Chester Theatre Group

Kate Lyn Reiter, veteran comedienne and dramatist returns with her popular comedy workshop to the Black River Playhouse for 6 weeks, Saturdays, November 14 through December 19.

Ms. Reiter’s popular comedy workshops have been presented in past years in connection with Hackettstown’s Centenary Stage Company and at Chester Theatre Group’s Black River Playhouse. The workshops provide a relaxed and judgment-free environment for regular folk to explore their funny bones! Students learn how to find their unique voice, find the funny in everyday life, and shape their experiences into laugh-riots!

Previous students have included retired school teachers, engineers, insurance agents, homemakers, mothers, fathers and loads of regular folk. Some have decided to go on to become comics but all have gone on to funnier and happier lives! Fred Holzapfel, a 47 year old engineer of Long Valley, NJ, says, “my wife enrolled me, thinking it would be a break from my stressful and tedious career, and worries caused by my recent heath complications. Whether or not I ever perform in public, the overall experience has had a profound impact on how I now view life.  The world is not a rational place; and if you look at it closely we’re surrounded by incongruity, confusion, and silliness which together provide a strong foundation for comedy

Is it really possible to teach comedy? According to Ms. Reiter, “You already know it! Don’t you laugh already? Don’t you say funny spontaneous things already? We all do! What you can learn – is how to recognize it, recall it, and recreate it!” She says students will learn the shape and structure of things that make us laugh so they can hone their stories into sure-fire laughs. Most importantly, “you will begin to see your life from a new perspective – finding the funny all around us – appreciating the absurd – and lightening up the load in your heart!”

Ms. Reiter is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama and has written and performed comedy in the New York City area for several years. Most recently she appeared at the Morris County First Night festivities in her one-woman comedy show “From the 60’s to 60 at 60 mph.” She is an adjunct professor at Warren County Community College and frequently directs locally for the Centenary Stage Company and Chester Theatre Group.

Ms. Reiter is offering an introductory comedy workshop for Beginners and the “Comically Curious” for 6 weeks, Nov. 14 – Dec. 19. Sessions are Saturday mornings 10:00 am to 12:00 noon. Cost for the 6 week workshop is just $225. To register call 908-892-5458. New classes are forming all the time! Call now for more information: 908-892-5458 or check out her web site at www.KateLynReiter.com