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LEARNING TAKES
CENTER STAGE
NOT JUST A CLASS. A COMPANY.
At the La Cañada Playhouse, students don't wait until after school to create theatre. They train, rehearse, build, and perform as part of the school day - transforming the classroom into a working theatre company
LEARNING BY DOING.
At most schools, theatre class and theatre production are two different things. Students study theatre during the school day - and rehearse their productions after school.
At La Cañada High School, we bring the two together.
Each performance class operates as its own theatrical ensemble, combining direct instruction, acting exercises, scene work, and production rehearsal within the curriculum.
Students learn theatrical techniques and then immediately put them into practice as they prepare fully realized productions for our stage.
THE PROCESS: TRAIN > REHEARSE > BUILD > PERFORM
TRAIN
STUDY THE CRAFT
Students explore acting theory, voice, movement, text analysis, character development, and the techniques of theatre's most influential practitioners.
REHEARSE
THEORY INTO PRACTICE
The majority of class time is spent applying those tools directly to characters, scenes, and productions through rehearsal.
BUILD
CREATE THE WORLD
Students work together to construct, paint, repair, and maintain the repertory scenery that transforms our stage.
PERFORM
SHARE THE WORK
Training culminates in fully realized productions performed for audiences on the La Cañada Playhouse stage.
MORE THAN A CLASSROOM.
Students at La Cañada Playhouse experience theatre much as professional artists do - as a collaborative process in which everyone contributes to the final production.
Actors rehearse together, students help build and maintain the scenery, technical elements are integrated, and weeks of work culminate in performance. Along the way, students learn something no textbook can fully teach: how individual artists become an ensemble.
COLLABORATION · RESPONSIBILITY · CRAFT · ENSEMBLE
THE TRAINING PATHWAY
Our four level acting sequence guides students from foundational skills to advanced training each with its own fully realized production experience.
01
02
03
04
ENSEMBLE
THEATRE
GRADES 7-8
REPERTORY
THEATRE
GRADES 9-12
COMPANY
THEATRE
GRADES 9-12
ADVANCED
THEATRE
GRADES 9-12
DISCOVER
Build foundational skills in acting, voice, movement, character, and ensemble while experiencing the process of creating a fully realized production.
EXPLORE
Expand those foundations through period work, classical storytelling, accents and dialects, and repertory performance.
DEVELOP
Take greater artistic responsibility through deeper character work, script analysis, collaboration, and ensemble storytelling.
REFINE
Integrate sophisticated acting techniques, text analysis, voice, movement, and independent artistic choices through challenging theatrical work.
GO DEEPER
Two specialized classes provide additional training for students who want to explore a specific area of theatre.
MUSICAL
THEATRE
Advanced training integrates acting, vocal performance, and choreography, culminating in a fully realized mainstage musical.
GRADES 9-12
THEATRE
ARTS
Students explore scenic design and construction, lighting, sound, costumes, props, and stage management while helping bring Playhouse productions to life.
GRADES 9-12