2025-2026 Season
Classes for Theater Lovers
Deepen your knowledge or explore a new aspect of theater with our award-winning artists alongside fellow theater lovers. All Classes Will Be on Zoom.
ONLINE CLASSES
on zoom
Introducing: Sunday Morning Spotlight
Meet artists and scholars from all over the world from the comfort of your living room!
One Sunday Morning Spotlight: $50/ $39 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
4 Class Package: $175/ $139 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Climb Ev’ry Mountain: The Legacy of Oscar Hammerstein II
Sunday September 28, 2025 11:00am – 12:30pm
Registration Deadline: September 24, 2025
Will and Mandee Hammerstein (Oscar Hammerstein Museum and Theatre Education Center at Highland Farm)
Battle of the Century: Charlie Chaplin, World War II, and THE GREAT Dictator II
Sunday September 19, 2025 11:00am – 12:30pm
Registration Deadline: October 15, 2025
Dan Kamin (Author of Charlie Chaplin’s One-Man Show and The Comedy of Charlie Chaplin, Movement Coach/ Choreographer of films Chaplin, Benny and Joon, and Mars Attacks)
Multiculturalism in Shakespeare: A Conversation with Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper
Sunday October 26, 2025 11:00am – 12:30pm
Registration Deadline: October 22, 2025
Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper (Director of the Folger Shakespeare Library, Author of The Great White Bard: How to Love Shakespeare While Talking about Race)
From Woolly to the World: Building International Bridges Through Theater
Sunday November 16, 2025 11:00am – 12:30pm
Registration Deadline: November 12, 2025
Howard Shalwitz (Founder and Artistic Director Emeritus of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company)
ONLINE CLASS
on zoom
THE WORLD TURNED UPSIDE DOWN: Managing the Theater of the Future with David Lloyd Olson
September 4 – October 23, 2025 (no class September 25 or October 2)
Thursdays, 7:30pm – 9:00pm
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: August 28, 2025
In only two decades, Theater J’s Managing Director David Lloyd Olson has witnessed and participated in theater from every angle. In this behind-the-curtain class, David invites both theater professionals and enthusiasts to examine American and European theater models of the past and present, to ask ourselves what the elements and challenges of theater management truly are, and to explore how we go about defining mission, developing strategy, and establishing our place in a rapidly transforming world.
David Lloyd Olson made his stage debut at age five at the Marcus JCC of Atlanta preschool and is now proud to be one of the leaders of the nation’s largest professional Jewish theater. He most recently served as managing director of Quintessence Theatre Group in Philadelphia where he oversaw the organization’s largest ever fundraising campaign and the doubling of their annual foundation support. He was manager of the executive office and board engagement at the Shakespeare Theatre Company where he supported the transition of the theater’s artistic directorship from Michael Kahn to Simon Godwin. He has also held positions at Arena Stage, GALA Hispanic Theatre, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and Pointless Theatre. He was an Allen Lee Hughes management fellow at Arena Stage, a Fulbright English teaching assistant in Valmiera, Latvia, and the recipient of two DC Commission on Arts and Humanities Fellowship program grants. He proudly serves on the board of the Alliance for Jewish Theatre (alljewishtheatre.org) and the board of Adas Israel Congregation.
IN PERSON
BEHIND THE SCENES AT THEATER J with Hester Kamin
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: October 1, 2025
Back by popular demand, BEHIND THE SCENES is a window into the world of Theater J. Participants read season scripts and discuss themes, issues, productions, and how material and artistic choices resonate with them. This lively class is facilitated by Education Programs Manager Hester Kamin with guest appearances from Artistic Director Hayley Finn, who will invite artists in the season into conversations about their work. Past guest artists have included Tony Award nominee Ari’el Stachel (The Band’s Visit) and Academy Award-nominated writer/ director José Rivera (Letters to Juliet, Marisol, The Motorcycle Diaries.)
An Enemy of the People
Pre-show: October 15, 2025
Post-show: December 15, 2025
The World to Come
Pre-show: January 14, 2026
Post-show: March 4, 2026
To Be Announced
Pre-show: March 11, 2026
Post-show: April 8, 2026
Avaaz
Pre-show: May 20, 2026
Post-show: June 22, 2026
ONLINE CLASS
on zoom
ADAPTATION GENERATION: The Jewish Holiday Edition with Aaron Posner
October 7 – November 11, 2025
Tuesdays, 7:00pm – 8:30pm
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: October 2, 2025
The stories of the great Jewish Holidays are rich in metaphor, character, plot, action, meaning, and more- the stuff from which great theater can spring! In this class, we will explore the Purim and Pesach stories and how they might be brought to the stage through each student’s individual lens. Then we will play with a little bit of writing, conceptualization, design… and how you might bring these great stories to life on stage in unique and surprising ways.
Aaron Posner is a theatre director, playwright, teacher, former Artistic Director, and a tenured Full Professor in the Department of Performing Arts at American University. Aaron has directed nearly 200 productions at major regional theaters across the country including nearly every theatre in the DMV. For Theatre J he wrote and directed his own adaptation of THE CHOSEN, and his play LIFE SUCKS, based on UNCLE VANYA. He also directed EVERYTHING IS ILLUMINATED and OCCUPANT at Theatre J. As a playwright, his re-imaging of Chekhov’s The Seagull, entitled Stupid Fucking Bird, was one of the ten most produced plays in the country in 2015 and has had more than 250 productions worldwide. His other widely produced and published plays include My Name Is Asher Lev, JQA, No Sisters, District Merchants, Who Am I This Time? & Other Conundrums of Love and many more. He has won more than 20 regional theatre awards, including six Helen Hayes Awards, two Barrymore Awards, a Jeff Award, an Eliot Norton Award, The Outer Circle Critics Award, and the John Gassner Prize.
IN PERSON
DC THEATER TALK with Holly Twyford
December 8, 2025 – May 4, 2026
Mondays, 7:00pm – 8:30pm
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: December 4, 2025
Welcome to the third year of DC Theater Talk! Award-winning actor and director Holly Twyford leads us through a season, exploring four different shows from four different theaters! From comedy to drama, from new work to reimagined classics, our extraordinary arts community is full of work that moves, surprises, and delights us. Holly lends her expertise to in-depth pre-show discussion of the scripts and animated post-show discussions that allow participants to experience DC theater as they’ve never seen it before. This year, DC Theater Talk will include TBA. Stay tuned for details and registration and please note that this class sells out quickly!
Please note that participants are required to independently purchase tickets and attend the four theater shows before each of the post-show discussions. Participants do NOT need to see the shows together – though it would be fun!
Guys and Dolls at Shakespeare Theatre Company
The World to Come, A Theater J and Woolly Mammoth Theatre Co-Production (At Woolly Mammoth Theatre)
Jonah at Studio Theatre
The Minutes at Keegan Theatre
ONLINE CLASS
on zoom
THE SECRET WORLD OF THEATER DESIGN with Tyler Herman
April 28 – June 2, 2026
Tuesdays, 7:00pm – 8:30pm
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Angel Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: October 2, 2025
How do directors and designers collaborate to tell a visual story that sets a mood, impacts our emotions, and takes us on a journey — often in such a subtle way that we don’t realize it? How do actors then inhabit those worlds and bring them to life? Actor, director, and design professor Tyler Herman (Chanukah in the Dark, The Hatmaker’s Wife, Prayer for the French Republic, Trayf) introduces elements of design, offers a behind-the-scenes glimpse of artistic decision-making, and guides participants through a critical look into the visual world of theater.
By registering for our classes, you agree to our policies regarding refunds, make-ups, and more.
A Sample of Past Classes for Theater Lovers
DIRECTING – A PRACTICAL OVERVIEW
Taught by Aaron Posner, Fall 2024
You see plays. You love plays. You understand what the actors do up there, and you can see what the designers design… but what exactly does the director actually DO? What is the process that takes them from the first time they read a play through closing night. Award-Winning director and playwright Aaron Posner takes you through the process step-by-step using wonderful new plays by Jewish authors as examples.
BEHIND THE SCENES AT THEATER J – A SEASON CLASS
Taught by Hester Kamin, Fall 2024
Want a deeper dive into our season? BEHIND THE SCENES is a window into the world of Theater J. Participants read season scripts and discuss themes, issues, productions, and how material and artistic choices resonate with them. BEHIND THE SCENES is facilitated by Education Programs Manager Hester Kamin with guest appearances from Artistic Director Hayley Finn, who will invite artists in the season into conversations about their work.
DC THEATER TALK
Taught by Holly Twyford, Winter/Spring 2024
Ready to see DC theater in a whole new light? Award-winning actor and director Holly Twyford leads us through a season, exploring four dramatically different shows. From comedy to drama, from musical theatre to reimagined classics, our extraordinary arts community is full of work that moves, surprises, and delights us. Holly lends her expertise to in-depth pre-show discussion of the scripts and animated post-show discussions that allow participants to experience DC theater as they’ve never seen it before.
THE LEADING EDGE: A ZOOM CLASS
Taught by Howard Shalwitz, Winter 2024
The Leading Edge is back by popular demand and with all-new material! This
extraordinary class is led by theatrical legend Howard Shalwitz, Co-Founder and
Artistic Director Emeritus of Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, known for its
provocative and powerful new work. Howard has directed and performed in works
by American and international playwrights and received the prestigious Margo
Jones Award for his lifetime commitment to new plays. He now travels the world
with the Center for International Theatre Development, engaging with theatre
leaders in Poland, Hungary, and Russia. The Leading Edge is a front row seat to some of the newest trends in world theatre: participants watch and discuss outstanding examples of de-constructed plays, innovative works made with found text, and unexpected takes on the classics. They’re guaranteed to explode your idea of what theatre can be!
ADAPTATIONS: HESTER STREET AND STORYTELLING FOR THE STAGE AND SCREEN
Taught by Sharyn Rothstein, Fall 2023
Get an insider look into adapting source material for the stage and screen in this course taught by playwright and television writer Sharyn Rothstein (TV’s Suits, Right to be Forgotten at Arena Stage). This season, Theater J will produce the world premiere of the Rothstein’s stage play of Hester Street, based on writer/director Joan Micklin Silver’s film adaptation of Yiddish writer Abraham Cahan’s novella Yekl: A Tale of the New York Ghetto. Using Hester Street as a jumping-off point, this class will dive deep into adaptation, source texts, and transforming art from one genre to another. Students will study several popular adaptations, experiment with creative exercises in adaptation from their own favorite films, podcasts, and written works, and explore the creation and pitching of adaptations for film and television.
PROSTITUTES, CRIMINALS, AND THE WALKING DEAD: SHOLEM ASCH’S UNDERWORLD TRILOGY IN TRANSLATION
Taught by Caraid O’Brien, Spring 2023
Sholem Asch is one of the greatest and best-known Yiddish dramatists and Caraid O’Brien is one of the foremost contemporary interpreters and translators of his work. In this class, you will dive into her rousing translations of three of Asch’s seminal works, God of Vengeance, Motke Thief, and The Dead Man, being published this spring by the Yiddish Book Center’s White Goat Press as The Underworld Trilogy. In addition to learning about Asch and his place on the world stage, this class will investigate questions like: How does a translator anticipate the author’s intent? In what ways do translations change to meet our contemporary sensibilities? Born in Galway, Ireland, O’Brien is a noted Yiddishist, playwright, actor, and extraordinary creative mind. Do not miss this unique chance to study Asch’s stirring portrayals of the human condition through O’Brien’s translations.