Polish Your Craft! A Small-Group Drama Club for the Kid Performing Artist
In this Ongoing acting course, students learn to improve their performance work! Stand out, with help & encouragement from a highly trained actor who spent years in drama & comedy. Message me and get $5 off your first session! #creative
Michael Judge Brislin
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:(175)
What's included
1 live meeting
30 mins in-class hours per weekAssessment
There is an informal assessment for this class as I have trained to a very high level and can guide students to the next step in their craft.Class Experience
US Grade 3 - 6
Beginner - Intermediate Level
Note: This class requires two students, and will not meet with just one. Please see my Excellent One-on-One Classes or my Fun Group classes if you have a single learner. Want to break out of your shell, become confident, and learn to speak with conviction? Want to get better at acting, whether you have no experience or a lot? You have come to the right place! I teach in an encouraging and growth-oriented manner so that students become eager to take the next step, no matter how small, and get excited about this subject. And as students grow in their love of performance, I will encourage them to explore opportunities in their communities to make new friends and try their skills! No previous acting experience or theatre knowledge is required, but any experience students come with is beneficial. Students will grow in confidence and experience what it is like to do public speaking, so no matter their eventual career path, they will have a richer life and a much more well-rounded education. Our schedule, though dependent on what students want to learn, would be similar to the following: Week One: How do you feel? Acting requires feeling and expressing how we feel deep inside, not how we think we should feel. If you are spending all your emotional energy to smoosh your actual feelings and project the “right” emotion, you will do so much work and still not produce something tangible. This class introduces exercises to open yourself up and start down the path of discovering how you feel, which is the only way to get to how the character feels. Week Two: What’s happening in the text? In most works of fiction, the text is critical and needs to be studied closely. This work will often give you clues as to how the author imagines the character will be. This week focuses on searching for information on who we are playing and how what they say and do can tell you who they are. Week Three: Who are you? Casting directors choose actors based on the artist's unique and fantastic personality traits, so what are yours? And how can you bring these traits to your performance work? What from your own life can you draw on to create a realistic character? This week puts a mirror up to ourselves and compares our lives to our characters' lives. Week Four: Who am I in this Story? Characters play different roles in a play based on its structure and how big the part is. Are you the lead, driving the story forward, or are you the small part standing in the hero's way? Am I the villain, or the love interest, or something else? Knowing who you are from the perspective of the play is crucial to performing your role correctly and excellently. These are the kinds of class topics we will cover, and many others may come up based on the progress and interests of the class.
Learning Goals
Students will act together and gain instruction from the teacher, and learn skills transferable into other style of performance, learn how to confidently present themselves, and gain self-confidence!
Other Details
Parental Guidance
Acting classes and coaching by their nature include discussion and performance of potentially mature and emotional topics between student and teacher as part of script work and character exploration. Suggestions made by the teacher regarding acting technique, character development, or audition strategy is not reflective of the student’s personal attributes, appearance, or character, and should not be construed as such. Therefore, directions, instructions, discussions, and any other information or suggestions given by the teacher during the teaching period are for teaching purposes only.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Sources
There are endless books on the study of acting and performance, and many I have read and would recommend. But nothing quite beats performing together online or in-person!
Joined September, 2021
5.0
175reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Bachelor's Degree in Music or Theatre or Arts from Catholic University of America
“The best teachers are those who show you where to look but don’t tell you what to see.”- Alexandra K. Trenfor
SEE MY INTERVIEW BY OUTSCHOOL! :) https://teach.outschool.com/handbook/educator-stories-coaching-students-in-1-on-1-acting-lessons/
GREETINGS!
My name is Michael Judge Brislin; you can call me Teacher Mike, or Michael, but Mike is my favorite 😊
I started acting around 6 years old, pretending to be the Cat in the Hat while singing and dancing — and it’s amazing how much I’m still like that now!
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C R E D E N T I A L S :
🎭 Bachelor of Arts in Drama from the
Catholic University of America
🎭 Attended the University of North
Carolina’s Master of Fine Arts Acting
Program for a year before going to New
York
🎭 Attended Michael Howard Studios One-
Year Acting Program
🎭 Studied at the Royal Academy of Dramatic
Arts Summer Shakespeare Program
🎭 Apprenticed at the Williamstown Theatre
Festival
🎭 Trained at the Northwestern University’s
Summer Training Institute
🎭 Performed on professional Equity
stages such as PlayMakers Repertory
Company
🎭 30+ years of Acting and Actor Training
🎭 20+ years of Singing and Voice training
🎭 5+ Years being an assistant teacher in
schools with kindergarteners, the
autistic, and the partially deaf
🎭 3+ years teaching online
🎭 2+ years teaching Acting online
🎭 Over 250 students taught with over 150
5⭐️ Reviews!
🎭 I have already helped many students get
parts in plays and films, ace callbacks,
and prepare for roles to great success!
F U N F A C T S :
🎸 I was in Washington, DC for the
celebration of 100 Years of Flight!
🎸 I have also studied movement, yoga,
puppetry, piano, guitar, jazz, and tap!
🎸 I once gave a horse an electric carrot by
accident (the horse was fine afterward!)
C L A S S R O O M M E T H O D S :
🎭 I tailor every lesson to the learners who
attend, so that they will get whatever
they need to reach their next milestone.
🎭 I always try to discover what stories
inspire my students, since our work on
becoming real characters involves
connecting to our real emotions!
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I am so excited to use my abilities to encourage your learners in their performance journey. I will help them build their confidence, creativity, and emotional connection & have FUN while doing it!
I can't wait to get to know you & to make amazing performances together!
Feel free to send me a message with any questions or comments. I’ll see you in the classroom! 🤗Reviews
Live Group Class
$19
weekly1x per week
30 min
Completed by 32 learners
Live video meetings
Ages: 7-12
2-2 learners per class
