The workshops is scheduled for 3 hours from 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM

Registration $25/person

Looking to create theatre? Ruminating on a solo piece but can’t get it on its feet? If you are inspired by the new work at KC Fringe, then this class is for you! Come explore ways to get your ideas off the page and on their feet in this two-hour experimental workshop led by Kylie Westerbeck and Melanie Stewart.

Students will explore creation and collaboration through movement, games, and exercises while learning and indulging in the curious process of world-building, movement and text composition, and character creation. No matter your expertise in creating, this class is for those looking to ignite their imagination and experiment with ways to make new work come alive. Come looking to move, laugh, and expand into your artistry.

This workshop will be taught by Melanie Stewart and Kylie Westerbeck. These two have collaborated together to create several new works of theatre. Their recent piece, I See You Watching, made its Edinburgh Fringe Debut in 2025 where the piece was highly acclaimed. Their next new piece, Gospel of War, is being workshopped at this year’s KC Fringe.

Independently, Melanie Stewart creates darkly absurd movement-driven theatre focusing on the nuanced, weird, and vulnerable side of American culture. She was the artistic director of Melanie Stewart Dance Theatre from 1984 to 2014, producing over 50 original works of dance and movement-driven theater for the concert stage, in film/video, and education, nationally and abroad. Presently, she is the Artistic Producing Director of Blind Faith Productions. The company’s first original production, Just Like Hollywood (I See You Watching) was first presented at the 2022 Cannonball Festival a hub of the Philadelphia Live Arts/Fringe. In 2024 she co-produced the show with Central Standard Theatre at the Bedford and Camden Fringe Festivals in the UK to critical acclaim. Other recent productions include MONSTER, a frankenstein tale, by John Clancy, which premiered at Rowan University in the 2024 main stage season and was presented at the Festival of Monsters at the University of California, Santa Cruz in October. Stewart is a professor of theatre and dance at Rowan University, specializing in physical theatre and medical improvisation.

Her counterpart, Kylie Westerbeck, has created several new works including two new musicals, Complexity (DC Fringe, 2016), and The Gold Room (The Juilliard School, 2025). Her solo clown show, Peg! is returning in this year’s KC Fringe. Kylie is a current MFA drama student at The Juilliard School. She is also a previous clown student of Philippe Gaulier.

Come play, create, and discover the limitless nature of your imagination in this devising workshop .