Private lessons, coaching, & workshops for singers & actors in the Pioneer Valley
Hello, current and prospective students! With the omicron variant ravaging the country, we are once again going to a remote-only model for lessons here at the studio. We’ll return to in-person lessons for fully vaccinated students when we’re past this surge and we can ensure a safe environment for everyone. Thanks for your understanding!
We are now offering in-person lessons to fully vaccinated students. Since singing is such a breath-intensive discipline, all voice lessons will be taught in the upstairs studio, which allows for more space between the student and teacher while singing. Acting lessons will be taught in-person at the studio’s discretion. In-person time slots are limited, so contact us now to reserve your summer slot. We look forward to seeing you!
If you are a new student or a student we have not been in contact with for a while, you will be asked to present your COVID-19 vaccination records in order to begin in-person lessons. Our staff and everyone we live with is fully-vaccinated. No unvaccinated person may enter the studio at any time. Unvaccinated students, partially-vaccinated students, or any student who prefers to do so may continue to study with us remotely.
Our policies may change as local infection rates, new variants, booster recommendations, or other public health considerations require. Thank you for your patience!
Things are moving fast with this virus. With news of cases in our community, we’ve decided it’s best for all of us to transition to remote lessons only until the situation is better under control. We can offer lessons via Skype or FaceTime, so let us know what you’d prefer! Thanks for your patience and understanding. Stay safe and healthy!
Hey, all!
We’re starting to put some safety measures in place at the studio. As of today, Bob and Jan will no longer be offering in-person lessons, since they are both at high risk with the virus floating around. Melinda will continue to teach in the upstairs studio, entering from the outside stairs, so there’s no contact with them. You have the option (at this time) of continuing with Melinda in-person, OR moving to Skype/Facetime lessons. This is for VOICE ONLY and only for Melinda. Bob and Jan may also be available, but for remote teaching ONLY. If you are their student, please contact them directly to talk about possible arrangements.
If you want to study with Melinda in person, here’s the protocol:
We’ll have disinfectant wipes on hand as well, and will deal with any other issues as they arise, with everyone’s safety in mind!
If you are a student of Melinda’s and would like to move to remote lessons, contact her directly! We will also be sending out details on remote classes we can offer over the next few months!
This situation is in flux. More updates as we have them.
Thanks!
We’re about to wrap up our third week of rehearsal for our summer production of Handel’s 1711 opera Rinaldo. It’s our most ambitious project to date—a new adaptation of a beautiful classic, full of difficult arias, heart-wrenching emotion, a beautifully queer updated libretto, and seven young singers with their noses to the grindstone while many of their peers are on vacation.
But as glorious as their hard work might be, our project is the most underfunded it’s ever been. We’ve been rehearsing in our own small studio, staging scenes in the front yard, and have yet to secure a performance space we can afford. With production week just a few weeks away, we’re excited, but drowning in uncertainty.
Thanks to your generous donations, we’ve raised over $1500 this week, which means that next week we’ll move out of the yard and into our beloved rehearsal space at All Saints Church! But we still need to raise $3500 more to get us into a performance space and to pay the artists whose brilliance and generosity we rely on to make our productions sound and look the best that we can make them.
Can you help us reach that goal? Even as little as $10 helps move us forward! Click here to donate online. If you prefer, you can also donate by check*.
Thank you for your support!
Act Too Studio Opera Workshop is a sponsored project of Fractured Atlas, a non‐profit arts service organization. Contributions for the charitable purposes of Act Too Studio Opera Workshop must be made payable to “Fractured Atlas” and are tax‐deductible to the extent permitted by law.
*Checks should be made payable to Fractured Atlas, with “Act Too Studio Opera Workshop” in the memo line. Checks may be mailed to Act Too Studio Opera Workshop, Attn: Melinda Beasi, 15 Cottage St. #418, Easthampton, MA 01027. Checks for $1000 or more must be accompanied by a Major Gift Letter.
Today’s theme in our Week of Teen Opera was “Opera Misconceptions,” for which our teens (and a couple of grownup cameos) submitted videos debunking common ideas about opera. For those who might have missed them, we compiled a YouTube playlist which makes it easy to catch them all in one place! Check it out below, and please consider supporting us during this fundraising week! CLICK TO DONATE.