Dear Actors and Teachers,

We had a ball last year in this training and I can't wait for this year's.

Tennessee Williams created about 500 monologues in his many short and full length plays, and we are going to work on quite a few of them—and monologues by other writers too—in Clarksdale, Mississippi again this coming August.

Clarksdale was Williams' childhood home, and the location for many of his greatest plays. I'm super excited to offer this week-long residential workshop for actors and teachers August 13-19, 2025. [Please note travel days are August 12 and 20]

See below for complete information and please feel free to reply to this post with any questions.

Karen

KAREN KOHLHAAS is an Atlantic Theater Co. founding ensemble member, director, and senior teacher. She is the author of The Monologue Audition: A Practical Guide for Actors (recommended by Helen Mirren in her Master Class), How to Choose a Monologue for Any Audition, and the Monologue Audition Teacher’s Manual. Her unique approach to monologues is used by actors, teachers, and schools all over the US and around the world. She was named Best NYC Monologue Teacher by Backstage readers. She is a Tennessee Williams scholar and is finishing a documentary series on Williams’ connection to the Mississippi Delta. Full bio below.

1 WEEK MONOLOGUE TRAINING for ACTORS & TEACHERS

In Tennessee Williams’ Mississippi Delta

August 13-19, 2025

Here's what we'll do:

• A daily monologue and audition technique class in which you can learn my complete approach to monologues (how to Direct, Act & Audition with them); and work on monologues by Williams (I can advise great parts for you!) and other writers. You can finish at least 4 during the session.

• A local tour of sites in Williams' plays, including the Tennessee Williams Rectory Museum where he lived with his grandparents, the Mississippi River, and Moon Lake, which is a setting in many of his plays. We'll read and perform monologues at the sites where they are set. You'll learn lots of biographical info about Williams.

• Accent coaching with longtime Atlantic Acting School Speech master teacher Katie Honaker (Williams wrote lots of Southern characters including many from the Mississippi Delta, but also characters with New England, Italian, Midwest, and other accents)

• Talks by guest teachers focusing on career skills and strategies

• Followup: All participants will have more than a month after we finish in Clarksdale to send video of as many additional monologues ask you like—as well as check ins on the pieces from class—for feedback through Sept 30 :)

• Teacher Training | The actor training will happen simultaneously with a Monologue Teacher Training for acting teachers. Teachers will sit in on the actors' monologue classes, then have teacher training sessions in the afternoons. Teachers can also work on and perform monologues, while learning how to teach my monologue techniques.

• Yoga |There will be a morning yoga option with teachers from Delta Yoga Collective for those who would like it, for a very modest additional fee.

My goals for this training are that all finish with great monologues, a reliable technique, a deep/deeper love of Williams' writing, and lots of info, energy and inspiration for fall auditions, classes and projects.

PRE-WORKHOP PREP | When you register as an actor or teacher, you can send me monologue ideas at any time for feedback and we can discuss good Williams characters for you too (you're welcome to do material other than Williams!). You are also welcome to sit in on my free class, How to Choose a Monologue for Any Audition, which I'll hold (and record) between now and August. When you register I will also send you the first 2 chapters of my book, The Monologue Audition. Please apply those chapters to your first monologue once it is chosen; you can send me choices for feedback pre-workshop too. Doing the prep ahead of time will help you get the absolute most out of our time in Clarksdale.

Tuesday August 12:| Arrive, explore the town and area, hear live blues music. **PLEASE NOTE: if you are planning to arrive before August 12, please make plans for your own transportation from Memphis if you are flying. **ALSO PLEASE NOTE: There will be a Memphis airport pickup on the 9th if needed for those not renting cars; you will be requested to arrive within a certain timeframe to be part of that pickup :)

Wednesday August 13 | We'll have our first class in the morning. Around lunchtime, all can visit the Tennessee Williams Rectory Museum, and then we will have a by-car tour to local Williams-related sites at which actors will read Williams monologues and scenes that are set in those places. We will end with a drive to historic Moon Lake, featured in many of Williams' Delta plays, for a dinner at Kathryn's restaurant at after viewing Uncle Henry's (the former Moon Lake Club/Casino and the setting for Blanche’s famous speech about her husband’s death in Streetcar).

Thursday August 14—Tuesday August 19

GENERAL DAYTIME SCHEDULE (EXCEPT for Sunday August 17, which is a day off):

Actors: Monologue & audition technique classes start in the morning supplemented by guest classes and accent coaching.

Teachers: Attend monologue class, and then Teacher Training in the afternoon focusing on how to teach actors my monologue technique. Teachers can also perform monologues in that class.

Evenings | Clarksdale is a music town; there is live Blues music every night, and Blues breakfasts/brunches on weekends.

Tuesday August 19 | Tuesday ends with a final public performance of selected monologues, and a dinner after which we can go hear live music :)

Training space | Classes will be held in the historic Cutrer mansion, named Belvoir by the Cutrer family and thought to be the inspiration for Belle Reve in A Streetcar Named Desire. Williams featured the Cutrers over and over in his Mississippi Delta plays.

Wednesday August 20 (or after if you're staying in the area) | Departure

POST-WORKHOP FOLLOWUP | Attendees will have until Sept 30 after the workshop to send me video of their workshop monologues (or new ones) for additional feedback!

CLARKSDALE, TENNESSEE WILLIAMS, and the BLUES

Clarksdale is a town of about 15,000 people, located in the Mississippi Delta, which was one of the last areas of the south that was converted to agriculture. Because of the richness of the soil, built up by centuries of flooding of the Mississippi and other rivers, and the exploitative sharecropping system, planters made fortunes in cotton and other crops.

In 1917, when Clarksdale was at its financial peak, the young Tom Williams arrived with his sister, mother and grandparents. His grandfather was an Episcopal minister, and was beloved by his Clarksdale congregation, who he served for 14 years until his retirement. Tom, later Tennessee, would set some of his most iconic plays in Clarksdale and the surrounding area. His Mississippi Delta works include SPRING STORM, BATTLE OF ANGELS, SUMMER AND SMOKE, CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF, ORPHEUS DESCENDING, KINGDOM OF EARTH, THE ECCENTRICITIES OF A NIGHTINGALE, and many other short plays, poems, and stories. He rarely used the name Clarksdale in the plays; instead, he called the town Blue Mountain, Laurel, Port Tyler, or Glorious Hill. But, landmarks like Moon Lake, Friar's Point, the Mississippi River, the names of local residents and businesses, and the proximity to Memphis identify the town. The plays THE GLASS MENAGERIE and A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE were set in St. Louis and New Orleans, but Amanda Wingfield's memories of her gentleman callers in Menagerie are all set here, as is Belle Reve, the childhood home of Blanche and Stella DuBois in Streetcar. Attendees will learn much more about this area and its influence on Williams at the training.

The Blues, the musical ancestor to Rock and Roll, as well as Jazz and Hip Hop, originated in the Mississippi Delta, sung by sharecroppers and other workers. Muddy Waters is just one of the legendary artists who grew up or spent significant time here; others include John Lee Hooker, Sam Cooke, and Ike Turner. Over the last 20 years in particular, Clarkdsale has embraced its blues history and there is live music here every single night of the year.

PREREQUISITES AND EXPERIENCE LEVEL OF ATTENDEES

Actors need to have previous training and experience; no previous experience with my monologue work or Tennessee Willima is required, but you should have had scene study / conservatory training and be willing to put the time into choosing monologues and doing the prep work before we begin. Please send a resume when you apply.

Teachers should already be teachers of acting. There will be prep work before the workshop on a monologue of your choice. Please send resume when you apply.

Auditors can be at any level of experience, and should have deep interest in the subject matter.

Everyone is asked to apply only if you are ready to bring a professional-level work ethic and conduct to these trainings.

Tuition

• Actors | $695 / Auditors $350

• Teachers | $695

HOW TO APPLY | Reply to this post with your resume.

Attendees are responsible for their own travel, meals, & housing.

Air Travel The closest major airport is Memphis, about 75 miles north of Clarksdale. You can travel on Tuesday August 12 to start class on August 13. Departure is August 20. You are also welcome to come early or stay later (but if so please note you will be responsible for your own ground transportation; please see next paragraph).

Ground Travel | This is a car town! Renting (or bringing) and sharing cars is highly recommended. If you don't rent a car yourself, please budget for sharing a car/contributing to gas. We’ve worked it out in past workshops by attendees communicating via Google doc before the workshop. We will have an airport pickup if needed on the 12th and drop off on the 20th, and the rest should work via car shares. I'll put you on the Google doc as you sign up. The class location and many accommodations are in walking distance of each other, but cars are needed for exploring the area, going to the store, going out at night, and transporting from and to Memphis.

Meals | Attendees are responsible for all of their own meals, including the Moon Lake dinner on the 13th, and final dinner on the 19th, except: I will host two group meals at my house. Clarksdale has several great restaurants. The hotels/B&Bs I'm most recommending have kitchens; if you choose different accommodation, make sure to check if kitchens are available.

Accommodations | When people register I'll send a list of recommended hotel/B&Bs in a range of prices that are near the training site. There are also AirBnb's in a range of prices. There will also be 1 or 2 rooms donated for those who could not otherwise afford to come. Ask me about that.

Covid | If you attend, please be willing to be very, very careful around Covid, as we will all be inside with each other a great deal that whole week. That means being careful before you travel; testing before you come to Clarksdale; masking during airplane travel even if no one else is. At the last several trainings we followed those protocols and had no illness!

Feel free to write with any questions

Teacher Bios

KAREN KOHLHAAS | Karen is a director, teacher, author, filmmaker and Tennessee Williams scholar. Director: Karen is a founding ensemble member of New York's Atlantic Theater Company, where her productions include plays by Harold Pinter, David Mamet, Annie Baker, Keith Reddin, Shel Silverstein, Joe Penhall, Hilary Bell, and Kate Moira Ryan. She has also directed for the New York Shakespeare Festival/Public Theater, Naked Angels, Ensemble Studio Theatre, New York Live Arts, 24 Hour Plays on Broadway, the Alley Theatre, Houston, New Dramatists, Menagerie Theatre in Cambridge, UK, The Culture Project, the Practical Theater Co. in Sydney and others. Teacher: Karen has over 30 years teaching experience and is a senior teacher at the Atlantic Acting School. She teaches her own online classes in Monologues; Fearless Cold Reading, Advanced Acting; and Directing. She has taught guest workshops around the country and internationally including theaters, schools, conferences and universities in Atlanta, Austin, Seattle, Memphis, Dallas, Cleveland, Burlington, Oklahoma City, Miami, Mississippi, the UK and Australia, and also Monologue Teacher Training to university and high school teachers. Author: Karen's books include The Monologue Audition: A Practical Guide for Actors; How to Choose a Monologue for Any Audition, and the Monologue Audition Teacher's Manual. Filmmaker: Karen's films include two with acclaimed performer/playwright Taylor Mac, and several short documentaries and instructional films. She is currently editing a documentary series about Tennessee Williams in the Mississippi Delta. Tennessee Williams Scholar: Karen is the curator of the Tennessee Williams Rectory Museum in Clarksdale, Mississippi, and is frequently a presenter and panelist at the New Orleans and Mississippi Delta Tennessee Williams Festivals.

KATIE HONAKER | Katie is an actor, voice-over artist, teacher and coach who has been teaching voice and speech at Atlantic Acting School/NYU Tisch since 2003. She became a certified Miller Voice Method teacher in 2021. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, she lives in Brooklyn, New York with her husband, two daughters and sweet dog May. You can find out more about Katie here: www.katiehonaker.com

Notice: Audition Call Type: EPA

AUDITION DATE
Monday, June 2, 2025
9:00 AM - 1:00 PM (C)
Lunch 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM

APPOINTMENTS
To schedule an audition appointment please go to: https://stagemanager.unl.edu/A....

CONTRACT
Independent Theatre Contract $761 weekly minimum

SEEKING
Equity actor for role of Hercule Poirot in MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS (See
breakdown).
Actors of all ages, ethnicities, body types, and genders are encouraged to audition. Please feel free to audition regardless of the age and gender listed for each character.

PREPARATION
Please prepare 2 contrasting contemporary monologues, 1 dramatic (no accent) and a
second comedic (choose any non-British European accent), not to exceed 5 minutes
combined.

LOCATION
Howell Memorial Theatre in Temple Building
1209 R Street
Lincoln, NE 68588
Check in: 1st Floor Lobby

PERSONNEL
Expected to attend:
Artistic Director/Executive Director: Hank Stratton
Production Stage Manager: Brad Buffum

OTHER DATES
1st Rehearsal: 10/6/2025
Opening: 11/13/2025
Closing: 11/23/2025

OTHER

https://nebraskarep.org

An Equity Monitor will not be provided. The producer will run all aspects of this audition.
Equity’s contracts prohibit discrimination.
Equity is committed to diversity and encourages all its employers to engage in apolicy of equal employment opportunity mdesigned to promote a positive model of inclusion. As such, Equity encourages performers of all ethnicities, gender identities, and ages, as well as performers with disabilities, to attend every audition.

Always bring your Equity Membership card to auditions.

BREAKDOWN

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

SEEKING:

Hercule Poirot: (French accent) 40s – 60s. Famous Belgian detective; a “Big” personality;
authoritative, witty, charismatic and slightly pompous; driven to find the answers, good or bad, with a strong moral sense.

Monsieur Bouc: CAST. (French accent) 30s – 60s. A Belgian of good humor. An excellent comedian. Colonel Arbuthnot: CAST. Scotsman, also middle aged, handsome, very matter of fact, occasionally tender; has great comic timing.

Samuel Ratchett: CAST. middle-aged American businessman.

Helen Hubbard: CAST. (Minnesota accent) 40s – 70s. An outspoken and flamboyant American from the Midwest. Also sings.

Countess Andrenyi: CAST. (Hungarian accent) 30s – 50s. Brilliantly beautiful, like something out of a fairytale.

Mary Debenham: CAST. (English accent) 20s – 30s. An English beauty; a governess.

Princess Dragomiroff: CAST. (Russian accent) 40s – 70s. Russian dowager; very formal.

Hector MacQueen: CAST. (American) 20s – 50s. Tightly wound, edgy and nervous.

Michel: CAST. the Conductor (French accent)

Marcel: CAST. a Turkish waiter, snooty, smooth.

Greta Ohlsson: CAST. (Swedish accent) 20s – 60s. Inherently odd, and very devout Swede.

Accepting video auditions – Wicked Witch in Shrek the Musical and Dolly Levi in Hello Dolly!
One actor will play both roles in our summer season. Hiring one actor.

Time Commitment is June 11 to August 16. This is a non-equity cast call for our summer stock theatre. The stipend is $1,000 per production.

Please send video link(s) of vocals & dance along with headshot and resume to [email protected]. If you tap, please include in dance reel.

All rehearsals and performances are in Plymouth, MA. This is a resident company.

To find out more about Priscilla Beach Theatre, check out www.PBTheatre.org\summer.