Acting 1 with Jessica Lee

Acting I - Seven Week Acting Class

Schedule 

Saturdays from 2-3:30pm

January 31-March 14, 2026

At The Back Office Studio (13 N Washington St, Ypsilanti)

Cost: $150

About the Class

This seven-week acting class is designed for actors, performers and creatives of all types (ages 18 and up) who want to deepen their self-expression, expand their creativity and learn a variety of fundamental acting skills to create a solid foundation for their craft or enhance their skills. 

The class will be a warm, non-judgmental, and collaborative environment for students to explore their creativity and expression. Each session will start with acting warm-ups and exercises to get the creative juices flowing and create an open and supportive atmosphere where students feel comfortable expressing themselves, taking risks and experimenting. Then the instructor will lead the students through fundamental acting skills and a variety of performances.

Over the course of the seven weeks, students will learn core acting skills, experiment with ensemble and tableaux performance, and perform monologues and scenes. The instructor will guide the students through these core skills:

• Ensemble Skills: Learning how to build trust with your team of actors to enhance performance
• Ensemble Performance: Performing poetry with choral and echo reads as well as tableaux
• Monologues: Exploring character development, emotional range, vocal and physical expression and stage presence
• Scenes: Understanding character motivations and desires, timing, and reacting to other actors 

Students will learn the fundamentals of acting, expand their performance skills, use their voice and body to express emotions, and feel more confident performing. There will be a friends and family showcase on the last day of the class to celebrate everything you’ve learned and accomplished. The showcase will be in collaboration with the Scene Study class.

Overall, this seven-week acting course is a great opportunity for any actor to deeply connect to their creativity and self-expression while developing or expanding on core acting techniques to grow as a performing artist.

About the Instructor

Jessica Lee moved back to Michigan 3 years ago, after living in New York City for 18 years. She holds an MA in Education from Mercy College and a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre and Communications from Eastern Michigan University. She is also a certified teacher. While at Eastern, Jessica was part of a theatre troupe that studied, performed and held workshops in improv and playback theatre. In New York, Jessica performed Improv at The New York Comedy Club, acted in and directed some Off Broadway plays, dabbled in film, and performed original music on countless stages like Cafe Wha, The Bitter End, National Underground and more. She also received Voice Over training with Andy Roth and Ed Lewis. She taught theatre professionally for 17 years in New York and was also an Arts Coordinator partnered with Lincoln Center. She attended theatre professional development at LaGuardia, Frank Sinatra and Lincoln Center. Jessica is also a marketing coach for small business owners and artists, singer/songwriter, dance fitness instructor, and private acting teacher.

About Neighborhood Theatre Group

Neighborhood Theatre Group (NTG) has been making “theatre from scratch” in Ypsilanti since 2015. NTG is dedicated to cultivating a welcoming and collaborative environment for theatre artists. Offering original plays, musicals, cabarets, and self-produced videos, Neighborhood Theatre Group believes in theatre’s ability to bring individuals together and create a sense of place.

Cancellation Policy

January 15, 2026: Deadline for full refund

No refunds will be given after January 15, 2026. 

Discounts will not be given for missed class sessions.