Month 1: Writing Lab

Led by Menahem Haike

Writers develop new material drawn from their lives, environments, and one-on-one interviews with actors through a series of structured exercises designed to create a shared theatrical language. The lab emphasizes how time, space, dialogue, and environment operate within theatrical worlds. Directors observe the process to understand each writer’s voice, logic, and approach to making work.

Through collective discussion, reading, and experimentation, participants investigate how dialogue constructs entire worlds, how theatrical time functions independently of real time, and how the stage itself shapes character and meaning. Writing is treated as an exploratory practice, a space for formal play, reversal, and risk. Actors read new material aloud throughout the process, allowing writers to test language, rhythm, and structure in the room.

By the third week, each writer completes a first draft of a 20-minute piece. In the fourth week, writers revise toward a second draft based on in-room readings and feedback, resulting in a complete script ready for rehearsal.

4 sessions, 4 hours each

Month 2: Acting Lab

Led by Marcel Simoneau

The Acting Lab centers on the actor’s process as both an interpretive and generative force within new work. Grounded in Method-based training and professional practice, the lab focuses on existing truthfully within the given circumstances of each scene, building character from impulse and behavior, and bringing the actor’s own palette into the story.

Actors engage deeply with the newly written material through sensory work, emotional access, character development, and improvisation within circumstance. Exercises are used to reveal subtext, clarify intention, and uncover how language lives in the body. Improvisation serves as a tool to test the text, illuminating what is active, what resists, and where the writing invites deeper specificity.

Writers attend all sessions and revise in response to discoveries made in the room. Directors observe the work closely, taking notes and learning how to communicate with actors, support performance choices, and integrate actor-driven discoveries into the development of the piece.

4 sessions, 4 hours each

Month 3: Directing Lab

Led by Suzanne DiDonna

Suzanne DiDonna is a director whose work is rooted in over twenty years of professional acting.

Her approach to directing grows directly out of the actor’s process. As a longtime performer and acting teacher, Suzanne has a sharp ability to identify emotional truth, resistance, and breakthroughs, and to guide actors toward precise, grounded, and honest performances. From this actor-first foundation, she brings clarity, structure, and a strong understanding of the stage to her work as a director.

Suzanne trained at The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute with George Loros, Robert Castle, and Elizabeth Kemp, and is a Lifetime Member of The Actors Studio, where she worked and trained with Ellen Burstyn, Estelle Parsons, and Harvey Keitel. She has performed extensively in Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway theatre, and recently directed Blackbird and Three one act plays by Edward Allan Baker and Circle Theatre Festival.

Suzanne’s work is defined by a rigorous, actor-centered process and a deep respect for text and stage language.

In addition to Suzanne’s leadership, the workshop will host working industry director Jika Elkaslassy. Jika is an award-winning director, screenwriter, and creative mentor working across film, television, and performance. Her work centers actor-driven processes and the development of a precise, personal artistic language. Her films have premiered at Sundance, Cannes, AFI Fest, and Seattle International Film Festival, and her television work has received national recognition for direction and youth drama.

In the workshop, Jika approaches directing as a practice of listening—working with living material and guiding actors through the relationship between text, body, image, and psychological movement. Her process emphasizes clarity, emotional precision, and the translation of inner discoveries into playable action, tools that are essential to theatre directing as much as cinema.

During the lab, directors present work with actors in the room and receive direct feedback on process, communication, spatial choices, and how effectively they shape time, action, and meaning onstage.

4 sessions, 4 hours each

*The lab functions as a shared process, writers, actors, and directors attend all sessions.

Showcase

The lab concludes with a public showcase of works-in-progress, presented with minimal technical support.

March-May

In this three month workshop, each month focuses on one discipline — writing, acting, or directing — through guided weekly sessions and independent creative development.

March: 8, 14, 22, 28
April: 4, 11, 19, 26
May: 3, 10, 17, 24

Weekends only, 12-4pm

Weekly Sessions:
Participants meet every Saturday or Sunday for four-hour mentor-led workshops. Each discipline runs for four consecutive weeks, with six days between sessions to write, rehearse, and develop work independently. The weekly rhythm supports both depth and sustained momentum.

Independent Work:
Between sessions, participants are expected to complete assigned independent work, especially during the writing phase, including drafting new material, rehearsing discoveries, and integrating mentor and peer feedback. The emphasis is on exploration, responsiveness, and cross-disciplinary growth.

Rehearsal Period:
In the final month, each of the five creative teams is allotted dedicated rehearsal time to independently refine their 20-minute piece.

Performance Phase (June 2025):
The lab culminates in a performance showcase , experienced by both invited industry guests and the public.

Writing Workshop Mentor: Menahem Haike
Menahem Haike is a writer and dramaturg who has taught creative writing workshops across mixed genres at New York University and in Montreal. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from NYU and a B.A. in Written Arts from Bard College. His prose has been published in Two Thirds North and Verklempt Magazine. His dramaturgy work includes a stage adaptation of Beckett’s Malone Dies in Manhattan, a contemporary production of Jean Genet’s The Maids in Brooklyn, and ongoing involvement in devised theatre practices in New York and abroad.

Acting Workshop Mentor: Marcel Simoneau
Marcel Simoneau is a New York City–based actor with extensive experience across television, film, voice-over, and music. His television credits include Gotham, God Friended Me, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Fringe, Law & Order (including the recent reboot), The Blacklist, The Daily Show with Leslie Jones, and Strangers with Candy. His film work includes Nick & Norah’s Infinite Playlist, Kinsey, The Rebound, Imperialists Are Still Alive, and The Pirates of Somalia.

Marcel has performed voice-over work for major commercial and narrative projects including Budweiser, GoDaddy, Chloé, The Queen’s Gambit, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Emily in Paris, Mythic Quest, Halston, NCIS: Tony & Ziva, and Stillwater, among many others. His former band, Hot Seconds, has appeared on soundtracks for shows including The Big Bang Theory, Shameless, Gossip Girl, and The Office. He currently performs music under the name Potterfield.

He trained at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, NYU, Columbia University, and the Maggie Flanigan Studio. He currently teaches Method Acting at The T. Schreiber Studio and at New York University.

Directing Workshop Lead Mentor: Suzanne DiDonna

Born and raised in New York, Suzanne DiDonna is a director whose work is rooted in over twenty years of professional acting.

Her approach to directing grows directly out of the actor’s process. As a longtime performer and acting teacher, Suzanne has a sharp ability to identify emotional truth, resistance, and breakthroughs, and to guide actors toward precise, grounded, and honest performances. From this actor-first foundation, she brings clarity, structure, and a strong understanding of the stage to her work as a director.

Suzanne trained at The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute with George Loros, Robert Castle, and Elizabeth Kemp, and is a Lifetime Member of The Actors Studio, where she worked and trained with Ellen Burstyn, Estelle Parsons, and Harvey Keitel.

Suzanne’s work is defined by a rigorous, actor-centered process and a deep respect for text and stage language.

In addition to Suzanne’s leadership, the workshop will host working industry director Jika Elkaslassy. Jika is an award-winning director, screenwriter, and creative mentor working across film, television, and performance. Her work centers actor-driven processes and the development of a precise, personal artistic language. Her films have premiered at Sundance, Cannes, AFI Fest, and Seattle International Film Festival, and her television work has received national recognition for direction and youth drama.

In the workshop, Jika approaches directing as a practice of listening—working with living material and guiding actors through the relationship between text, body, image, and psychological movement. Her process emphasizes clarity, emotional precision, and the translation of inner discoveries into playable action, tools that are essential to theatre directing as much as cinema.

Participants will:

• Develop an original short work from concept to production.

• Experience cross-disciplinary collaboration with mentorship in all three crafts.

• Present work before a live audience and invited industry guests.

• Join an ongoing creative community of multidisciplinary theatre artists.
  

Fee: $500 per month, $1,500 total per participant (early registration)
Early registration deadline: January 15, 2026.

The fee includes full access to all sessions, mentorship, facilitated access to rehearsal space, and participation in final performances.

Payment plans are available. The first month’s payment is due upon acceptance. Remaining payments are due monthly, beginning March 1, 2026.

All sessions are in person and take place at the Clemente Center in Manhattan’s Lower East Side.

A collaboration between RJ Theatre Co. and The Actor Launchpad, dedicated to raw, immediate, and necessary storytelling that centers the actor–audience relationship.
The Lab cultivates the next generation of theatre makers who lead with empathy, rigor, and collaboration — artists fluent in more than one language of creation.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Selected applicants will be contacted to schedule an interview or audition, depending on discipline.

Admission is selective and based on artistic readiness, curiosity, and commitment to a collaborative, cross-disciplinary process. Early application is encouraged due to limited availability.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need prior experience?
Some background in writing, acting, or directing is required. You do not need to be a fully established artist, but this lab is designed for participants with foundational training or experience.

How do I apply?
Submit the application form with a résumé and a short work sample. Selected applicants will be contacted to schedule a brief interview or audition, depending on discipline.

Can I join if I work full-time?
Yes. Sessions take place on weekends (Saturdays or Sundays). Participants should expect regular independent work between sessions.

Is attendance mandatory?
Yes. The lab is collaborative and process-driven, and full attendance is required. One or two absences may be accommodated if necessary, but commitment to the full process is essential.

How are teams formed?
In Month 3, mentors assemble five creative teams of writers, actors, and directors based on artistic compatibility and working style.

Will all material be performed?
Not all material developed during the lab will be presented publicly. Final pieces are curated during Month 3.

Can I bring an existing project?
The lab prioritizes the creation of new work. Existing material may be considered only if it meaningfully serves the collaborative process.

What is the final performance?
The lab concludes with an intimate public showcase of works-in-progress, focused on performance and text rather than technical production.

Is the showcase open to the public?
Yes. The showcase is open to the public, with select industry-attended performances.

Do participants receive documentation?
Yes. Participants receive production photos from the final showcase.

Who are the mentors?
Writing is led by Menahem Haike. Acting is led by Marcel Simoneau. Directing mentors will be announced.

Is there one-on-one mentorship?
Yes. Individual guidance is available throughout the program, both during and outside of scheduled sessions.

What is the program fee?
Early registration is $1,500 total per participant ($500 per month). Tuition increases for applications submitted after January 15, 2026. Payment plans are available.

What makes this lab unique?
This is a cross-disciplinary creation process, not a class. Writers, actors, and directors shape the work together in real time.

Is there support after the program?
Yes. Alumni become part of the Circle Theatre community and may be invited to future development opportunities.

What’s the deadline?
Early Application Deadline: January 15, 2026 (reduced participation fee)
Final Application Deadline: February 1, 2026