Studio Acting Conservatory, the premier training institution for actors and directors in Washington, DC, is celebrating its 50th anniversary with two public celebrations this spring. Throughout its 50 years, the Conservatory has trained more than 13,000 artists who have gone on to important careers in performing arts on the local, regional, and national scene.
SAC founder and director of curriculum and teacher training, Joy Zinoman, shares: “Training actors and directors in Washington, DC for 50 years has been a labor of love – a passion and dedication to craft.
In the last five years we have overcome immense challenges – finding and renovating a great new home, adapting our training online during the pandemic, and establishing ourselves in our Columbia Heights neighborhood. Along the way we’ve been thrilled by discoveries like the lost Black Last Supper sculpture in our new home, uncovered behind a wall after 40 years.
We’re inspired daily by the faculty of 24 permanent teachers and hundreds of students, who pour their energy and talent into our studios. We look forward to celebrating the Conservatory’s enduring impact in May with alumni, students, and faculty. We will have performances, public interviews, partying, and the unveiling of an original outdoor mural as we stand poised for the promise of the future.”
For its first public celebration, Studio Acting Conservatory will present Shakespeare’s Koolest Women in association with Play On Shakespeare, on Sunday, April 6 from 3:00-4:30 PM.
Using the Seven Ages of Man (Woman) speech from As You Like It, the afternoon will look at the eras of a woman’s life – as infant, schoolgirl, lover, soldier, middle-aged mother, madwoman and more.
Shakespeare wrote over 100 major monologues for women. Directed by founder Joy Zinoman and read by the faculty of the Conservatory, the program features excerpts of Shakespeare’s work presented alongside modern translations commissioned by Play On Shakespeare. Attendees will have the unique opportunity to experience 16th and 21st century writing side-by-side, illuminating how Shakespeare’s text can undergo subtle changes and allowing audiences to more fully understand both the language and meaning.
Since its inception in 2015, Play On Shakespeare has commissioned dozens of contemporary playwrights and translators to translate the 39 Shakespeare plays into modern English, with a majority of the commissions helmed by BIPOC and women playwrights. Each playwright was tasked with matching Shakespeare’s linguistic rigor as they approached the text, imagery, rhetoric, and the structure that make Shakespeare’s plays engaging and accessible to today’s audience. Ultimately, Play On hopes to lead audience members back to the beauty of the original plays. Play On’s commissioned translators include Migdalia Cruz, Marcus Gardley, Naomi Izuka, Lloyd Suh, Octavio Solis, Caridad Svich, Ranjit Bolt and Ellen McLaughlin.
The program is part of the Conservatory’s celebration of 50 years in Washington, DC, will which will culminate in a celebration on Saturday, May 17 from 12:00-5:00 PM. The day will feature a performance by Young Actors of Play On Shakespeare text; an interview by New York Times critic at large Jason Zinoman with SAC founder, Joy Zinoman; speeches; raffles and live music.
Both events take place at Studio Acting Conservatory, 3423 Holmead Pl NW, Washington, DC 20010, and are free and open to the public. Donations to the Conservatory’s public programs are not required, but welcomed here. RSVP for Shakespeare’s Koolest Women online.
Studio Acting Conservatory (SAC) is the premier training institution for actors and directors in Washington, DC. For 50 years, 13,000+ alumni have gone on to important theatre and film careers. Founded by Joy Zinoman, also the founder of Studio Theatre, the Conservatory is led by a 22-member faculty of committed professionals who teach 250 students—of every age and background—each year. The Conservatory also serves disadvantaged DC communities through a scholarship program that provides a theater curriculum for talented young people. https://studioactingconservatory.org
Play On Shakespeare is a nonprofit company promoting and creating contemporary modern verse translations of Shakespeare’s plays that originated out of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. Play On Shakespeare partners with artists and organizations across the globe to deliver and advocate for these translations through theatrical productions, podcasts, and publications. For more information, visit playonshakespeare.org.
Joy Zinoman was the Founding Artistic Director of the Studio Theatre in Washington, DC (which she led for 35 years, garnering 225 Helen Hayes nominations for the theater) and Studio Acting Conservatory, where she created the curriculum and is a Master Teacher of Acting and Directing. She has directed over 100 productions of contemporary, classical, and modernist plays, most recently the New York workshop of when the time comes with Nancy Robinette and the Cygnus Ensemble. She has received numerous awards including for Outstanding Direction and Visionary Leadership in the Arts.