Upcoming group CLASSES or laboratories

MUSE OF FIRE:
MONDAY NIGHT SHAKESPEARE
(A laboratory)

“The reveller on the way to the bottle meets the mourner on the way to the grave, and the malice of one is undone by the frolic of another. It’s a mixed world, and things don’t segregate themselves neatly out of tragedy and comedy.”

(Jonathan Miller)

Fall, 2026

William Shakespeare… A seminal playwright of the English language. A profoundly human artist. A weirdly divisive writer…

Shakespeare’s language frustrates many actors, while others would happily spend their lives exploring it, and a unique few have built careers performing in his plays.

Muse of Fire is a ten week laboratory, facilitated by Jeffrey Puukka, focused around working with Shakespeare as actors….

Participate for collaborative brainstorming and daydreaming, and playing around with scenes and speeches from Shakespeare’s plays.

Participate

What to expect

During weeks One, Two, (and maybe Three depending on our speed), we’ll explore tools, exercises, and tactics for working with Shakespeare’s language. We’ll investigate what makes Shakespeare special, why Shakespeare’s writing is useful for actors to train with and learn from, and why—after all these centuries—the plays continue to be produced today.

During the remaining meetings, we’ll workshop scenes and speeches, experimenting, and working with the tools and tactics we explored in our first sessions.

Every session will have a short break in the approximate middle.

This could be great for you if

  • You like acting, it’s fun. You don’t hate Shakespeare. Acting and Shakespeare together? Sure, why not!
  • You are curious about acting Shakespeare. You’re open to doing Shakespeare plays but haven’t yet. You’d appreciate some time mucking around with the text on your feet.
  • Some previous encounters around Shakespeare stole the joy! You want a palate cleanser in a space free from ego, dogma, or rigidity.
  • You wish you felt more free and unhindered when you’re working with Shakespeare.
  • You feel worried because the text can be intimidating, so you hang back.

Schedule and details

Mondays.
7pm-9:30pm.
Starting October 5, 2026.
Ending December 7, 2026.
Portland, Oregon.
(Southeast Portland near Powell Blvd. and Cesar E. Chavez)

$250.00

Participate

what actors in previous labs have shared about working with Jeffrey Puukka:

“Jeffrey is warm, receptive, and has an expansive mind-palace of techniques and material waiting to be tapped. He has created an invigorating environment that encourages and supports exploration, inquiry, and play from his students. I’ve deeply appreciated the sincerity and compassion Jeffrey brings to his class, and his ability to tailor activities and material to the needs of both the individual and group, striking that delicate balance between work that is both challenging and just straight fun...”

(Christine Anderson, Actor and Multidisciplinary Artist. Previous acting lab participant.)

“One of the best acting classes I’ve been to in quite a while. And I studied with Uta/AADA/Meisner and Actors from The Actor’s Studio in NY. I know a thing or two about acting classes.”

(Damon Millican, Actor. Previous acting lab participant.)

“Jeffrey provides a space where you can simply exist, reflect, look ridiculous, try new things, and say “f**k it, let’s try it” and see where the chips fall in a space free of blame or shame. There isn’t necessarily a “right” way to do things, just many different options. You learn about the different aspects and driving factors that can influence individual actions, reactions, and choices. You learn about body awareness and how subtle changes can alter an encounter entirely. Most of all, you get to play and be challenged as much or as little as you prefer with a group of truly wonderful, welcoming, nurturing humans. I will absolutely be taking this lab again in the future and I highly encourage anyone interested to just do it, dive on in.”

(C.R. Previous acting lab participant.)

“I have had the pleasure of being one of Jeffrey’s students in his Monday Night Acting Lab. I have found him to be highly professional, knowledgeable, thoughtful, insightful, kind, open, respectful, and caring with his cast, his crew, and his students.“

(Daniel Donlon, Actor. Previous acting lab participant.)

“The magic of being simultaneously inside one’s comfort zone and outside it: Jeffrey has been able to strike the most graceful and fruitful of balances when it comes to making sure participants are stretched to their potential, without sacrificing the warmth and guidance that stand as testament to a gifted teacher and acting coach.“

(Ani Elizaveta, Los Angeles / New York).