Hoboken Children’s Theater
55 Sterling Ave., Weehawken
646-339-8485
When it comes to theater, there’s only so much you can learn in a classroom—which is why (in addition to offering plenty of acting workshops) the Hoboken Children’s Theater gives teens serious about performing the chance to join one of their two audition-only theater companies: The Junior Company (ages 11 to 15) and the Senior Company (ages 14 and up). Weeks of classes and rehearsals all culminate in one to two weeks of performances (with real scripts, costumes and choreography) at the Monroe TheatreSpace in Hoboken. Past productions include Legally Blonde the Musical, Les Miserables, The Wizard of Oz and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.
Kelsey Theatre at Mercer County Community College
1200 Old Trenton Rd., West Windsor
609-570-3333
For more than 40 years, the Kelsey Theatre at Mercer County Community College’s Tomato Patch Visual and Performing Arts Workshops have taught over 6,500 teens everything they need to know to land their next role. Tomato Patch is central Jersey’s longest running arts program with training in theater, dance, vocals, comedy, video, musical theater and more —and no where is proof of the program’s excellence more evident than in its list of star-studded alum. Nationally touring productions and TV shows past and present are full of former Tomato Patchers, including Broadways’ Chicago and Legally Blonde The Musical, and HBO’s The Sopranos.
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey
3 Vreeland Rd., Florham Park
973-845-6723
For an actor, there’s arguably no better foundation than a background in Shakespeare. Luckily for Garden State teens, there’s The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey—the state’s largest professional theater company dedicated solely to the bard and home to The Shakespeare Theatre Academy. In classes like “Teen Actors Workshop,” students use games, scene work and (of course) Shakespearean texts to learn about movement, speech and character creation. Actors-in-training are invited to join the Junior Shakespeare Corps (ages 11 to 14) and the Senior Shakespeare Corps (ages 14 to 18) to showcase their skills on stage in Madison’s 400-seat Dorothy Young Center for the Arts. Past performances include Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet and Macbeth.
More Drama Programs In Your Area
Bergen County
Bergen Performing Arts Center
30 North Van Brunt St. Englewood
201-227-1030
The Conservatory of Performing Arts
300 Knickerbocker Rd. Cresskill
201-390-7513
Porch Light Theatre & Performance Studio
555 Broad St., Glen Rock
201-857-3520
Essex County
Broadway Performing Arts
357 Broad St., Bloomfield
973-748-2787
New Jersey Performing Arts Center
1 Center St., Newark
973-353-7058
New Jersey School of Dramatic Arts
593 Bloomfield Ave. Bloomfield
973-566-9700
Newark School of the Arts
89 Lincoln Park, Newark
973-642-0133
Paper Mill Playhouse
22 Brookside Dr., Millburn
973-379-3636
Performers Theatre Workshop
1 Pierson Rd., Maplewood
973-327-2250
Hudson County
Hoboken Comedy Festival
1039 Washington St.
Hoboken
201-898-0772
Mercer County
McCarter Theatre Center
91 University Pl., Princeton
609-258-8289
Middlesex County
George Street Playhouse
9 Livingston Ave.
New Brunswick
732-846-2895
Rutgers High School Musical Theater Academy
33 Livingston Ave.
New Brunswick
848-932-8618
Morris County
Brightest Star School of Performing Arts
16 Ridgedale Ave.
Cedar Knolls
973-829-1973
Brundage Park Playhouse
2 Bungalow Ln., Randolph
973-989-7092
Mayo Performing Arts Center
100 South St., Morristown
973-539-0345
Passaic County
Action Theatre
Conservatory
68 Union Ave., Clifton
862-243-2827
Union County
Contagious Drama Workshop
140 Mountain Ave., Westfield
917-836-3740
Dreamcatcher Repertory Theatre
120 Morris Ave., Summit
908-514-9654
PeachCraft Studios of Drama, Voice & Filmmaking
371 Springfield Ave., Summit
908-673-1485
Pineda Conservatory For The Performing Arts
1171 Terrill Rd., Scotch Plains
908-731-1377
Warren County
Centenary Stage
Company
715 Grand Ave., Hackettstown
908-979-0900
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