Explore the crafts of Acting and Directing with two brand new adult courses at The Academy!

INTRO TO ACTING (for the stage)
with Aaron Willis & Julie Tepperman
7 weeks - Wednesdays from 6:00-8:30pm
DATES: January 28, February 4, 11, 18, 25, March 4, 11 and Thursday
March 12
*March 11 & 12 will be from 6-9pm and combined with the directing students
Total Hours of Instruction: 21 
Total Cost: $600
Ages 18+

This beginner acting class builds strong foundational skills through practical exercises and hands-on scene study exploration. Students will explore essential acting tools with an emphasis on voice and body work, improvisation, and the importance of play, all within a supportive, ensemble-driven environment. Working in pairs, actors will be assigned a scene from a play and guided through a clear, step-by-step process of text analysis and rehearsal, including: objectives, obstacles, tactics, stakes, active listening, unit work, the operative word exercise, subtext, inner monologue, moment before, and effective text preparation. Instructor coaching will mirror a professional rehearsal room, helping actors develop the skills needed to collaborate productively with a director, applying their techniques with increasing specificity and confidence. In the seventh week, acting students will join the beginner directing students to practice clear and specific communication, as the directors direct the actors in their scenes. This course is ideal for absolute beginner actors, and those with some prior training who want to stay active and expand their craft.

INTRO TO DIRECRTING (for the stage)
with Aaron Willis
7 weeks - Wednesdays from 6:00-8:30pm
DATES: January 29, February 5, 12, 19, 26, March 5, 11 and Thursday
March 12
*March 11 & 12 will be from 6-9pm and combined with the acting students
Total Hours of Instruction: 21 
Total Cost: $600
Ages 18+

This beginner directing course introduces students to the core skills needed to lead a rehearsal process with clarity, confidence, and purpose. Over seven weeks, students will build foundational directing tools including: script analysis, approaches to staging, leadership, and effective communication with actors, while developing a clear personal point of view. Students will learn how to prepare a script for rehearsal through detailed analysis of units, events, intentions, and obstacles, as well as identifying the play’s main idea and main event. Classes will focus on visual and spatial storytelling, blocking fundamentals, and rehearsal planning. Through mock directing and in-class labs, students will practice giving clear, actionable notes and shaping scenes in real time, with feedback and revision throughout the process. In the seventh week, directing students will join the beginner acting students to practice clear and specific communication as they direct the actors in their two-hander scenes, supported by instructor coaching. This course is ideal for beginner directors
seeking a practical, hands-on introduction to directing, including actors looking to expand into directing.

About the Instructors

Aaron Willis is an actor, director, and arts educator; Julie Tepperman is an actor, playwright, and arts educator. Together, they are co-founders and artistic co-directors of the Dora award-winning, Toronto-based, immersive theatre company Convergence Theatre. Since 2006, they have worked with over 200 artists in creating intimate, immediate, immersive live theatrical experiences across the city in unexpected venue partnerships, including with: an elementary school, The Gladstone Hotel, a Synagogue, a Church, Withrow Park, Aunties & Uncles Restaurant, a private residence garage & backyard, an executive board room, an artist’s studio, and on the telephone! Through Convergence Theatre, they aim to challenge public notions of how and where a live theatrical production can unfold, with the goals of igniting the imaginations of avid theatre-goers, and invigorating a whole new generation of theatre-enthusiasts.  As professional actors/playwright/directors, they have worked with every major theatre company across the city, including: Canadian Stage, Soulpepper, Tarragon Theatre, the Luminato Festival and more. For the last two decades, they have been Teaching Artists with The Stratford Festival, where Aaron has assistant directed as part of the inaugural Michael Langham Directing cohort, and where Julie has been a member of the Acting Company as well as a Playwright Retreat Artist.

As passionate arts educators, they teach at the university/college level (TMU, UofT, George Brown, Humber, Toronto Film School), in secondary and elementary schools across the Toronto, York & Peel District School Boards, as well as with theatres for Young Audiences (YPT, Roseneath, Theatre Direct). In 2014, they co-founded the Passionate Players Community Theatre Program, an initiative dedicated to working with (mostly) senior citizens who have a passion for theatre and acting. Together and independently, they offer adult courses in acting, directing, playwriting, and self-producing. Julie and Aaron believe that theatre, and the arts in general, are an integral part of any person’s continuing development and education; these are skills that can be learned and honed at any age, whether your goal is to simply have fun and enhance your quality of life, or continue to exercise your muscles as you pursue professional work in the theatre.