Our Education Mission
Bramble Education seeks to provide theatremakers with the tools to find and develop their own artistic voice. By offering a wide variety of classes and instructors, we empower students to direct their energy toward the skills and experiences that most inspire them. Our educators promote collaboration between diverse artists, exploration of new ideas and techniques, accessibility, and ensemble building. We strive for all of our students to continuously hone their skills, thrive in ensemble environments, and enrich the larger theatre community.
Bramble Education Program
UPCOMING CLASSES
All classes take place at the Bramble Arts Loft (located at 5545 N. Clark Street, 2nd Floor in Andersonville) unless noted otherwise.
Stage Fighting for the Actor: how to get your choreographer to love you
April 5, 2025 @ 3:00-6:00pm
$75
Deadline to register: April 4, 2025
Have you ever been asked to slap someone for a show? Ever had to fall over during a performance or tussle your scene partner? If you're in the Chicago Theater scene, chances are, you're going to have to tell stories of physical violence on stage at some point in your career. This class is for you! We'll be exploring techniques the are commonly used by fight choreographers to build our physical vocabulary and equip you with tools you can bring to future performances. You'll walk away with a stronger understanding of how to grab, tussle, fall, 'punch', and depict moments of violence onstage more effectively. By building a foundation of sustainable techniques, you'll be ready to take on more complicated choreography while keeping yourself and fellow actors safe.
This class is great for actors of all movement experiences who are interested in developing their physical vocabulary.
Tristin Hall (They/them- Instructor) Is Chicago born and raised actor, Intimacy and Fight Choreographer trained with IDC, SAFD, and BASSC. They minored in Stage Combat at Columbia College where they were a Teachers Assistant for two years and received Recommended Passes in all eight weapons. Tristin has assisted at Summer Sling in New York as well as the British National Workshop. Tristin has been a Fight Choreographer and Intimacy Designer in Chicago for seven years where they have choreographed at Northlight, Steep, Strawdog, Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Writers, Bramble Theater, Theater Evolve, and Citadel to name a few. Tristin is a proud founding member of Point Theatre Project and of Gladiator Fight Night- Chicago's most immersive Fight Show.
Introduction to Playwriting with Alex Lubischer
Wednesdays from April 30 to June 25, 2025 @ 7:00 to 10:00pm (no class June 11)
$399
Deadline to apply: April 18, 2025
Through a series of weekly writing exercises inspired by the freshest, most inventive plays of the 21st Century, aspiring playwrights will add skills to their storytelling tool belt while writing the first act of a full-length play. Students in the workshop will study plays by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, Annie Baker, Rajiv Joseph, and Alistair McDowall—to name a few—paired with storytelling theory from Sarah Ruhl, Zadie Smith, Simon Stephens, and more. The course asks writers to read like thieves, not like academics: does the play move you? Could you use this structure/technique in your own plays? What is your play doing to its audience? How?
This class is ideal for brand new playwrights: folks who have never written a play but want to try and who have a love of writing. It's also great for beginning-to-emerging playwrights who have written a play or two but have yet to receive a rigorous education in the craft of playwriting. Theatre artists in other disciplines (directors, actors) who want to try their hand at playwriting have also loved this class.
Alex Lubischer is a queer Midwestern writer, born and raised on a farm in Nebraska. He holds an MFA in Playwriting from Yale. He lives by the lake in Chicago with his dog. His plays include BOBBIE CLEARLY (Roundabout Theatre Company, Steep Theatre, Jeff Award Winner: Outstanding New Play), PIVOT (Yale School of Drama, GPTC New Play Conference 2024), YOU DESERVE TO BE HERE (Goodman Playwrights Unit commission; Roundabout Theatre Laura Pels commission, The Bruntwood Prize for Playwriting - Longlist), DO WASPS HAVE DESIRES? (Milwaukee Repertory Theater), WEIRD KIDS (Haven Chicago), THE QUONSETS (Yale Cabaret, co-written with Majkin Holmquist), and SURVEY NO. 5 (House of International Theatre, Copenhagen). Lubischer was the 2017/18 Tow Foundation Playwright-in-Residence at Roundabout Theatre Company. He has developed new work at Playwrights Horizons, Atlantic Theater Company, Page 73, The Orchard Project, SPACE on Ryder Farm, Victory Gardens Theater, First Floor Theater, The Understudy, and Actors Theatre of Louisville. He has been a semifinalist for the P73 Playwriting Fellowship and a three-time finalist for the O’Neill National Playwrights Conference. He teaches playwriting at DePaul University and the Goodman Theatre in Chicago.
What students are saying about Alex’s Intro to Playwriting Class!
“Alex’s class solidified my grasp of the essentials of how to write a play while simultaneously introducing me to new ideas of what a play can be. Through the course’s combination of collaborative in person feedback from my fellow learners and personalized asynchronous feedback from Alex, I became not only a more confident and more competent writer, but learned to be a better member of my writing community. I recommend this course to writers of any skill level — it truly has something for everyone.”
“Alex is one of the best writing teachers I’ve ever had. His reading list taught me about so many ways to tell a story, and his exercises gave me new tools to write my own. He also knows how to create an atmosphere among his students that encourages supportive, insightful feedback.”
“I’m so glad you’re teaching this class again! It was such a thoughtful and engaging introduction to playwriting - it really helped me think about structure while keeping things open for exploration. You create a great space for curiosity and discovery, and I’d recommend it to anyone looking to dive into writing for the stage.”
“Alex is a supurb teacher who has crafted a precise curriculum for artists who are ready to sharpen their playwriting skills as well as engage in thoughtful discourse about plays in the modern canon. He is skillful about creating a true workshop environment where folks are able to experiment with many ideas and learn a framework to productively give and receive feedback. I feel lucky to have taken this class and am a more confident writer and well-read artist. I also really value that Alex and Bramble are actively inviting creators who practice other mediums into their classes, it was great to build community with folks I may never have met or learned from otherwise. 10/10!”