Chelsea Rep LABS

Where Training Becomes Creation

Chelsea Rep LABS is one of the most distinctive and generous offerings at The Acting Studio New York.

These laboratories are provided at no cost to our active Studio community of actors, directors, and playwrights. They exist outside the classroom as a continuing artistic home, a place where disciplined training evolves into living work.

In a city where rehearsal space is expensive and creative community is fragmented, Chelsea Rep LABS provides something rare, sustained artistic practice in an ongoing ensemble environment.

Very few actor training programs in New York offer free, structured, faculty guided laboratories dedicated to the development of new work.
 

The Three LABS

       Acting LAB

          First and third Saturday of each month.
          Actors bring in scenes, monologues, audition material, and original work. This is a place to test impulses, deepen listening, strengthen ensemble
          awareness, and continue the rigorous pursuit of truthful behavior under imaginary circumstances.

          The Acting LAB is not a class. It is an artistic gymnasium, a disciplined forum where actors sharpen their craft through practice.

      Playwriting LAB

         Second Saturday of each month.
         Studio playwrights hear their scripts brought to life in staged readings performed by Studio actors and directed by Studio directors. Writers witness how
         their words breathe in space, where they land, where they falter, and where they ignite. The Playwriting LAB accelerates development by placing text
         immediately into collaboration. Rewriting becomes concrete. Structure becomes visible. Character becomes embodied.

      Directing LAB

         Fourth Saturday of each month.
         Directors present scenes and workshop material with actors under faculty guidance. Emphasis is placed on script analysis, behavioral specificity,
         communication with actors, and the discipline required to lead a rehearsal room. Directors collaborate directly with actors and playwrights in a laboratory
         setting that strengthens both  interpretive vision and practical leadership.

From Laboratory to Public Performance

Each year, Chelsea Rep LABS culminate in annual festivals produced through Chelsea Repertory Company. These festivals include staged readings of original plays and screenplays, as well as fully produced workshop productions written, acted, and directed by members of our Studio community. This structure creates a vital bridge between private development and public presentation. Artists see their work realized before an audience, not in theory, but in practice.
 

A Living Archive of New Work

Over the years, Chelsea Rep LABS has generated a substantial and diverse body of original work. Our archives, continually expanding, reflect decades of creative output born from this laboratory environment. From intimate staged readings to fully mounted festival productions, the LABS remain a wellspring of experimentation, mentorship, and collaboration.

An Uncommon Resource in New York

In New York, actors often train in isolation once class ends.
Playwrights write alone.
Directors struggle to secure rehearsal space and sustained collaboration.

Chelsea Rep LABS provides an ongoing artistic ecosystem.

A Place To

     •   Fail safely

     •   Refine rigorously

     •   Collaborate deeply

     •   Return month after month in pursuit of stronger work

There are institutions in New York that train actors. There are institutions that produce work. Very few integrate training, laboratory development, and public production in continuous dialogue.

Chelsea Rep LABS is that place — A Home for Serious Artists

Archival Note: If you have archival materials related to past LAB productions, we welcome your contribution to our growing record of Studio history.