FLATIRON — Stella Adler Studio of Acting is offering an after-school theater program free of charge for eligible teens.
Auditions are open through Sept. 28 for the free, year-long program at the 31 W. 27th St. school, between Sixth Avenue and Broadway, where 18 students will get to train for three days a week in voice movement and scene study, according to the studio.
Each semester of the program will culminate in a public presentation of their work.
The program, which the studio runs through its outreach division, is open to students who receive free or reduced lunch, and the studio will give preference to teens who do not have acting programs at their school.
Drama classes give young, low-income New Yorkers a chance to develop a craft while training them to look within themselves for inspiration, according to Tom Oppenheim, the studio’s artistic director.
“The outreach division’s Adler Youth program demonstrates everything I believe about the profound power of art and theater,” Oppenheim said. “At first the students are shy and maybe even scared. But when their minds, hearts and imaginations are tapped, they not only bring language and plays to life in a most vivid way, but begin to show even the most sophisticated theatergoers new nuance through dramatic text and poetry.”
Stella Adler, named for the famous stage actress and acting teacher, has trained more than 5,000 New Yorkers in free programs since 2004, according to a statement by the school. Its alumni includes "Orange Is The New Black" star Kate Mulgrew, who last year partnered with the studio to bring acting classes to prison inmates.
Students can call (212) 689–0087 for more information about eligibility and auditions.
