Learn:
• how to analyze a script
• how to talk to actors
• how to stage movement
• how to run rehearsals
• how to choose a play
Goal: By the end, each participant directs a short scene and understands how to choose a first play and run rehearsals.
Topics:
- how to prepare your first production
- working with designers
- creating rehearsal schedules
- avoiding first-time director mistakes
Each participant creates a simple directing plan:
- a play they might direct
- their rehearsal approach
- production challenges
Requirements:
Each participant is required to secure two to three actors to participate in the scene of their choice.
Jim’s Bio

Jim Phetterplace Jr. has a bachelor’s in Acting & Directing for the Stage. In Frankfurt, he has directed Timberlake Wertenbaker’s Our Country’s Good (2016), Joe Orton’s Loot (2018), Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard (2024) and Will Eno’s The Realistic Joneses (2025) for FEST, Aristophanes’ Lysistrata (a musical adaptation, 2025) for Shakespeare Frankfurt, and Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest (2020) for the ECB Theatre Ensemble.
Logistics:
July 18, Saturday, 10:00-17:00 at Saalbau Gallus (Raum Rebstock)
July 25, Saturday, 10:00-17:00 at Saalbau Gallus (Raum Hellerhof)
August 1, Saturday, 10:00-17:00 at Saalbau Gallus (Raum Hellerhof)
August 8, Saturday, 10:00-17:00 at Kulturhaus (Pfingstweidstr. 2, 60316 Frankfurt )
Cost:
€240 for FEST members (on sale now)
€295 for non-members (sale opens on June 8, 2026)
We require a minimum of six (6) participants and can accommodate a maximum of eight (8). Secure your place signing up HERE.
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