Home: Stories of the Children of War, a play based on interviews with survivors of wars in Tibet, Bosnia and Cambodia, and presented at the International Peace Conference at The Hague. His play, The Mother of Invention, starring Linda Lavin and directed by Michael Wilson, premiered at New York Stage & Film. James has taught at The NYU School of Continuing Education, The New School, The Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and The New York Film Academy.

His young adult novel, Absolute Brightness, was published by Harper Collins and was awarded The William Morris Award by the American Librarian Association and was nominated for a The Lambda Literary Award. His novella, Trevor, was published by Seven Stores Press in 2012. For more information about James Lecesne, please visit www.jameslecesne.com.

Since 1993, Abingdon Theatre Company has developed and produced new plays by emerging and established playwrights. Under the artistic direction of Tony Speciale, who joined Abingdon in October 2015, the company provides a safe home where playwrights collaborate with supportive theatre artists and receive audience feedback.

Abingdon's 23rd Season continues in February 2016 with the world premiere of A Room of My Own, written and directed by Charles Messina. Plans for the future of Abingdon Theatre Company include new education and mentor/apprentice programs, a reimagined reading series, master classes, newly focused writers group, increased and commissioned programming, and artist residences.

THE SOLO STORY WORKSHOP with James Lecesne runs December 11-13 (Friday 7-9pm; Saturday and Sunday 10am-5pm) at Abingdon Theatre Company (312 West 36th Street, between 8th and 9th Avenues). Tuition is $500. The class is limited to 10 participants. To register, visit www.abingdontheatre.org or call 212-811-4111.

Photo Credit: Walter McBride

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