Registration for Summer 2026 Stage 55 Creative Writing is open to adults of all ages. Please fill out the registration form or email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.

This series of creative writing workshops guides you to discover the "why" behind your desire to write – and shares skills and tools to accomplish it! Improve your artistic skill, have fun with new friends, and dig into the art of creative writing.

From for personal fun or reflection to family storytelling to goals of publication, there's no wrong answer for why you want to write. Creative writing has a host of benefits: improving mental health, boosting creativity, creating connection with others, and preserving stories, whether for profit or just pure enjoyment.

These workshops will help you find your focus, learn about genres, and choose your path. So warm up your pen and make writing part of your life!

Marlana Antifit

"Hi! I’m a Florida-based writer and longtime story lover. For 25 years, I worked in communications at the Walt Disney World Resort where I helped restore the magic. Long before that, I was the kid who disappeared into spiral notebooks, inventing characters and worlds—until life got busy and writing slipped to the background. I didn’t find my way back to the page until adulthood, and I’m grateful I did.

"I’ve been studying creative writing for more than 15 years, mostly in the wonderfully unglamorous ways—classes, workshops, critique, revision, and lots of learning-by-doing. I’m drawn to children’s stories with heart, humor, and a little bit of wonder, and I still get excited every time a scene finally clicks into place. My work has placed in several contests, including finalist honors for two novels in the SCBWI Rising Kite Award and a runner-up finish in Ready Chapter 1’s Middle Grade Legends Challenge.

"In 2011, I founded the Osceola Writers’ League (OWLs) critique group, and I’ve been leading it ever since. OWLs started as a handful of unpublished writers who wanted to get better—together—and we’re still driven by the same things: honest feedback, encouragement, and showing up for one another. I’m proud that six OWLs are now published authors with houses including Entangled Publishing, HarperCollins, and Penguin Random House, with more than 12 traditionally published novels among them."

Summer 2026 Stage 55 Creative Writing from May through July 2026 is free. Just register at the link above!

Please email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.

Registration for Spring 2026 Stage 55 Improv is open to adults of all ages. Please fill out the registration form or email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.

Join professional jack-of-all-trades Bob Kodzis for a series of intro improv workshops!

Looking to dip your toes into something new? Enjoy a grand introduction to an amazing art form with experiences designed for any adults who want to play – regardless of past improv experience. Learn the basic foundational principles of improv with techniques to carry those skills into the rest of life.

Spend a few Thursday mornings with the cool kids. It's gonna be a blast!

Bob Kodzis loves teaching improv. He’s been a student of improv since 2000. He has been a performer at SAK Comedy lab since 2001 and a teacher of improv and an improv coach since 2008. He has studied with improv masters like Jay Hopkins, David Razowsky, Craig Kackowski, David Chen, Laura Hall and Jeff Wirth.

Bob has taught the skills of improv to a wide variety of human beings during the last 18 years including NASA engineers, Disney imagineers, autistic children, memory impaired seniors and even the top internal auditing team of the federal reserve bank (they were more fun than you might expect). In every instance Bob’s approach to improv has helped to unleash joy, connection and confidence in who participated.

Optional Showcase:
Saturday, May 30, at 2 p.m.
(Performer call time at 1 p.m.)
First Congregational Church (225 S Interlachen Ave. Winter Park)

Dues will be for materials, workshops, and showcase of Spring 2026 Stage 55 Improv from April through May 2026. Please see pricing below:

Single Workshop: $20
Full Workshop Series: $80

Payment links are included in the registration form! Financial assistance and payment plans are also available. Please email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.

Registration for Fall 2025 Stage 55 is currently closed to give our members and staff time to prepare for the performance. If you are interested in joining the Stage 55, please email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.

In this wacky salute to America’s 250th anniversary, Stage 55* takes a comic look back at history – only this time, it didn’t happen that way! Betsy Ross & Friends asks, “What if…?” And the answers are as surprising as they are absurd.

In true Stage 55 style, this joyful performance will use lively scenes and hilarious monologues to highlight the moments and momentous figures that have come before us.

*formerly known as the Narrators

Tech Rehearsals:
Friday, April 3, from 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Tuesday, April 7, from 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Thursday, April 9, from 10 a.m.-12 p.m.
Friday, April 10, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

Performances:
Saturday, April 11, at 3 p.m.
Sunday, April 12, at 3 p.m.
St. John Evangelical Lutheran Church (1600 S Orlando Ave, Winter Park)

Dues will be for scripts, rehearsals, community performances, and performances of Betsy Ross & Friends from January April December 2026. Please see pricing below:

Regular Season Dues: $75

Payment links are included in the registration form! Financial assistance and payment plans are also available. Please email stage55@cfcarts.com with any questions.