Greasing the wheels of creativity

One school was built in the teens – the cornerstone says 1914. It appears from the outside to be a castle, with small turrets at the corners, vaulted windows and pedestals for sculptures… Continue reading →

Cinderpost 3: understudies

We’ve had two understudies go on in the last month. Drew Carroll went on twice for our Prince, Peterson Townsend, who was felled by a nasty chest cold which took away his voice,… Continue reading →

What Happens When You’re Twelve

Recently, the radio program This American Life aired a program on middle school – that extraordinary time of life between around 9 and around 14 years old. I tuned in because a) I… Continue reading →

Panache post 5: otherness

I’ve been to two memorial services recently. They were strikingly similar. The first, held last month, was for Jiri Zizka who in the late seventies co-founded one of Philadelphia’s best theaters with his… Continue reading →

Earle Gister

My Yale Drama School acting teacher died this week. He was 77 and lived long and tumultuous life. He was an extraordinary teacher. In my first year at Yale Drama School, I was… Continue reading →

The difference between an A and an A-

This is from an exchange I once had with the chair of a University department. The names have been changed to protect the innocent. *** Dear Professor Chair, I have found our small… Continue reading →

Cool Stuff Happening at a Gorgeous Place This Summer

Warning! Shamless Promotion Coming! But really, wouldn’t you like to do some cool stuff here this summer? Workshop for Acting Teachers ($250) Led by Benjamin Lloyd Eight Sundays, June 12 – August 7 (no… Continue reading →

Bottompost 7: virtues, fiascos and Oz

I tell my students: acting is the discovery of virtues. This is how I have attempted to move the locus of that study from the mind to . . . some other part… Continue reading →