While the Yale School of Drama is one of the most prestigious actor training programs in the world, there are many lessons of the craft it didn’t prepare me for. Over the last ten years I’ve made a living as a Series Regular ("Olympus" on Syfy), a top-of-show recurring Guest Star ("True Blood" on HBO, "Arrow" on The CW, "Lab Rats" on Disney XD), appearing in major studio feature films ("Yes Man," "Guardians of the Galaxy," "Thor 2"), and performing at some of the most reputable theatres in America (Mark Taper Forum, South Coast Repertory, California Shakespeare Theatre). We are in the business of auditioning, not just the business of acting. I teach with the intention of encouraging the vigor to expand the imagination off of the page and thus create memorable auditions which will book the room if not the job itself! Gister, famed acting teacher of the Yale School of Drama, stated simply and definitively “all an acting teacher can give you is an aesthetic.” So why on earth would you study with anyone who is not CURRENTLY a working professional actor, director, writer, or producer?
