Cabaret Workshop 08

Many cabaret performers have backgrounds in music and singing, but lack equal training in the theatricality that goes into making a successful cabaret act. In this workshop, our work on the art and craft of cabaret performance will include work on developing a persona for performance, choosing music, singing, creating spoken material relating to the audience, and on structuring an act. We will work with a variety of performance styles, thinking about the optimal way to engage audiences and convey meaning. There will be opportunities to share work in an environment that is safe for risk-taking and for growth. This workshop is suitable for first-timers, as well as professionals who want a chance to either hone or shake-up their work.

July 28 - August 2
CREATING CABARET: styles, stories and songs with Deletta Gillespie
Many cabaret performers have backgrounds in music and singing, but lack equal training in the theatricality that goes into making a successful cabaret act. In this workshop, our work on the art and craft of cabaret performance will include work on developing a persona for performance, choosing music, singing, creating spoken material relating to the audience, and on structuring an act. We will work with a variety of performance styles, thinking about the optimal way to engage audiences and convey meaning. There will be opportunities to share work in an environment that is safe for risk-taking and for growth. This workshop is suitable for first-timers, as well as professionals who want a chance to either hone or shake-up their work.
DELETTA GILLESPIE Deletta is a performing artist, playwright, and educator with nearly twenty years in the entertainment industry. Deletta was born into a show business family. Her mother played piano and organ in backing bands for artists such as the Ink Spots, the Shirelles, and others. Her father played bass in the Army and in jazz bands on the West Coast. Deletta made her professional debut at age six, when her mother gave her a cameo in her nightclub act. She has performed in a myriad of situations; clubs, theatres, casinos, cruise ships, and resorts as a singer, dancer, actress, choreographer, and entertainment coordinator. Highlights include performing for Michael Jackson, and opening for jazz legends Al Jarreau and Patti Austin. She has performed as a voice over artist, and a television and radio presenter. Additionally Gillespie served as entertainment coordinator for Destination Dockyard, a seasonal street festival jointly produced by The Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, RF Communications, and Royal Caribbean International. She wrote and directed two critically acclaimed revue shows: The Time Tunnel Show, and Rufus’ Rhythm and Blues Revue. Her play, What a Girl Wants, produced by Healing Stage Productions in June 2006 raised over $15,000 for the Women’s Resource Center in Bermuda. And in October 2007, Atlanta-based theatre organization Alternate Roots, whose mission includes supporting artists that create theatre for social change, invited Gillespie to perform a staged reading of her upcoming musical, The Magic City Massacre during the Creative Convergence Festival in Baltimore. She has also written several plays for middle school students. Gillespie has vocal pedagogy certification (Levels I & II of Somatic VoiceworkTM, The LoVetri Method) in Contemporary Commercial Music, as well as ABRSM certificates in Vocal Music. WORKSHOP LOGISTICS & REGISTRATION Workshops are geared for participants of all levels of experience, whose ages have run from 18-85. Workshops will meet from 10 am - 4 pm, Monday through Saturday, in Studio II or Studio III of Webster Hall on the Amherst College campus in Amherst, MA. Driving Instructions to Amherst College Amherst College campus map. Workshops cost $350. There is a $25 discount for registration by April 15. Optional room and board are available on the Amherst College campus for an additional fee. Rooms are $190, for a single with a shared bath in an Amherst College dorm. A meal ticket for the Dining Commons (healthy food, much of it local) is $150. Email us, if you are interested in alternative housing. There are a number of hotels, motels and bed & breakfasts in the area. Studios, theatre, dining commons and dorms are all within walking distance. To register download the registration form and mail it to: The Ko Festival of Performance 498 South Gulf Road Belchertown, MA 01007 Questions? For further information email us or call (413) 427-6147.

To register download the registration form and mail it to: The Ko Festival of Performance 498 South Gulf Road Belchertown, MA 01007 Questions? For further information email us or call (413) 427-6147.

To register download the registration form and mail it to:

The Ko Festival of Performance
498 South Gulf Road
Belchertown, MA 01007
Questions? For further information email us
or call (413) 427-6147.