Specialized Programs » Expo Conservatory Theater: Acting Program (E.C.T.)

Expo Conservatory Theater: Acting Program (E.C.T.)

   
Program Code: X08A
 
Our Mission...
 
Our goal is to provide an enriched acting conservatory program through a sequence of highly varied performance and actor training classes and performance opportunities such as scene festivals, monologue slams, and our main stage play productions. Through our actor training classes, performance, theater partnerships and Broadway field trips, our students will be prepared for the rigors of professional work in in the dramatic arts industry including theater, film, television, and voiceover arenas, as well as in college/academia, careers, and beyond.  
 
Students will be trained and prepared to audition for prestigious B.F.A. acting programs, such as NYU-Tisch School of the Arts, Julliard, Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, A.M.D.A., North Carolina School of the Arts, Carnegie Mellon, Atlantic Acting School, Stella Adler Conservatory, Circle in the Square, The Lee Strasberg Institude, Brooklyn College, and the New School for Drama. 
 
We offer a wealth of partnerships with programs such as Primary Stages, the Ghetto Film School, the Stella Adler Conservatory, and Atlantic Theater Company for industry learning and exposure beyond the traditional classroom.  
 
Man standing in front of theater stage
Why choose the Expo Conservatory Theater?
 
The Expo Conservatory Theater (ECT) program affords students a wealth of opportunities to cultivate and showcase their acting talents in a wealth of on-site and off-site play productions. In addition, our students frequently present their talents in school-wide, district, and national acting, and oratory contests such as the Hamilton Project, and with the English-Speaking Union National Shakespeare Competition.
  
We are proud to note that learning in E.C.T. goes beyond the traditional classroom. A large emphasis is placed on cultural excursions, on-site partnerships by professional theater organizations such as weekend and after-school actor training workshops, Broadway and off-Broadway theater trips, and college campus visits to the most highly competitive acting programs.
 
Seven HS students standing performing Shakespeare's Comedy Twelfth Night! on stage.
Course Sequence...
Students in our program will take part in a vertical alignment of actor training from 1st year majors to 4th year majors. 
 
Units of Study include:
 
Introduction to Acting, Ensemble Building, Theater Games, the Meisner Technique, the Practical Aesthetics Technique, The Barrow Group Technique, Contemporary Dramatic Literature and Playwriting, Introduction to Audition Techniques, Monologue Workshops, Classical and Contemporary Texts, the Business of Acting, The Alexander Technique, the Labon Movement Technique, the Linklater Voice Technique, Stage Combat, Intermediate and Advanced Acting Productions with ample opportunities for live performance open to the public and the school community members as well as professional workshops and talkbacks with union artists such as actors, stage managers, playwrights, directors, producers, managers, and agents for professional learning that may lead to crucial networking, exposure, and representation opportunities to allow for more streamlined pathways into the arts industry upon graduation. 
Requirements for Admissions...
 
Students applying for this Ed. Opt. program should have a strong appreciation for film, theater, and television acting as well as an interest in learning professional acting techniques in a conservatory-style environment in order to live truthfully in imaginary circumstances; a determination to work hard, and a strong desire to be in a small learning community of young actors and their teachers are strongly encouraged.
 
Two teens on stage, one standing looking at kneeling student.
Seven teens standing on stage looking at audience
Stella Adler Conservatory students performing Shakespeare's Comedy Twelfth Night! in the Expo Auditorium. Oct. 25, 2023
 
PARTNERSHIPS 
 
 
Red Logo for Stella Adler studio of acting

Preamble

Growth as an actor and growth as a human being are synonymous. The Stella Adler Studio of Acting is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to the perpetuation of this insight, so elemental to the life, work and spirit of Stella Adler.

 

Primary Stages at 59E59 theaters
59E59 Theaters was established by the Elysabeth Kleinhans Theatrical Foundation in 2004 to grant professional space and expertise to non-profit theater companies premiering their work in New York City.
 
Three high schoolers sitting in a dark theater
Explorations Academy students attend a matinee at Primary Stages.
Click on image to see video.

 

 

Atlantic theater company logo

 

At Atlantic, our aim is singular—to empower simple and honest storytelling that fosters greater understanding of our shared world. We are a family of artists dedicated to exploring essential truths onstage, be it a show at Atlantic Theater Company or a class at Atlantic Acting School.

 

Labyrith, theater company logo

Originally known as Latino Actors Base, LAByrinth Theater Company was founded in 1992 by a small group of actors who wanted to push their artistic limits, and tell more inclusive stories that expanded the boundaries of mainstream theater.

 

Ghetto Film school logo

Ghetto Film School (GFS) is an award-winning nonprofit founded in 2000 to educate, develop and celebrate the next generation of great storytellers. With locations in New York City, Los Angeles and London, GFS equips students for top universities and careers in the creative industries through two tracks: an introductory education program for high school students and early career support for alumni and young professionals.

 

Past Broadway and Off-Broadway Trips and Productions

Two teenage girls standing facing each other
Sasha Diamond, left, and Shannon Tyo in Jiehae Park’s “Peerless.” Credit… James Leynse

In ‘Peerless,’ Elite College Admissions Are Something Wicked. The playwright Jiehae Park’s sly and polished adaptation of “Macbeth” transports the characters from the Scottish heath to the halls of a Midwestern high school.

 

Woman standing with a mike

Photograph: Courtesy James Leynse. Yes, I Can Say That!


At the outset of Judy Gold’s funny and furious new solo show, the veteran stand-up says that a comedian's only goal onstage is to make audiences laugh. By that standard, Yes, I Can Say That! is an uproarious success.