The Next Stage is a unique collection of experiences and influences. Marcia Kimmell, Founder and Artistic Director, was fortunate to have studied with Viola Spolin (mother of the improvisational theater movement in the US) at the Second City in Chicago and the Spolin Theater Game Center in Hollywood. She also studied with Philip Bennett at the Bennett Theater Lab in San Francisco, one of the foremost authorities in the US on Stanislavski's later work, the System of Psycho-Physical Actions.

In his later studies Constantine Stanislavski refined and distilled his techniques, discarding much of what American theater artists know as “The Method.” He discovered that great actors were somehow tricking themselves into an improvisational state to capture life-like behavior. Improvisation must be part of the actor's training and rehearsal process, along with careful script and character analysis.

Ms. Kimmell combines the brilliant techniques of Stanislavski and Spolin to train actors and directors how to create a fabricated “reality” that is completely believable and alive with the eccentricities, nuances and the illogical logic of real life.

Come see why The Next Stage is life and art altering!

Read Marcia's Letter