Workshops

Kafka’s Dick information session

Join director Christena Jackson ahead of the upcoming auditions, which run from Jan 21-23. Christena will introduce the play, its characters, and her vision for the play. You’ll also get a peek at the set and the script and have an opportunity to ask questions.

Read More

Telephone Madness: call for participants

What is Telephone Madness? It’s like Telestrations, but with video and audio!

The concept: you are given 30 seconds of silent video. You have a week to create audio to match. The next week, another participant is given your audio track and produces the other half. Then their video without audio is passed along. Rinse and repeat up to 6 times. We’ll see at the end if the message stays the same, or if we end up going goofily off-track!

The challenge starts on October 15th and ends on December 4th. In the first week, participants will create a short video with audio. In the following 6 weeks, participants will produce video or audio. The audio-visual chains will be showcased for all to see in an event on KWLT’s YouTube channel on December 4th.

If you:

  • Miss hanging out with your theatre community
  • Want to acquire new skills in a low key environment
  • Want a fun excuse to apply skills you already have

…then this event might be for you! To participate, please register here.

Timeline: The games begin with a social event on Friday, October 15th, hosted on Discord; any questions that participants may have can be asked (and answered!) then. Initial videos will be due the following Thursday. The same Friday-to-Thursday schedule will hold for each successive task.

FAQ

What would I need to participate? 

All you need is a stable internet connection and some way to record video/audio. Any modern smartphone will do. You are welcome to use any tools at your disposal.

Do I need a team to participate?

Telephone Madness is a solo challenge, but you’re welcome to use whatever resources and people at your disposal.

Where can I see the final result?

The final results will be streamed in a free live event on KWLT youtube page on December 4th.

What’s the cost for the event?

The event is free for KWLT members and $5 for non-members. 

If you have any questions please contact Sophie Twardus (sophie.twardus@gmail.com)

Flash Madness

Introducing Flash Madness: a Weekend Audio Visual Tech Jam — July 9th-11th.

Flash Madness is a beginner-friendly audio/visual challenge. This event is entirely virtual. It is divided into two parts: an audio challenge on Saturday and a video challenge on Sunday. Participants can sign up for one challenge or both.

If you:
● Miss hanging out with your theatre community
● Want to acquire new skills in a low key environment
● Want a fun excuse to apply skills you already have

This event might be for you.

Timeline of the Event:

Friday Evening (Optional)
6pm-6:30pm Social Gathering
6:30pm-7:30pm Audio Editing Workshop
7:30pm-8:30pm Video Editing Workshop

Saturday
8am Participants receive the 1-minute silent video.
8pm Participants must submit their audio dubbing.
9pm Private viewing of everyone’s work

Sunday
8am Participants receive the 1-minute audio.
8pm Participants must submit the accompanying video.
9pm Private viewing of everyone’s work

Participants can choose how much time they spend on the challenges, and how they spend that time. Workshop facilitators will be available all day to help assist participants with the challenges. The results of people’s work will be shared privately among the participants.

The event will be hosted virtually using Discord.

Here’s a short video that explains everything!

FAQ

What would I need to participate?
All you need is a stable internet connection and some way to record video/audio. For example any modern smartphone would do. You are welcome to use any tool at your disposal.

Do I need a team to participate?
Flash Madness is a solo challenge, but you’re welcome to use whatever resources and people you have at your disposal.

Is this a competition? Will a winner be declared at the end of the event?
No, this is a workshop/tech jam. Videos will be watched in a viewing party at the end of the day with all participants.

What’s the cost to participate?
The event is free for KWLT members and $5 for non-members.

Participants can register through EventBrite. Spaces are limited, so if you’re interested in taking part on one or both days, act now!

If you have any questions, please contact Sophie Twardus.

Theatre and the Art of Adaptation

With live theatre being difficult under pandemic restrictions, many artists have found themselves adapting stage plays to audio or other media. On World Theatre Day KWLT will be hosting a round table discussion on the promises and perils of such adaptation of dramatic works. The conversation will range from artistic to practical concerns, with plenty of opportunity for our audience to participate.

Our panelists are:

Danielle Deveau is an Executive Producer at Midtown Radio. She is also a Lecturer in the Department of English Language and Literature at the University of Waterloo and conducts research on creative cities, cultural mapping, and community engagement.

Diana Lobb has directed four productions for KWLT, including last fall’s The Tragedy of Mariam audio adaptation; her directorial debut included the one-act An Immigration Officer’s Experiences which was originally a radio play. She is also a Lecturer in the Department of English at St. Jerome’s University.

Ciarán Myers is immensely privileged with an MFA in Script Writing from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. He is an alumnus of the Stratford Festival’s Playwrights Retreat, Directors Lab North, the Traverse Theater’s Directing Program, and was the first creator-in-residence at GreenLight Arts. At the moment Ciarán is participating in Driftwood Theatre’s Playwrights Unit and working with young people on a new piece with the Registry Theatre. Ciarán lives here in the Waterloo Region with his wife and daughter where he also teaches acting, writing, and dance to all age groups.

Tickets are free for members of KWLT, $5 for non-members. (If you’re not a member but would like to be, you can also purchase a membership for $15 and then get a free member ticket.)

Workshop: Audio mixing for online theatre

In this hour long workshop, Alex McVittie will walk through the basics of how to mix a song recorded remotely for an online theater performance, and share some audio engineering techniques that will bring your radio plays to the next level using some audio segments from The Tragedy of Mariam to demonstrate effects like entering, exiting, and walking around a virtual stage. The workshop will be done using Ardour, an open source digital audio workstation program, but all the techniques demonstrated can be done in almost any digital audio workstation.

Tickets are free for KWLT members and $5 for non-members. (If you’re not a member but would like to be, you can also pay for a membership there.)

Alex McVittie is a 26 year old software developer who has been playing piano since he was 4 years old, and has been doing music production work on the side since 2015. Outside of music and software development, Alex enjoys cycling during warm weather, photography, cooking, and playing board games. 

Presented as part of KWLT’s Black Box Radio Workshop Series.

Black Box Radio Workshop #2: Producing and Performing for Audio

While it bears many similarities to both theatre and film, audio drama is a distinct art form with its own history, tools, and procedures.

In this wide-ranging session, Eduardo Soto-Falcon of Pilgrim Falcon Productions will discuss the history and current relevance of audio fiction and talk through the process of bringing an audio project to life.

From auditions to voice care, recording venues to equipment, and script writing to distribution, this workshop will have something for everyone — if you’re interested in any aspect of audio work, come join us!

Eduardo is a filmmaker and screenwriter experienced in sound design, recording and editing. His short films have been screened at 30 festivals around the world and broadcast on TV in Latin America, the USA and Quebec. In the last few years, Eduardo has garnered 7 awards and over 60 placements at screenwriting competitions with feature film screenplays and TV pilots.

Eduardo’s focus shifted in 2018 towards fiction podcast / audio drama production, attending relevant conferences and workshops in the USA, investing in sound recording equipment, and adapting some of his film scripts for audio. Eduardo’s first attempt at audio storytelling was the experimental short play “Dad’s Ashes” which has been showcased at radio drama and audio arts festivals in the USA and UK, and is available on most podcast providers. His next production was the full-cast audiobook “Another Snow White”, available on Audible, Amazon and iTunes. His latest project, the audio drama series “Y2K Redux” was conceived directly for audio and received financial support from the Region of Waterloo Arts Fund to produce the first three episodes. This work is available on several podcast providers and will hopefully represent Canada at audio arts festivals in 2021.

This session is free for members of KWLT, $5 for non-members.

Unsure of your KWLT membership status? Email the Membership Director.

Black Box Radio Workshops

Q & A with Graham Yeates

How is voice acting different from acting for the stage? What are some key skills for a voice actor to learn? On January 9th we’ll be hosting a live online Q&A with voiceover actor and long-time KWLTer Graham Yeates. This session is free for members of KWLT, $5 for non-members.

Go to https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/voice-acting-with-graham-yeates-registration-133442793989?utm-medium=discovery&utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&aff=escb&utm-source=cp&utm-term=listing to book your place.

Black Box Radio Workshops

How is voice acting different from acting for the stage? What are some key skills for a voice actor to learn? On January 9th we’ll be hosting a live online Q&A with voiceover actor and long-time KWLTer Graham Yeates. This session is free for members of KWLT, $5 for non-members.

Go to https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/voice-acting-with-graham-yeates-registration-133442793989?utm-medium=discovery&utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&aff=escb&utm-source=cp&utm-term=listing to book your spot today!