Workshop Activities

The work presented by members on our Monday nights at the Workshop is varied and fascinating... from Shakespearean scenes to musical comedy duets, from original one-person monologues to staged readings of new work with large casts, scripts in hand.

After each presentation, the chair for the evening invites the presenters to take a seat on stage and talk a little bit about the genesis of a project and what they were working on. Then the chair will open the floor to comments from the members in the audience in what we call our critique session. This portion of the meeting can be truly inspiring when everyone is listening carefully to the focus of the critique and when the comments are framed constructively for the benefit of the presenter.

But the work really begins to happen when people bring a project back for a second or even a third go-around, when earlier comments have had a chance to inform the work and all of us experience a process of growth.

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Each week, TAW gives out a new word for all its members to explore in writing scenes and monologues. These words are generally simple, yet evocative. All members of the Workshop are encouraged to try their hand at writing short pieces, under five minutes, to present the following week. While it's quite acceptable for a writer to perform their own Word of the Week, it is always helpful and exciting to see a writer give their written piece to TAW member actors for a cold reading. We've seen many Word of the Weeks develop into one-act and full-length plays. And it's been a tremendous inspiration to see actors up on the stage creating never-before-seen characters out of the writing fresh from the keyboard. We encourage everyone to try their hand at the Word of the Week, and we encourage you to partake of the cornucopia of acting talent available to us.

The TAW Writers Salon meets on the first Monday of every month at 6:30pm at the theatre before the regularly scheduled workshop meeting. Writers, actors and directors are welcome. Each month we read short original monologues and scenes based on the Word of the Month. There is a short discussion, followed by a workshop session in which scheduled plays-in-progress are read and then discussed. Additionally, we often have writing exercises.

Led by writer/member Jamie Callan, The Writers Salon is committed to supporting established as well as emerging writers. We are committed to an inclusive and nurturing atmosphere where our members are encouraged to take literary and theatrical risks. With this in mind, our feedback is supportive and insightful, challenging the writer to find their style and voice and to grow as an artist. All TAW members are welcome.