Syllabus - Weekly Class

NEW YORK STUDIO
WEEKLY CLASS 

PHILOSOPHY AND PROTOCOL 

Welcome!  The adventure begins…

1.   THE WORK - "DISCIPLINE AND WILLINGNESS" 

Our code of conduct is based on four deceptively simple yet powerful agreements, as per

“The Four Agreements” by Don Miguel Ruiz, they are:

• Be impeccable with your word
• Don’t take anything personally
• Don’t make assumptions
• Always do your best

This philosophy promotes joy and freedom and avoids needless suffering.  This syllabus is updated often.  Refer to it continually and learn the contents herein. 

Developing your voice and speech is essential to your growth as an actor.  Vocal floor exercises are performed daily, (in the AM and PM) and will be reviewed when we first meet and continually in our work together:

Fifteen minutes on your back with your hands on the lowest part of your abdomen, your shoulders are free, your neck is relaxed, moving back and up:

    a) Release a voiceless hissing sound, as in the consonant "S" for 5 minutes.

    b) Release a voiced humming sound, as in the consonant "M" for 5 minutes.

    c) Release a voiced sighing sound, as in the vowel "AH" for 5 minutes and allow your free voice to reach the ceiling.

Practice yoga.

The 3 basic TENETS OF ACTING are:

RELAXATION – CONCENTRATION – IMAGINATION

The 4 VARIABLES OF VOICE & SPEECH are:

RATE – INFLECTION – PITCH - DYNAMICS

The 15 GUIDEPOSTS  (12 Original Guideposts can be found in Michael Shurtleff’s “Audition”, plus the final three Guideposts, created by Tom Todoroff and sanctioned by Shurtleff)

1. RELATIONSHIP
2. CONFLICT   (What am I fighting for?  How am I meddling?)
3. THE MOMENT BEFORE
4. HUMOR
5. OPPOSITES
6. DISCOVERIES
7. COMMUNICATION & COMPETITION
8. IMPORTANCE
9. FIND THE EVENTS
10. PLACE
11. ROLE PLAYING & GAME PLAYING
12. MYSTERY & SECRET
13. MISCHIEF
14. VULNERABILITY   (Am I revealing?  Or am I concealing?)
15. ARCHITECTURE

The 6 VIEWPOINTS  (the perceptual landscape of the audience and the inner field of focus of the performer)

TIME – SPACE – SHAPE – MOVEMENT – STORY – EMOTION

Monologues are strictly limited to two minutes in length and scenes must run no longer than four minutes.  If your text requires a complex physical set up, be sure to recruit class members when you arrive for your "load in" and "strike”.  Dress for your script, as you must be ready to work within two minutes of your name being called. 

Performers may choose a piece by one of over 250 authors in the list below.  This list took years to compile and it’s divided into eras for your convenience.  Working on writing by any of these authors will ensure your growth.  “If it ain’t on the page, it ain’t on the stage”! 

First Time Performers (those who have not yet been coached by Tom):  We recommend preparing a monologue for the first time you work with Tom.  Or, if you are auditioning regularly – you’re welcome to work on a recent or upcoming audition for theater, film, or TV.  Once you’ve completed the three required reading books, you are welcome to sign up to work in class as often as you like!  Plan on putting up work at least twice a month if not every week!

Returning Performers (those who have previously been coached by Tom):  You are welcome to work on a scene, monologue or audition sides.  Find a scene partner by getting to know our classmates.  All attendees in the Weekly Class are available to work on scenes –whether they attend the full time Conservatory program, or the evening class once a week.  Make friends and get to work!  Plan on always having several monologues and scenes in constant development with different partners at all times! 

When choosing material, please refer to the list of Suggested Monologues and Scenes in your Welcome Package when you first arrive a the Studio.  After you’ve performed a couple times, feel free to explore all the authors on our Syllabus!  If you need guidance – ask!  We’re happy to help!

Prepare two (2) one minute monologues that you love, as backup in case something happens to your scene partner or Tom asks to see additional work from you. 

Please note:  The point of the class is to learn to act, not to get through your scene or monologue.  So please know that if Tom stops you before you’ve reached the end of your performance it’s because he’s more interested in ensuring you know how to work specifically, truthfully and with relaxation from moment to moment under the given imaginary circumstances.

Signing up to work in class:  Tuesday is sign up day!  If you’d like to work in a given Wednesday evening class, please use the online form below to sign up between 9am-5pm the day before.  (sign up on Tuesday) 

Weekly Classes

Stay in the theatre for all of our time together.  The lobby and parking lot are not where your growth lies.   If invited to comment on someone's work, please be sure that your remarks are brief and limited to positive (non-directorial) observations.  Your words must be an addition to what's just been said, not a reiteration. As this is your artistic home, pick up after yourself when class concludes.

Give up addictions.  Avoid anesthetizing your sensitivity and intuition (talent).

Take notes.  Have someone take notes for you during critique of your work.  Learn the prologue to "Romeo and Juliet" and eventually, the five prologues to "Henry V".  These are not required for you to have prepared when you first begin with us, but something to work on independently to further your growth.   Come prepared with materials for taking notes.

Photos and footage may be taken during the course of the class.  Please let us know if you prefer not to be photographed.  It’s understood you’re fine with this unless we hear from you.

There are several reading lists below – only one is required.  The required reading must be done before your first day of class.  The lists of recommended playwrights (Appendix A) and recommended reading (Appendix B) are a gift to you.  This information took years to compile and it’s divided into eras for your convenience.

2.   REQUIRED READING LIST (in order):

• AUDITION by Michael Shurtleff - know the 15 Guideposts numerically – refer to attached list
• THE FOUR AGREEMENTS by Don Miguel Ruiz
• THE MASTERY OF LOVE by Don Miguel Ruiz

3.   YOUNG ACTORS:   (ages 11-17)

Take a look at “Monologues for Young Actors” as well as “Scenes for Young Actors”, both are written by Lorraine Cohen. 

4.   RECOMMENDED PLAYWRIGHTS

(See APPENDIX A)

5.   RECOMMENDED READING LIST

(See APPENDIX B)

6.   ATTENDANCE 

Attendance is mandatory and enrollment is month to month.  If you do not plan on taking the class the following month, two weeks written notice is required.  This means sending an email to nycstudio@tomtodoroff.com to notify the Producing Team of your extended absence.

The only excusable absence for any part of the training is that you are gainfully employed in theatre, film, or television.  These lapses must be made known to us in advance of class.  Leave a message on the Studio line by calling 212-362-8141 or email the studio at nycstudio@tomtodoroff.com if you will not be in class for any reason or if you will be late for class.

A class missed due to a paid, professional acting job (excluding background work and auditions) will be credited the very next month or as soon as your acting job ends. 

If you must drop out of class due to a personal conflict that lasts LONGER then two consecutive weeks and you have given us two weeks written notice, this absence will be credited the very next month or as soon as you return.

A class credit may be used at the NYC Studio or any Tom Todoroff Studio worldwide within one year. 

It is not acceptable to arrive late or leave early for any professional reason.  If you absolutely must leave early, however, please notify a Studio Producer at the start of the evening – especially if you plan on performing that night.  We will do our best to put up your work accordingly.

7.   SCHEDULE

An email summarizing the work we do each week will be sent out to everyone on the NYC Studio weekly Class mailing list.  Please make sure you are receiving and reading this email, titled “New York Studio Bulletin” on a weekly basis.

Please also join the “Tom Todoroff Studio Weekly Class in NYC” on Facebook to stay apprised of important announcements about the class.

Every so often, a guest artist or casting director will be invited to direct the class.  We invite you to share your impressions of this guest teacher by emailing nycstudio@tomtodoroff.com.

Please arrive between 6:00-6:30pm.  If you plan on performing, sign up with a TT team member.  You will be asked for the title and author of your piece.

Class starts promptly at 6:30pm.  Plan to attend the entire evening (class ends at 10:00pm).  If you must leave early, please inform a TT team member at the start of the night.  Please bring food and water with you to class.

8.   STUDIO FEES

We encourage all students to pay by credit card and/or debit card.  Fees for the month are charged to the card number you have given the Studio upon enrollment on the first day of the month. 

All new students pay for eight (8) classes to enroll the first time ($600) then pay by the month after that.

If you have arranged to pay with cash or a check, please place your tuition in the box on the table at stage left on the first class of the month.

Tuition for classes at the Tom Todoroff Studio is $75 an evening and is paid on a monthly basis.  Tuition for the month reflects the number of Wednesdays in the month – either four  ($300) or five ($375).

Please note that there is a $10 processing fee for all tuitions charged to a credit card.

All checks/Money Orders/Cashiers Checks are made out to Fifty-Seven T Productions, Inc.

If you will not be in on the first class the month, please mail your tuition so that it arrives before the first class of the month to:   

Tom Todoroff Studio
10 Hemlock Ridge Road
Weston, CT 06883

Or make arrangements to have your card charged. 

This mailed payment must arrive by the first class of the month or it will be considered late.  PLEASE do not put cash in the mail.

There is a strictly enforced $25 surcharge for any late payments.

If you mail a Money Order or a Cashier’s Check, please ensure you use a carrier (such as FedEx) with a tracking number.

Don’t miss out on your training because of “lack of money shame”.  Communicate. If necessary, we will do our best to work with you in this area.

9.   SMOKING

Smoking is not allowed anywhere on the premise.

10.   VISITING

Producers, casting directors, agents and managers etc. are encouraged to visit, as they can assist you in your career.  Please clear this with the Studio producers beforehand.  In the interest of maintaining our safe space, all guests must be approved. 

11.   QUESTIONS?

Raise your hand.  The only “dumb” question is the one that remains unasked. 

See APPENDIX C for contact information.  The Studio producers are happy to help you with any questions or concerns that may arise.  Please do not hesitate to approach them.

Please keep Tom apprised of your breakthroughs, concerns, triumphs, etc. by emailing him directly at: tomtodoroff@mac.com 

12.   NEW STUDENTS AND GUESTS

Please greet and warmly welcome each of them personally.  Individual will is powerful.  Like-minded group support is omnipotent.

YOU MUST KNOW:

• The 15 Guideposts
• The 6 Viewpoints
• The 4 Variables of Voice and Speech
• The 4 Agreements
• The 3 basic Tenets and the 3 Techniques before you take the stage

PRIOR TO YOUR PERFORMANCE:

• You must have done voice and speech work for 14 consecutive days
• Created flash cards and used them to learn the fundamentals above
• Rehearsed your text at least 250 times aloud (use a “clicker”)
• Dressed for your role (no general street clothes)
• And be prepared to create “place” SPECIFICALLY with furniture and props.

To  “try” is a lie, it makes you cry and then you die!

If you “try” to do it, you’ve already departed from it…

Thank you for your passion, your commitment and your contribution.  We’re glad you're here!  You are not alone on your journey to your true self.  Your authentic self is also searching for you.  Burn bright.  Revel in your time.  The adventure continues…

Love to you,

TOM TODOROFF & the TT Team

www.tomtodoroff.com

APPENDIX A -  RECOMMENDED PLAYWRIGHTS

THE GREEKS (463 BC- 400 BC) “Poets of the world’s grief”

AESCHYLUS
Agamemnon, Oresteia 

EURIPIDES
Medea, Electra, Trojan Women 

SOPHOCLES
Oedipus, Antigone

17^th CENTURY: RESTORATION AND JACOBEAN TRAGEDY

CONGREVE, William
The Mourning Bride

FORD, John
Tis Pity She’s a Whore

JONSON, Ben

MARLOWE, Christopher Tamburlaine

MIDDLETON, Thomas & ROWLEY, William
The Changeling

MOLIÈRE (aka Jean-Baptiste Poquelin)

PYLE, Howard

SHAKESPEARE, William
Romeo and Juliet, Othello, etc.

SHERIDAN, Richard Brinsley
The School For Scandal

TOURNEUR, Cyril
The Revenger’s Tragedy

WEBSTER, John
The White Devil, The Duchess of Malfi

WYCHERLEY, William
The Country Wife

19^th CENTURY: VICTORIAN ERA AND THE BIRTH OF REALISM

SCANDINAVIA

IBSEN, Henrik
A Doll’s House, Hedda Gabler

STRINDBERG, Johan August
Miss Julie

GREAT BRITAIN

COWARD, Noel
Private Lives, Design for Living

DICKENS, Charles
The Frozen Deep, Great Expectations

SYNGE, John Millington
The Playboy of the Western World

WILDE, Oscar
The Importance of Being Earnest
An Ideal Husband

RUSSIA

BULGAKOV, Mikhail
Peace Plays: Adam and Eve, Zoya’s Apartment

CHEKHOV
The Seagull, The Cherry Orchard

DOSTOYEVSKY, Fyodor
Crime and Punishment

GOGOL, Nikolai
The Inspector General

GORKY, Maxim
The Lower Depths

OSTROVSKY, Aleksandr
The Tempest, The Poor Bride

TOLSTOY, Leo
War and Peace

TURGENEY, Ivan
A Month in the Country

FRANCE

DUMAS fils, Alexandre
Camille, The Natural Son

SARDOU, Victorien
Fedora, Les Merveilleuses

SCRIBE, Eugene
Night of the National Guard

GERMANY/AUSTRIA

GOETHE, Johann Wolfgang Von – Faust I

MOLNAR, Ferenc
The Devil
Liliom-became the musical Carousel

SCHILLER, Friedrich
Mary Stuart, William Tell

SCHNITZLER, Arthur, The Comedy of Seduction
Professor Bernhardi

WEDEKIND, Frank
The Awakening of Spring, Pandora’s Box

Note:  Example plays are included to intrigue and inform you of a playwright’s more famous work.  It is not in any way a restriction, but rather a starting point to investigate their texts and discover what speaks to you.

20^TH CENTURY – PRESENT: A NEW WORLD  (C=Canadian authors)

* Not DOUBT by John Patrick Shanleey

02/18/18

Note:  New or original texts (or works by writers that do not appear above) are acceptable and encouraged, providing you submit the material to Tom for review before you begin working on it. Work on scenes and monologues

that are derived from entire play scripts or screenplays (as opposed to anonymous speeches from monologue books).

APPENDIX B - RECOMMENDED READING LIST

 

 1.  Anne BOGART & Tina LANDAU     The Viewpoints Book

 2.  Cicely BERRY                                Voice and the Actor & The Actor and the Text

 3.  Peter BISKIND                              Easy Riders, Raging Bulls

 4.  Richard BOLESLAVSKY                  The First Six Lessons

 5.  Bernie BRILLSTEIN                         Where Did I Go Right?

 6.  Linda BUZZELL                             How to Make it in Hollywood

 7.  Simon CALLOW                            Being an Actor

 8.  Deepak CHOPRA                          The Seven Spiritual Laws Of Success

 9.  Robert EVANS                              The Kid Stays in the Picture (audio version)

10.  William GOLDMAN                      Adventures In The Screen Trade

11.  Uta HAGEN                                Respect for Acting

12.  Judy KEFF                                   Acting Is Everything

13.  Larry LANGE                               The Beatles Way

14.  Kristin LINKLATER                     Freeing the Natural Voice

15.  Art LINSON                                A Pound of Flesh, What Just Happened?

16.  David MAMET                             True and False

17.  C.T. ONIONS                              A Shakespeare Glossary

18.  Barbara & Alan PEASE                   Why Men Don't Listen And Women Can't Read Maps

19.  M. Scott PECK                             The Road Less Traveled

20.  Anthony SHER                             The Year of the King

21.  Edith SKINNER                           Speak With Distinction (know the Seven Points of Good Speech for Classic Plays)

22.  Eckhart TOLLE                             The Power of Now (audio version)

APPENDIX C - CONTACT INFORMATION

NEW YORK STUDIO & CONSERVATORY

212-362-8141

NYC Studio Weekly Class

nycstudio@tomtodoroff.com

NYC One-Week Summer Intensive

nycsummer@tomtodoroff.com

NYC Two-Year Conservatory

conservatory@tomtodoroff.com

REGIONAL STUDIOS

To learn more about our acting intensives worldwide, contact us at intensive@tomtodoroff.com or go to tomtodoroff.com and join the mailing list of the city nearest you!

Check out tomtodorofoff/events to see where Tom is teaching next!