Three Weekend Radio Drama Class to be offered at Columbia College

Press Release
Contact: Office of the College President, Coni Chavez, (209) 588-5115
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  December 8, 2011 

Columbia College will offer a 3-weekend short course - Exploring Radio Drama - beginning on Saturday, January 21 and running through Sunday, February 5.  The class will meet in the Dogwood Forum Building on campus from 9:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday of the first two weekends.  On the third weekend, the class will be held in a local sound studio where the scripts will be recorded.    Ellen Stewart will teach the class in Radio Drama, which has become an annual Columbia College event, having been offered each year for the past decade.

Stewart states, “This year we will break into small groups to create new scripts written in the vein of specific genres, such as adventure, western or science fiction.  Then we’ll refine the scripts, rehearse them, create the sound effects, find appropriate music and ultimately record the completed production.”

She continues, “Each script will be a mini-production company of its own, with sound effect artists, actors and a director.”

Stewart adds, “We always have great fun working on these productions.  It’s a wonderful opportunity to focus on the voice as well as the imagination without having to worry about memorization.  And working collaboratively as playwrights, while creatively challenging, is often amazing in terms of the results.”

Stewart is a professor emeritus at Columbia College where she taught for many years in the drama and speech departments.  For the past ten years she has been part of the National Audio Theatre Festivals held in Missouri each June.  This past year she produced the annual NATF performance of a number of audio productions. In previous years, she has directed plays and acted in many, including Leap for Freedom, nominated for an Audie Award for best original audio play in 2010. Currently, she serves on the Executive Board for the National Audio Theatre Festival.

Adult actors of all ages are welcome to enroll for the course for which 1.5 units of college credit is offered, either as DRAMA 19 or SPCOM 19. 

For further information regarding the class, contact Ellen Stewart at 532-1006.  To register, contact the College Admissions and Records office at 588-5231.

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Coni M. Chavez
Executive Assistant to the President
Columbia College
11600 Columbia College Drive
Sonora, CA 95370
(209) 588-5115 • (209) 588-5161 fax
chavezc@yosemite.edu