General Class Information
PHILOSOPHY
For over thirty years, Curtain Call has provided a variety of dramatic arts classes and workshops for the young and old. Our classes focus not only on building performance skills, but also on social and public speaking skills, self-confidence, creative instincts, teamwork, collaborative and leadership qualities. We cater to all skill levels whether the raw-beginner or experienced professional and offer a low-pressure environment where students are able to explore creative techniques applicable to any performance, presentation and social situation. Full-day, summer vacation programs are also available for grades K to 12, as well as onstage and behind-the-scenes opportunities in our Summer Youth Theatre for participants entering fourth grade thru age twenty-one.
*Curtain Call follows the Stamford Public Schools calendar as to vacation, holiday and weather-related closings. For emergency or weather-related closing information, watch our website, News Channel 12 or tune in to 1400 WSTC.
STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
STUDENT AGE RANGES
CLASS SIZES
SCHOLARSHIPS
Scholarships cover up to 50% of any workshop tuition. To apply, simply submit the following to our Education Director, Brian Bianco by email at brian@curtaincallinc.com, by fax at 203-883-1671 or by postal mail at Curtain Call, Inc., Attn: Education Director, 1349 Newfield Ave., Stamford, CT 06905:
- A copy of your most recent tax return (or a letter claiming work disability or stating that your child is part of a reduced lunch program at school).
- A letter of recommendation from a teacher, instructor, mentor or coach who has worked with the student.
- A letter from the student (or their parent if the student is below 4th grade or is special needs) stating why our workshop program may be beneficial to you/him/her/them and why they would be a good fit for it.
- For more information, call 203-329-8207 (x 700) or email brian@curtaincallinc.com.
DISCOUNTS FOR SIBLINGS/SPOUSES
PAYMENT PLANS
Payment plan options are available in two, three or even four installments. Payment plans are not available through our online registration and must be arranged through direct contact with our Education Director at brian@curtaincallinc.com or 203-329-8207 (x 700).
REFUND POLICY
- 100% refund if notified of withdrawal up to 10 days prior to the starting date.
- 75% refund if notified of withdrawal less than 10 days prior to the starting date.
- 50% refund if notified of withdrawal between the 1st and 2nd class date.
- NO refunds beyond the 2nd class date.
MAKE-UP DATES
Make-up dates are ONLY provided if a class is cancelled due to a weather-related or emergency cancellation. Make-up classes are NOT provided for an absence on the part of any individual student.
Classroom Spaces
Our classroom spaces provide nurturing, creative environments for students of all skill levels, from the novice to the seasoned professional.
The Dressing Room Theatre (DRT) Studio
While slightly smaller than our Kweskin Studio, our DRT Studio (located on the second level of Curtain Call’s Dressing Room Theatre) also provides full-length mirrors for dance, air conditioning, sound proofing and a bathroom within the studio itself. The room allows for considerable classroom privacy.
The Kweskin Studio
Located on the second level of our Kweskin Theatre, the Kweskin Studio is the same dimensions as the building’s main-stage. It is equipped with full-length mirrors for dance, air-conditioning, bathrooms on the same level and sound-proofing. The room has large windows that look out onto the Sterling Farms property.
TEACHING STAFF:
Our staff consists of area professionals devoted to education in the arts.
Brian Bianco has been Curtain Call’s Education Director for nearly twenty years. He received his BA in Theatre from Southern Connecticut State University and is a graduate of the National Shakespeare Conservatory. He’s worked professionally in acting, directing, design, scenic artistry and stage management. His resume includes Stamford Center for the Arts, Long Wharf Theatre, the Lamb’s Theatre, National Theatre for the Performing Arts, Bridgeport Free Shakespeare and Radio City Entertainment. He’s been directing and producing youth theatre programs, school drama programs and theatre for young audiences since 1995.
Kristine Bingham Nielsen hails from Tustin, CA and moved to NYC to pursue a career as a dancer. She holds a BA in Dance from University of California Irvine and has danced professionally as well as served as a professional dance captain. She has worked with such choreographers as Tony Stevens and Chet Walker, most notably with Chet’s company, Walker Dance.
Alexandra Cahr is an actor, singer, choreographer and performing arts instructor. Past experiences include teaching various styles of dance and movement at Star Dance Academy (Stamford Rec), choreographer for children’s theater with BCHA’s musical program, Camp Gan Israel of Westport, Westmorland Sanctuary, and the Stamford JCC. Alex has had the pleasure of being a part of the Curtain Call community ever since she herself was a young child. She’s learned many things here, the biggest being that there are no small roles. She’s spent years of her life focusing on acting, especially when there are no words involved. Our faces and body language can tell an entire story. Her goal is to explore acting through movement, sound and creativity.
Jonathan Cahr has two decades of experience in choral arranging for concerts, musicals and his own recordings. His career as an actor and singer spans Broadway, television and national tours.
Grady Dennis is a native of Sumter, South Carolina. Grady began studying theater and performing at the age of six with the Sumter Little Theater (under the direction of the late Katie Damron). He has been a part of many different facets of the theater from acting, directing, writing, producing, acting/voice coaching, choreography, and costume design. Moving to NYC to further his education and pursue a career in film/TV, he wrote and starred in over 100 online sketch comedy shorts, which have been featured in The Huffington Post, Time Out New York, and several other major media outlets. His training includes the BFA program for musical theater at Millikin University, improvisational comedy at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater in New York City, and working under the late Jim Thigpen (Co-Founder of Trustus Theater) in Columbia, SC.
Natasha Fenster received her BM in Vocal Performance from the University of Oregon. This mother of two also teaches with Music Together in Stamford and Rowayton. She’s performed on the Kweskin Stage in The Wizard of Oz, Legally Blonde, Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Nunsense, Mary Poppins and more, as well appearing with several other local companies.
Anne-Marie Gerard Galler brings decades of professional theatre experience to Curtain Call! Dancing since the age of three, Anne-Marie was a professional performer by the age of sixteen, traveling the world by cruise ship… the youngest performer thereto hired by NCL. Her passion led her to NYC, where she earned her Equity card as the lead dancer, Graziella, in the final production of West Side Story personally overseen by Jerome Robbins, in Me and My Girl and Prince of Central Park on Broadway, and in regional productions both nationally and internationally. Teaching dance throughout Westchester NY and Connecticut for the past twenty-two years, she has choreographed for many theaters, and has been Choreographer-In-Residence for John Jay Educational Campus for the past sixteen years. She most recently choreographed Curtain Call’s Summer Youth Theatre production of The Pajama Game, her first Curtain Call production. Anne-Marie lives in Goldens Bridge with her husband, Golden Retriever Braeburn, and son Tristan – her favorite production!
Lisa Lelas is a popular CT acting coach and former NY casting director. She’s helped train thousands of actors who’ve attained professional work in TV, film and Broadway. Lisa is a motivational speaker, a performance coach for the Sacred Heart University’s Women’s Skate Team, the film-acting instructor for the annual Moondance International Film Festivals and the founding owner/director of the state’s first TV-acting studio. She’s a well-known author, newspaper/magazine columnist and was the organizing segment host for ABC-TV Channel 8. Lisa was also the creator/host of “Simply Organized” on Cable TV, for which she won an award for best talk show in the northeast by the Alliance for Community Media Foundation. www.LisaLelas.com
Ruth Lettera is thrilled to be a part of Curtain Call’s teaching staff! In the past, she has served as both the Director/Music Director of many children’s theatre productions, including: Schoolhouse Rock, A Storybook Christmas, The X-Mas Files, Christmas on Angel Street, Winnie the Pooh and Disney’s Cinderella and Alice in Wonderland. She also served as the Vocal Music Director for productions of: Chess, The Sound of Music and The Music Man, as well as The Music Man, Jr. As a performer, she has appeared in New Jersey, Indiana, New York and Connecticut. Not too long ago, she had the honor of being one of four theater-educators, chosen from across the nation, to participate in a once-in-a-lifetime, week-long Broadway Workshop and Performance at the Circle in the Square Theatre in NYC. Ruth recently retired as a teacher in the Darien Public School system where she taught music for Holmes, Tokeneke and Ox Ridge Elementary Schools .
Tony Republicano has been an instructor here at Curtain Call since the beginning and is proud to be on the Connecticut Office of the Arts Teaching Artist Roster. He brings a variety of theatre programs to schools and community settings throughout the tri-state area, is on the teaching staff at Yale medical school’s Standardized Patient Program and performs social-issue theatre with the mobile Interactive Educational Theatre. He is a member of SAG-AFTRA whose film credits include The Amazing Spider Man 2, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Annie. Tony also appears on TV and local stages.
Joseph Riedel is a writer, director, and educator operating out of the NYC, Westchester, and Fairfield county areas. He holds a Masters in Theater Instruction from Temple University. With extensive work as an improv comedian, Joseph’s sensibilities as a writer come from a sense of play. The darker and more interesting a concept is to explore, the more he wants to have fun with it and delve into its meaning. His primary focus is empowering his audience and his learners to find their voice and use art to express the ideas that are most important to them. His newest play, It’s Hell Out There, premiered November 2022.
Caitlin Ann Roberts is a local choreographer, performer and dance educator from Norwalk, CT. She began dance at the age of three and continued her studies at Mercyhurst University in Erie, PA, where she received a degree in Dance with a concentration on choreography. Since then, Caitlin has choreographed over a dozen musicals for some of the local high schools and theatre companies throughout the Fairfield County area. She has also performed with local dance companies including Connecticut Ballet, Velocity and Tapperlesque. For the past several years, Caitlin has had the pleasure of being a part of the Curtain Call Family. She has not only enjoyed performing here (42nd Street, Mary Poppins, Gypsy and Spamalot), but has also had the pleasure of being one of Curtain Call’s resident choreographers (Mamma Mia, Beauty and the Beast, Annie and A Christmas Story).Caitlin’s other performance credits include dancing and acting in music videos, flash mobs, film and television. She has also performed in productions of Brigadoon, Chicago, Sweet Charity, Seussical and Thoroughly Modern Millie. Caitlin teaches a variety of dance styles including Tap, Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Modern and Musical Theater.
Matthew Stolfi is an alumni of Curtain Call’s Summer Youth Theatre. He received his BA in Music from Boston College and his MFA in Musical Theatre Writing from NYU Tisch School of the Arts. While at Tisch, Matthew trained as a Composer/Lyricist under the tutelage of writers such as Mindi Dickstein, Mel Marvin, and Rachel Sheinkin. His performance resume includes acting and singing in many musical theatre productions, the Chorale at Boston College, and training with vocal instructor Carolyn Paulus of NYU Tisch and The Hartt School. Matthew has close to 10 years of experience working with youth in various programs as a Music Director, Piano Teacher and Accompanist.
