MFA, Hunter College. An Afro-Caribbean artist living in Harlem, Daley has earned her merits over 20 years as an OBIE Award-winning producer, award-winning playwright, director, actress, and dramaturg. She is a recipient of the Josephine Abady Award. At Hunter College, she studied playwriting under the mentorship of Annie Baker and Branden Jacobs-Jenkins. Two of Daley’s plays made it to the Kilroys List 2017. Most recently, The Fire This Time presented a reading of her full-length play, Hedda: A Portrait of a (Young) Woman, and a production of her short play, Anonymous, which was also produced by the EstroGenius Festival. Her play Straddling the Edge is a Barbour Award finalist and was recently workshopped at the cell theatre, directed by Kira Simring. Les Fréres is a Bay Area Playwrights Festival finalist, a Eugene O’Neill semi-finalist, and was recently workshopped at University of Toronto. Her short play Man in the Moon was developed and presented by The Exquisite Corpse Company, Shirley and Iris was presented at the Going to the River Festival at EST, and Jake was produced at New Perspectives Theater and, most recently, at Silver Spring Stage. SLC, 2019-
Undergraduate Courses 2020-2021
Theatre
Writing for Diversity
Open , Lecture—Year
This course may also be taken as a yearlong component.
Each week, students will be asked to research and write a 10-minute play given "diverse" characters and various other prompts. In class, we will read and discuss the work. What did we find? How were we challenged? Do the scenarios feel “real” and “authentic”? Is there offense? What scared you? We will also read and discuss great plays/articles/events that grapple with race/gender sexuality/culture. Students should have some experience in playwriting.
Faculty
Actor’s Workshop
Open , Component—Year
This class meets twice a week.
Through group exercise (viewpoints), improvisations, monologues, and scene studies, this class, eclectic in style, will help you trust your instincts, expand your expressive capabilities, hone your imagination, and ultimately develop your acting potential. You will acquire the tools necessary for developing a character, as well as for showing confidence in an audition. Previous theatre study is not required, but attendance and active participation is paramount! Show up eager and ready to work, as well as willing to put in time outside of class to work on material.
Faculty
Developing the Dramatic Idea
Intermediate , Component—Year
This class meets once a week.
It never ceases to amaze me: the awesome ritual of live actors bringing words to life, resulting in laughter, catharsis, and, at best, transformation. This magic begins with you, the playwright. Developing the dramatic Idea offers you the opportunity to explore what a play can be and what it can mean to write a play. You will investigate the potential and the challenges of playwriting through analysis of existing plays, writing and workshopping your own plays-in-progress, offering constructive feedback to your classmates, and effectively revising your own work. You will develop the skills and vocabulary to talk about plays and to recognize structure, story, and content challenges. By the end of the year, you will have seen plays and read a number of plays and essays on playwriting. You will have written several scenes, short plays, and a one-act play.
Faculty
Graduate Courses
MFA Theatre 2020-2021
Actor’s Workshop
Open , Component—Year
This class meets twice a week.
Through group exercise (viewpoints), improvisations, monologues, and scene studies, this class, eclectic in style, will help you trust your instincts, expand your expressive capabilities, hone your imagination, and ultimately develop your acting potential. You will acquire the tools necessary for developing a character, as well as to show confidence in an audition. Previous theatre study is not required, but attendance and active participation is paramount! Show up eager and ready to work, as well as willing to put in time outside of class to work on material.
Faculty
Developing the Dramatic Idea
Intermediate , Component—Year
This class meets once a week.
It never ceases to amaze me: the awesome ritual of live actors bringing words to life, resulting in laughter, catharsis, and, at best, transformation. This magic begins with you, the playwright. Developing the dramatic Idea offers you the opportunity to explore what a play can be and what it can mean to write a play. You will investigate the potential and the challenges of playwriting through analysis of existing plays, writing and workshopping your own plays-in-progress, offering constructive feedback to your classmates, and effectively revising your own work. You will develop the skills and vocabulary to talk about plays and to recognize structure, story, and content challenges. By the end of the year, you will have seen plays and read a number of plays and essays on playwriting. You will have written several scenes, short plays, and a one-act play.
Faculty
Writing for Diversity
Open , Component—Year
Each week, students will be asked to research and write a 10-minute play given "diverse" characters and various other prompts. In class, we will read and discuss the work. What did we find? How were we challenged? Do the scenarios feel “real” and “authentic”? Is there offense? What scared you? We will also read and discuss great plays/articles/events that grapple with race/gender/sexuality/culture. Students should have some experience in playwriting.
Faculty
Previous Courses
The Writer’s Gym
Open , Component—Year
This class meets once a week.
This yearlong writing workshop is designed for writers of any genre and any level of experience from beginner to advanced. So, whether you’ve never written anything before or are an experienced poet or a playwright looking to perfect your craft, The Writer’s Gym offers exercises dedicated to inspiration, process, and craft. You will discover story structure and plot and how to introduce character and conflict. In class, you will write, share work, learn how to give feedback, and bravely discuss your work. Our goal is to build muscle for honest and fearless writing based on first instincts and to write from sources, dreams, and personal experiences. We will read and discuss short stories, essays, poems, and plays. Assignments will challenge you to observe what’s around you and the settings in which you live, writing from prompts, images, and sensory experiences. “Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working.” —Pablo Picasso