CHE'RAE ADAMS-DIRECTOR/DRAMATURGE

Friday, June 8, 2007

CHE'RAE HAS TAUGHT WORKSHOPS AT THE FOLLOWING INSTITUTIONS:

UCLA Extension
Catholic University
The University of Cincinnati,

(College Conservatory of Music)
The Kennedy School of Government

(Harvard University)

The Writers Institute @ Florida Center for Literary Arts

(Miami Dade College)
The Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival
California State University, Fullerton

Pasadena Playhouse (Teaching Artist)

The Director's Lab, West
The California African American Museum
The Susan McIntyre Playwrights Festival
The Learning Annex
The Lankershim Arts Center

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

INTERMEDIATE WRITING WORKSHOP OFFERED ON TUESDAY NIGHTS

End of Summer Writing Workshop

This 8-week workshop is for writers who want to develop a script, or rewrite an existing script on which they have already begun work, which may include anything from a few scenes to an entire draft. This hands-on workshop is designed to ready scripts for production by taking a close look at effective dramatic writing. This includes in-class exercises, and the reading and discussing of participants' scripts in a supportive setting. The instructor will introduce proven formulas and exercises, which can be applied to the writing process. Writers will be encouraged to explore their own intentions and point of view, while learning how best to get their script produced. Play scripts (including solo shows) and screenplays welcome.
(Cost is $375.00 per student)

Tuesday nights from 7:00 – 10:00pm
at the Lankershim Arts Center

Beginning July 29th

A telephone interview is required to register for class.

Please call Che'Rae at 323.878.0442 for an initial conversation before submitting payment.

Class payment can be made via credit card, google, or check.

For an eight-week session, a deposit of $100 is due

BEFORE the first day of class. The remainder of the tuition is due on the first day of class.

To pay online, simply click on a “Pay Now” button to the right.

If you would like to pay by check, please contact Che'Rae for payment address.

TUITION IS NON-REFUNDABLE AND NON-TRANSFERABLE.

ALL SALES ARE FINAL.

Saturday, May 12, 2007

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

"Tender" by Abi Morgan

LA Times-Critic's Choice!-“Literate yet idiomatic, Abi Morgan's trenchant drama of the human hunger for connection receives a gripping U.S. premiere by Syzygy Theatre Group. Working with striking designs, director Che'Rae Adams locates the script's nerve endings. Her sterling actors, cast for emotional quality, play it to the bone”…..David C. Nichols, Special to the LA Times

"Walking Thru the Fire" by John DiFusco

LA Times Recommended!-"Under the smooth direction of Che'Rae Adams and Janet Roston, "Walk'n" into issues that DiFusco has grappled with for a lifetiime"...David C. Nichols, LA Times

LA Weekly Go!-"Blending music, dance and poetry, writer-actor DiFusco and co-directors Che'Rae Adams and Janet Roston take the audience on a richly detailed tour of DiFusco's life."...Lovell Estell II, LA Weekly

"Bonkers to Botox" by Julianne Grossman

“Director Che'Rae Adams is a gifted pro who guides Grossman neatly and cleanly around the almost blank stage and makes terrific use of the performer's impressive voiceover talents.”… Jennie Webb, Back Stage West

"Pandora’s Trunk" by Blaine Teamer

”Field’s efforts are amplified by the fluid helming of director Che’Rae Adams"…Julio Martinez, Daily Variety

"Chesapeake" by Lee Blessing

Critic’s Pick!-“There is physical humor aplenty, and Stevens, with the ingenious help of director Che’Rae Adams, mines it for all it’s worth”….Brad Schrieber, Back Stage West

"Fixing Frank" by Ken Hanes

“Adams uses the sparse production design to great advantage, emphasizing ingeniously expressive blocking patterns and eloquent crescendos of dramatic tension to delineate the characters’ complex inter-relationships. This electrifying, supremely intelligent production easily qualifies as one of the finest offerings of the theatre year to date”…Les Spindle, Frontiers

"Freak of Nature" by Ken Hanes

“Director Che’Rae Adams effectively stages the action drawing out the script’s quirky humor and gathering gloom and she is not afraid to put some fire into a couple of sexually suggestive scenes”…Daryl H. Miller, The Daily News

Saturday, March 3, 2007

TESTIMONIALS

"I asked Che'Rae to come to both DC and NH to work with theatre students and writers as her enthusiasm and knowledge are unsurpassed. I look forward to inviting her back East as soon as possible!"…Suzanne Delle, Producing Artistic Director, The Susan McIntyre Playwrights Festival

www.yellowtaxiproductions.org

“Che'Rae's workshop gave me the guidance, analysis and discipline needed to tell my story.”…Julianne Grossman, author of "From Bonkers to Botox"

www.bonkerstobotox.com

"Everything Che’Rae and the Solo Workshop promises it delivers. They are truly worth the price of admission."…Lydia Nicole, author of “Calling Up Papi”

www.myspace.com/thereallydianicole

“Che'Rae brings to the table fingers on the pulse of what makes good theater, and a priceless gut instinct for emotional punch.”…Amy Raacsh, author of "I Know How Mona Lisa Felt"

www.amyraasch.com

CHE'RAE ADAMS NOW OFFERS SCRIPT ANALYSIS

If you want Che'Rae Adams' professional opinion on your play or screenplay, you can now purchase a personal script analysis.

To begin the process, simply e-mail a PDF or Final Draft copy of your script to cheraeadams@sbcglobal.net. Then, click the button below to send your payment. You will receive confirmation of your script/payment via phone or e-mail within a few days of receipt, so be sure to include your contact information. It is that simple!

Find out if your script is ready to be produced!

(Please allow 2-3 weeks for analysis to be completed. Price is a flat rate of $150.00 per script, must be 130 pages or less)

WRITING IS HARD AND OTHE WHINY BABY COMMENTS

Now Available!
"Writing Is Hard..." and Other Whiny Baby Comments-An Objective Approach to Looking at your Own Writing written by Che'Rae Adams based on her lectures from the Los Angeles Writer's Center Workshops with additional material byJon Bastian and Colm Byrne, illustrations by Maxwell Straight. Based on Che'Rae Adams's lectures, this concise but detailed book covers every aspect of the process of turning your story into great storytelling. Whether you have just an idea or a complete draft that needs work, the information contained herein is invaluable. Combined with many exercises and examples, "Writing Is Hard..." and Other Whiny Baby Comments is an important tool for any writer. ($20 + $4.50 shipping)

Excerpts From "Writing is Hard" workbook...

How to Further Develop Your Characters

A crucial consideration to the success of your script is the effectiveness of your characters. I believe that the key elements that make up an effective characterization are character arc, accessibility and likeability.

Character Arc = Your character’s ability to change

Do your characters have an arc? Double check yourself with the following exercises:

1) What is their Objective?

Your characters must be hungry for something! What does your character want? The answer to this question is what dictates each character’s behavior.

2) What is their Superobjective?

What is your character’s higher will? What gets this particular character out of bed in the morning? What drives this person? The answer to this question is what dictates how each character will react to certain situations.

3) What is their Gelman Factor?

Taught to me by one of my directing professors, Alexander Gelman, and therefore aptly named, this question relates to how the character wants to be perceived by others. The
answer to this question will help you to get to the contradictions that exist in each character. Contradictions or opposites in people are interesting and make for well-rounded characters.

4) What is each character’s Arc?

Where are each of your main characters at in the beginning of the script and where do they end up? This question is best answered when considering the character’s mental state, heart’s desire, and innermost secrets.

Accessibility and Likeability

Accessibility: Can your audience get into your characters’ heads and understand who they are and where they come from?

The accessibility of the characters is important to the effectiveness of your script. If you have created a character into whose mind, soul, or heart the audience cannot relate to, then you might have created a character about whom no one will care about.

Likeability: Does your audience like your characters, whether they the protagonist, antagonist or supporting?

The audience not only needs to like the hero or the protagonist, but they need to at least see shades of gray in the antagonist as well. No character is black or white unless it is a cartoon or a comic book character, and even then, the villains have gone thru something in their life that has made them the way they are. Why? Because it is infinitely more interesting to create characters who are accessible and likeable.

Try the following exercises in order to understand your characters better:

1. Write a monologue from the antagonist’s point of view, delivered directly to the audience, in which the action of the antagonist should be to win the audience over to their side. This exercise will help know and understand your antagonist better, as well as help with their accessibility.

2. Give each of your main characters a personal attribute of yours. Include your best attributes, but also try to give them one of your worst attributes. Examples: intellectual, pacifist, good humored, misanthropic, daydreamer, arrogant, etc.

3. Create a metaphor for each main character’s inner emotional state. Examples: Seawall with tide coming in; needle standing on end; a rock in a bowl of Jell-O®; teapot in a tempest.

INFO ABOUT THE LA WRITERS CENTER

Che'Rae teaches writing classes primarily through The Los Angeles Writers Center located in North Hollywood. The Center offers writing workshops and readings to member writers who are interested in developing their work. Our organization is designed to germinate and foster new works by involving not only the writer, but a team of artists: directors, dramaturges, and actors. The first draft of a script, having emerged on raw and stumbling legs from the womb of the writer's home computer, often wants more attention and growth before it is ready to race into production. Provided with a safe and nurturing environment in which to read and workshop their work, writers are able to hone and sharpen their skills to a degree that would make them inherently more production-ready, and thus more likely to be produced.Bursting new talent cries out for a sort of incubator for emerging new works; a place where scripts can grow and develop into the stories that they want to be, without the pressure or expense of production. We believe that the future of American theatre and cinema depends upon its ability to grow and stretch; to be itself transformed in the meeting of bold, new voices.

CHE'RAE ADAMS-DIRECTOR/DRAMATURGE

PRODUCTION PHOTOS

Friday, June 8, 2007

CHE'RAE HAS TAUGHT WORKSHOPS AT THE FOLLOWING INSTITUTIONS:

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

INTERMEDIATE WRITING WORKSHOP OFFERED ON TUESDAY NIGHTS

Saturday, May 12, 2007

WHAT THE CRITICS SAY

Saturday, March 3, 2007

TESTIMONIALS

CHE'RAE ADAMS

BIOGRAPHY

CLICK HERE TO PAY FOR SUMMER WRITING WORKSHOP $375.00

CLICK HERE TO PUT DOWN $100.00 DEPOSIT ON THE SUMMER WORKSHOP

CLICK HERE TO PAY FOR THE BALANCE OF THE CLASS $275.00

CHE'RAE ADAMS NOW OFFERS SCRIPT ANALYSIS

Click here to make a one time payment of $150.00 for coverage!

Click here for the LA Writers Center Member Special Rate

WRITING IS HARD AND OTHE WHINY BABY COMMENTS

"Writing Is Hard"... Workbook

Excerpts From "Writing is Hard" workbook...

PURCHASE "WRITING IS HARD"...WORKBOOK

CONTACT INFORMATION

CHE'RAE IS THE FOUNDER OF THE LA WRITERS CENTER

INFO ABOUT THE LA WRITERS CENTER

LA WRITERS CENTER PHOTOS