About
Youth Workshops offers training in vocals, acting, dance, audition preparation, script analysis, scene work, monologues, songs, improvisational work, theatrical combat, and theatrical swordplay. Workshop options include Intro to Theatre, Performance Foundations, a Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Workshop, and a Stage Combat Workshop.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Intro to Theatre runs January 12 through May 4 with Monday afternoon classes; Performance Foundations runs January 14 through April 29 with Wednesday afternoon classes; Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Workshop runs January 27 through March 24 with Tuesday afternoon classes; Stage Combat Workshop runs January 25 through March 1 with Sunday afternoon classes.
• Price: Tuition ranges from $155–$410 depending on the workshop and whether it is taken alone or with another Spring workshop; all students are accepted on a “pay what you can” basis.
The educational program offers workshops in vocals, acting, dance, and audition preparation, with a curriculum described as suitable for all levels of experience from novice to advanced. The module program is described as being able to be taken along with one of the workshops or separately, and enrollment is limited with register-by dates. It is stated that it is possible to be enrolled in a workshop and still be cast in a YES show, with scheduling coordinated between instructors and directors, and that during tech week for a YES show, workshops will take that day off in case any workshop members are in a cast. Enrolling in workshops is not a guarantee of being cast in a show, and jazz shoes are recommended but not required for the Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Workshop. Training in theatrical combat is described as improving posture, balance, eye-hand coordination and isometric strength, and as requiring a certain amount of mental focus.
The Santa Monica Theatre Guild at the Morgan-Wixson Theatre states a mission as a cultural hub providing a wide ranging, fully inclusive theatrical experience for the community, with core values that include Artistic Excellence, Collaboration, Inclusion, Diversity, Balance, Passion, Community, Education and Respect. The Morgan-Wixson Theatre and Youth Education / Entertainment Series (Y.E.S) have been working with youth actors and delighting audiences throughout the Los Angeles area for over 30 years. The Santa Monica Theatre Guild is the recipient of grants from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the Santa Monica Arts Commission.
Jamie Black is described as having spent over 25 years as an actor in Chicago before relocating to Los Angeles, with previous teaching experience coaching the Mt. Carmel High School speech team and teaching on-camera acting and scene study at Actors Training Center, and credits that include work with City Lit Theatre, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Habakkuk Theatre, television shows such as Work In Progress, Carl Weber’s The Family Business, Justice On Trial, the webseries Assigned Female At Birth (AFAB), and stand up on Dat Phan and Friends. Jessica Cashin is described as a choreographer and dance instructor from the South Shore of Massachusetts who began dancing at age two and started teaching her own class at 16, and after college began teaching and choreographing for dance.
Parent and student comments include statements that the workshops were helpful for getting familiar with the theater’s and directors’ expectations and styles, that a child “would light up every Wednesday” to spend time with “MWT peeps,” and that a participant “really grew so much as a performer” and found the workshops “really helpful.”
Last updated March 25, 2026.
• Ages: 7–18 years old
• Schedule: Intro to Theatre runs January 12 through May 4 with Monday afternoon classes; Performance Foundations runs January 14 through April 29 with Wednesday afternoon classes; Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Workshop runs January 27 through March 24 with Tuesday afternoon classes; Stage Combat Workshop runs January 25 through March 1 with Sunday afternoon classes.
• Price: Tuition ranges from $155–$410 depending on the workshop and whether it is taken alone or with another Spring workshop; all students are accepted on a “pay what you can” basis.
The educational program offers workshops in vocals, acting, dance, and audition preparation, with a curriculum described as suitable for all levels of experience from novice to advanced. The module program is described as being able to be taken along with one of the workshops or separately, and enrollment is limited with register-by dates. It is stated that it is possible to be enrolled in a workshop and still be cast in a YES show, with scheduling coordinated between instructors and directors, and that during tech week for a YES show, workshops will take that day off in case any workshop members are in a cast. Enrolling in workshops is not a guarantee of being cast in a show, and jazz shoes are recommended but not required for the Jazz/Musical Theatre Dance Workshop. Training in theatrical combat is described as improving posture, balance, eye-hand coordination and isometric strength, and as requiring a certain amount of mental focus.
The Santa Monica Theatre Guild at the Morgan-Wixson Theatre states a mission as a cultural hub providing a wide ranging, fully inclusive theatrical experience for the community, with core values that include Artistic Excellence, Collaboration, Inclusion, Diversity, Balance, Passion, Community, Education and Respect. The Morgan-Wixson Theatre and Youth Education / Entertainment Series (Y.E.S) have been working with youth actors and delighting audiences throughout the Los Angeles area for over 30 years. The Santa Monica Theatre Guild is the recipient of grants from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Arts Commission and the Santa Monica Arts Commission.
Jamie Black is described as having spent over 25 years as an actor in Chicago before relocating to Los Angeles, with previous teaching experience coaching the Mt. Carmel High School speech team and teaching on-camera acting and scene study at Actors Training Center, and credits that include work with City Lit Theatre, Buffalo Theatre Ensemble, Habakkuk Theatre, television shows such as Work In Progress, Carl Weber’s The Family Business, Justice On Trial, the webseries Assigned Female At Birth (AFAB), and stand up on Dat Phan and Friends. Jessica Cashin is described as a choreographer and dance instructor from the South Shore of Massachusetts who began dancing at age two and started teaching her own class at 16, and after college began teaching and choreographing for dance.
Parent and student comments include statements that the workshops were helpful for getting familiar with the theater’s and directors’ expectations and styles, that a child “would light up every Wednesday” to spend time with “MWT peeps,” and that a participant “really grew so much as a performer” and found the workshops “really helpful.”
Last updated March 25, 2026.
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