The Mask can be used very effectively as a method to teach acting. In Mask, a student’s imagination is stimulated, their improvisational abilities are enhanced, and they are released from self-consciousness, the greatest enemy of performance.

Spontaneous Painting: A playful way to investigate your own creativity. We’re all born creative, but as we grow older many of us forget this about ourselves. Remember finger painting, when you created something for the sheer joy of it, not because you were trying to make “good” art? This workshop will help you reawaken the creative spirit you had as a child.

Award-winning actor, director and teacher Dennis Zacek teaches his Comedy Scene Study Class. Explore such forms as farce, realistic comedy, and high comedy through scene study and class discussion. Students present two-person scenes, with suggested scenes provided as needed. If you’re refining your comedic skills or just want to dip your toe into comedic styles, this is the perfect opportunity. Some experience required.

Works and Words concentrates on concepts pertaining to “why we work”, “how we work” and the results we aim for as artists. Creative and engaging discussion is generated by assignments, critique and slide lectures. Work will be done in each individual’s studio or home and brought to class each week along with notebooks.

Filmmaker Quincy Perkins takes you through the process of creating compelling, intimate portraits of people through the medium of documentary film. Whether the student wants to tell a personal story or focus on an interesting figure in their life, Quincy takes you through the process of outlining, screenwriting, interview tips, camera work, editing and festival submissions.

Find the tools to tell your narrative, exploring possible paths through visual art exercises.

Spontaneous Painting: A playful way to investigate your own creativity. We’re all born creative, but as we grow older many of us forget this about ourselves. Remember finger painting, when you created something for the sheer joy of it, not because you were trying to make “good” art? This workshop will help you reawaken the creative spirit you had as a child.

Key West is the home of “one human family”, but how can we practice what we preach? Social justice advocate Erika Heffernan presents information on how groups and individuals can create more inclusive programming. For this session, Heffernan focuses on recognizing different abilities and cultivating inclusive environments for people with disabilities.

Art journaling has the power not only to express what happens in our lives but to actually affect it through artistic exploration and creativity. In this workshop students are guided through several mixed media techniques that allow them to create imaginative, unique pages in their journals. Learn page layout, how to layer images with media, prompts to get you to start writing, color washes, lettering and more.