Behind the Scenes at Theater J – A Season Class
Date : Wednesday, October 15, 2025
October 15, 2025 – June 24, 2026
Selected Wednesdays On Zoom
7:00 PM–8:30 PM On Zoom
$275 / $250 for EDCJCC Members, Theater J Donors and Subscribers
Registration Deadline: Thursday October 8, 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.)
Hester Kamin (she/her) has served as Director of Education of six theatres around America and is proud to conceptualize and lead Theater J’s first education program. She is a director, choreographer, and writer, and her play about Holocaust survivor Sabine Van Dam, In Flight, toured to more than 7000 people and was honored with an ArtWorks Award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Hester is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University (Phi Beta Kappa) and Ecole Jacques Lecoq in Paris and has had the opportunity to be a theatre artist in France, England, Norway, Hawaii, and Samoa. She is currently in her second year at the Fred Rogers Institute, where she is studying the nature of curiosity. Learn more at www.hesterkamin.com
Class Schedule
An Enemy of the People
October 15, 2025: Pre-show/ Script Discussion on Zoom
December 15, 2025: Post-show/ Artist Interview on Zoom
The World to Come
January 14, 2026: Pre-show/ Script Discussion on Zoom
March 4, 2026: Post-show/ Artist Interview on Zoom
To Be Announced
March 11, 2026: Pre-show/ Script Discussion on Zoom
April 8, 2026: Post-show/ Artist Interview on Zoom
Avaaz
May 20, 2026: Pre-show/ Script Discussion on Zoom
June 22, 2026: Post-show/ Artist Interview on Zoom
Schedule
Battle of the Century: Charlie Chaplin, World War II, and THE GREAT DICTATOR
Adaptation Generation: The Jewish Holiday Edition
Climb Ev'ry Mountain: The Legacy of Oscar Hammerstein II
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