Join us for Writer鈥檚 Week 2027! We鈥檒l have a weeklong lineup of writers participating in workshops, talks, and readings. Artists will bring their imaginations to life under the pines, developing their skills and completing new work.

Each morning begins with class instruction, followed by lunch. Every day brings an afternoon 鈥淐raft Talk鈥� presented by faculty/special guests. In the evening, gather for 鈥淓vening Readings鈥�, also hosted by faculty and guest speakers, with snacks and drinks provided. On Wednesday, don鈥檛 miss 鈥淏eat Nite鈥� at Middle Ridge Winery, featuring an expanded showcase of artists presenting their work!

Classes end on Friday around 4:00PM, after a day spent wrapping up projects and attending one-on-one sessions with your instructors. That evening, our week culminates at the Cargill Commons, where students will present their work alongside live music, food, and more!

Laurel Ollstein is an award-winning playwright, director, actor and educator. She was an original member of Tim Robbins鈥� award winning theatre company The Actors鈥� Gang. Her play They Promised Her the Moon, about Jerrie Cobb and the Mercury 13 women, had its West Coast premiere at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego – published by Playscripts in 2022. She wrote the book to OPA!, a musical nominated for 14 awards at the midtown theatre festival in NYC. Her critically acclaimed play SHOWING OUR AGE – supported by an NEA grant – was produced in Los Angeles at {In}side the Ford theatre. Her dark comedy CHEESE published by Original Works. Awards include grants from the NEA, California Arts Council, Ovation, Garland and LA Weekly awards. Her full length memoir THE BULLET – the first chapter published in the Silk Road Review – literary magazine 2026. She is an adjunct faculty member with CalArts, UCLA, USC and OTIS.

Join us for Writer鈥檚 Week 2027! We鈥檒l have a weeklong lineup of writers participating in workshops, talks, and readings. Artists will bring their imaginations to life under the pines, developing their skills and completing new work.

Each morning begins with class instruction, followed by lunch. Every day brings an afternoon 鈥淐raft Talk鈥� presented by faculty/special guests. In the evening, gather for 鈥淓vening Readings鈥�, also hosted by faculty and guest speakers, with snacks and drinks provided. On Wednesday, don鈥檛 miss 鈥淏eat Nite鈥� at Middle Ridge Winery, featuring an expanded showcase of artists presenting their work!

Classes end on Friday around 4:00PM, after a day spent wrapping up projects and attending one-on-one sessions with your instructors. That evening, our week culminates at Cargill Commons, where students will present their work alongside live music, food, and more!

Douglas Manuel was born in Anderson, Indiana and now resides in Whittier, California. He received a BA in Creative Writing from Arizona State University, an MFA in poetry from Butler University, and a PhD in English Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Southern California. He is the author of two collections of poetry, Testify (2017) and Trouble Funk (2023). His poems and essays can be found in numerous literary journals, magazines, and websites, most recently Zyzzyva, Pleiades, and the New Orleans Review. He has traveled to Egypt and Eritrea with The University of Iowa’s International Writing Program to teach poetry. A recipient of the Dana Gioia Poetry Award and a fellowship from the Borchard Foundation Center on Literary Arts, he is an assistant professor of English at Whittier College and teaches at Spalding University鈥檚 low-res MFA program.

Ben Loory鈥檚 first book, Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day (Penguin, 2011), was a selection of the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Program, and his second book, Tales of Falling and Flying (Penguin, 2017), was named a Favorite Book of the Year by the Staff of the Paris Review, and has since been cited as One of the Best Fantasy Books of All Time by both Esquire and Good Housekeeping magazines. Loory鈥檚 fables and tales have appeared in The New Yorker, Fairy Tale Review, BOMB Magazine, and the Sewanee Review, and been heard on This American Life and the Selected Shorts podcast. They have also been adapted to live theater, short film, chamber music, and dance, and been translated into many languages, including Arabic, Farsi, Japanese, Chinese, Burmese, and Indonesian. Loory is also the author of a picture book for children, The Baseball Player and the Walrus (Dial Books for Young Readers, 2015). He lives and teaches short story writing in Los Angeles.

Join us for Writer鈥檚 Week 2027! We鈥檒l have a weeklong lineup of writers participating in workshops, talks, and readings. Artists will bring their imaginations to life under the pines, developing their skills and completing new work.

Each morning begins with class instruction, followed by lunch. Every day brings an afternoon 鈥淐raft Talk鈥� presented by faculty/special guests. In the evening, gather for 鈥淓vening Readings鈥�, also hosted by faculty and guest speakers, with snacks and drinks provided. On Wednesday, don鈥檛 miss 鈥淏eat Nite鈥� at Middle Ridge Winery, featuring an expanded showcase of artists presenting their work!

Classes end on Friday around 4:00PM, after a day spent wrapping up projects and attending one-on-one sessions with your instructors. That evening, our week culminates at Cargill Commons, where students will present their work alongside live music, food, and more!

Students are placed according to their English proficiency, based on a short online assessment before arrival. Classes are small and collaborative, designed to meet each learner at their level and to help them advance quickly through means of communication and feedback.

Mornings will focus on developing language through discussion, reading, and writing. In the afternoons, students join arts workshops that connect their English language practice with creative artistic expression.

Evenings will offer community activities, open studio time, quiet study in the dorms, and a chance to relax and make friends. A planned excursion will offer the chance to explore Southern California鈥檚 natural beauty and to get out to a major urban destination as well, all while practicing English in genuinely immersive situations.

to see the list of items to bring to Idyllwild

Your lab fee includes the following; classroom supplies, 2 weeks of international insurance, field trips, and a linen packet to use. (Linen packets include a fitted sheet, top sheet, blanket, pillow case, pillow, 2 towels, 2 washcloths, 2 hand towels, 2 cups, a floor mat, and a bar of soap)

Harry Trantham is an educator with over twenty-two years of teaching experience across international, public, charter, and independent school settings. He began his career in New York City as a member of Teach For America, an experience that shaped his belief that every student deserves access to an excellent education. Throughout his career, he has worked to create classrooms grounded in joy, rigor, respect, and hard work.

Harry has a strong track record of sparking student curiosity, increasing academic achievement, and preparing diverse learners for long-term success. He believes that meaningful education begins with strong relationships and that students thrive when they feel challenged and supported.

From 2016 to 2023, Harry served as a full-time faculty member at 蜜桃直播, where he also had the opportunity to co-facilitate and co-mentor multiple ESL & Art 蜜桃直播 Programs. Those experiences allowed him to work with talented young people from around the world while combining language development with the arts.

He is thrilled to be back on campus and once again working with such amazing and creative individuals. He looks forward to meeting a new group of young international artists and learning more about their goals and interests, while leading another exciting summer program.

Check out our Kids & Teens FAQ鈥檚 to learn more about our summer programs

This is an open-admission program for all interested students, regardless of their level of experience. Instructors will work with your child at their level. Your child will improve and learn new skills, whether they are a beginner or have been acting and performing for years. They do, however, need to be willing to project their voices and act onstage.

Students will be asked to send in a video of themselves doing a 1-minute dramatic or comic monologue- or tell a joke, using vocal projection for the stage. Instructions for submitting the video will be sent closer to the start of the program.

Please note that this video will not impact your child鈥檚 admission to the program; this is an open-admission program for students of all skill levels. Rather, the video will be utilized to determine your child鈥檚 skill level and to help with planning for the production that the students will work on. Students will have casting auditions at camp after working with faculty.

• Refillable water bottle (very important) and sunscreen
• Comfortable clothes you can move in during rehearsals
• Long black leggings or pants
• Black knee-high, or short socks
• White tank top/undershirt
• Black tank top/undershirt to wear underneath as needed (and for modest quick changes)
• Black, comfortable, flat, closed-toed shoes (a jazz shoe, a mary-jane, or black sneaker) work best. No heels, no open toes, no sandals)
• Lipstick and blush (natural colors)
• Hair elastic/scrunchie to keep hair away from your face for acting

You may be required to bring additional items pertaining to the specific production. We will communicate with enrolled students on those needs prior to the program start.

Phones and other electronic devices are not allowed during class time in Children’s Center. Day students should not bring a personal device. Residential students should leave devices in their dorm room, or will turn in their device to the teacher during instructional time.

Your student will be following this basic schedule each weekday:

Day students should be dropped off at Children鈥檚 Center between 8:15am 鈥� 8:25am
(breakfast is not included for day students)
Residential Students will be walked to breakfast as a group and then to Children鈥檚 Center
8:30am: Morning Sing/Greeting
9:00am 鈥� 11:20am: Morning Classes (snack provided)
11:30am 鈥� 12:15pm: Lunch in the Dining Hall (provided for residential and day students)
12:30pm 鈥� 3:45pm: Afternoon Classes (snack provided)

Day students should be picked up from Children鈥檚 Center at 4:00pm

Residential students will be walked as a group to afternoon activities with the RAs.

Day students will be allowed to use the pool on Tuesday 鈥� Friday from 4:00pm 鈥� 5:45pm with the supervision of a parent or guardian. (Enrolled children only, please. No siblings or friends.) Lifeguards will be present.

Saturday classes/rehearsals are at the discretion of the teacher. Some programs will meet on the Saturday between the two week session. Please watch out for more information from the teacher. Sundays are off for everyone, with no mandatory classes held.

Judy Heneghan has acted, directed, written plays, and taught both acting and improv for more than 20 years. Judy鈥檚 musical credits include being the lead singer of R&B Band, Blue in the Face, in Ireland; she also has numerous musical theater credits. Judy has taught Improvisation Story Theatre in Ireland, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles (LA). She was a teaching artist at the Aaron Copeland Music and Arts Camp in New York. At 蜜桃直播, Judy has taught Page to Stage, Improvisation Comedy, and Theatre of Myth. Alongside Johanna McKay, she has taught Shakespeare鈥檚 World and 鈥淭he Play鈥檚 The Thing.鈥� Judy co-wrote/created and performs as Olive in the long-running comedy musical The Martini & Olive Show, touring theaters and comedy clubs throughout the country. Her play 鈥楾he Big Woop鈥� has been optioned for film.

Check out our Kids & Teens FAQ鈥檚 to learn more about our summer programs

Join us for Writer鈥檚 Week 2027! We鈥檒l have a weeklong lineup of writers participating in workshops, talks, and readings. Artists will bring their imaginations to life under the pines, developing their skills and completing new work.

Each morning begins with class instruction, followed by lunch. Every day brings an afternoon 鈥淐raft Talk鈥� presented by faculty/special guests. In the evening, gather for 鈥淓vening Readings鈥�, also hosted by faculty and guest speakers, with snacks and drinks provided. On Wednesday, don鈥檛 miss 鈥淏eat Nite鈥� at Middle Ridge Winery, featuring an expanded showcase of artists presenting their work!

Classes end on Friday around 4:00PM, after a day spent wrapping up projects and attending one-on-one sessions with your instructors. That evening, our week culminates at Cargill Commons, where students will present their work alongside live music, food, and more!

Julia Ingalls‘ stories, essays, reviews, and other work regularly appear in Guernica, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The Los Angeles Times, Salon, BOOM California, Crimereads, KCRW, and Dwell, among other publications, anthologies, and public radio programs. Her in-person literary reading series, “It’s Five O’Clock Somewhere,” has received rave reviews in The Los Angeles Times and The L.A. Weekly, and features emerging and established novelists, poets, essayists, graphic novelists, and short story writers. As a moderator and host, she relishes facilitating in-depth discussions of books, presses, and the ever-evolving role of literature in our contemporary society.

Writers will start at their own levels and no experience is necessary. Each session is designed to challenge and inspire students in an atmosphere of encouragement and inclusion. Brendan Constantine, the workshop’s faculty leader, has worked for years to develop a unique teaching style which both empowers new voices and allows seasoned writers to flourish. Sufferers of 鈥榃riter鈥檚 Block鈥� are strongly encouraged!

• Notebook
• Pen
• Laptop (optional)

And here is a list of random things you may also want to have ready:

• a good memory
• a bad memory
• a favorite time of day
• a favorite kind of weather
• a 鈥榞ood luck鈥� charm
• a random phrase or lyric that keeps playing in your head
• a dream
• a poem or story you admire by someone else

Phones and other electronic devices are not allowed during class time in Children’s Center. Day students should not bring a personal device. Residential students should leave devices in their dorm room, or will turn in their device to the teacher during instructional time.

A day in the workshop will include writing, reading, discussion, critique, and a lot of support. Students develop close-reading skills as they examine a variety of styles and approaches to writing. They鈥檒l also develop their most promising pieces and workshop them with their classmates, receiving thorough feedback from peers and the teacher. 

Students should expect to write every day and maintain focus. There will also be plenty 鈥榙own time鈥� for cultivating new ideas and community.

Your student will be following this basic schedule each weekday:

Day students should be dropped off at Children鈥檚 Center between 8:15 鈥� 8:25 am (breakfast is not included for day students)

Residential Students will be walked to breakfast as a group and then to Children鈥檚 Center

8:30 am: Morning Sing/Greeting
9:00 am 鈥� 11:20 am: Morning Classes (snack provided)
11:30 am 鈥� 12:15 pm: Lunch in the Dining Hall (provided for residential and day students)
12:30 pm 鈥� 3:45 pm: Afternoon Classes (snack provided)

Day students should be picked up from Children鈥檚 Center at 4:00 pm.

Residential students will be walked as a group to afternoon activities with the RA鈥檚.

Day students will be allowed to use the pool on Tuesday 鈥� Friday from 4:00pm 鈥� 5:45pm with the supervision of a parent or guardian. (Enrolled children only, please. No siblings or friends.) Lifeguards will be present.

Saturday classes are at the discretion of the teacher. Some programs will meet on the Saturday between the two week session. Please watch out for more information from the teacher. Sundays are off for everyone, with no mandatory classes held.

Brendan Constantine is the author of four books of poetry and his work has appeared in many standards including Poetry, The Nation, Best American Poetry, Prairie Schooner, Field, and Poem-A-Day. A popular performer, he has read for audiences throughout the U.S. and Europe, also appearing on NPR, TED ED, numerous podcasts, and YouTube. He holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and currently teaches at both the Windward School and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Since 2017, Brendan has been developing poetry workshops for people with Aphasia.

Website:
X: @poetbrendan
Instagram: @brendanconstantine

Check out our Kids & Teens FAQ’s to learn more about summer programs

Writers will start at their own levels, no experience is necessary. Each session is designed to challenge and inspire students in an atmosphere of encouragement and inclusion. Constantine has worked for years to develop a unique teaching style which both empowers new voices and allows seasoned writers to flourish. Sufferers of 鈥榃riter鈥檚 Block鈥� are strongly encouraged!

• Notebook
• Pen
• Laptop (optional)

And here is a list of random things you may also want to have ready:

• a good memory
• a bad memory
• a favorite time of day
• a favorite kind of weather
• a 鈥榞ood luck鈥� charm
• a random phrase or lyric that keeps playing in your head
• a dream
• a poem or story you admire by someone else

Some (but not all) of our routines:

Be prepared to write during every class. A willingness to experiment and take risks is encouraged. We will also be emphasizing discussions of craft, ways to test its limits (if any), and what it鈥檚 like to be a contemporary author. Likewise, students will also gain insight on teaching. Indeed, when our two weeks are over, you鈥檒l be able to lead your own workshop.

A typical day consists of writing, reading, discussion time, and usually a few games or surprises. Students develop their most promising work with their classmates, receiving thorough feedback from peers and the teacher.

Students should expect to write every day and maintain focus. There will also be plenty 鈥榙own time鈥� for cultivating new ideas and community.

Brendan Constantine is the author of four books of poetry and his work has appeared in many standards including Poetry, The Nation, Best American Poetry, Prairie Schooner, Field, and Poem-A-Day. A popular performer, he has read for audiences throughout the U.S. and Europe, also appearing on NPR, TED ED, numerous podcasts, and YouTube. He holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and currently teaches at both the Windward School and the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Since 2017, Brendan has been developing poetry workshops for people with Aphasia.

Website:
Instagram:

Check out our Kids & Teens FAQ鈥檚 to learn more about our summer programs