Austin: You can’t sneeze in this town without getting a director/producer/screenwriter soggy. But when it comes to the fine art of drama, i.e., acting, we’ve got nearly as many brilliant, talented, and enthusiastic coaches, teachers, and workshop warriors as anywhere else you’d care to name. (No fair naming Los Angeles. Or New York.)
That said, we’ve cobbled together a brief list of the most prominent Austin acting gurus. Their styles run the gamut from Method to Make-Do, from Stanislavsky to Stay-in-the-Game (no matter what). Bottom line? Learn, seek, grow. Then do.
Mona Lee studied under John Houseman at Juilliard, which is pretty much all we need to say. Find her and her exhaustive résumé at: www.thebizonline.com.
Marco Perella penned the book every Austin wannabe-actor should read: Adventures of a No Name Actor. Insight mixed with the inexplicable comedy of the trade, he’s also teaching locals how to avoid the pitfalls of the acting game. Find him at: www.actorworkshop.com.
C.K. McFarland runs one of Austin’s most respected acting workshop/coaching venues, Alleywood Studios, with partner Sidney Brammer. They offer all manner of short- and long-form classes for beginning actors and master thespians, as well. Contact them at: www.ckmcfarland.com.
And then there’s the myriad schools, theatres, and kids fare to boot:
The State Theater School of Acting: www.austintheater.org
Zachary Scott Theatre Center’s Performing Arts School: www.zachscott.com/education/performing_arts_school.html
Got kids with a yen for the stage? Go to Dede Clark‘s KidsActing studio: www.kidsactingstudio.com
For all other info: www.austinactors.net/classes
And the Austin Circle of Theaters: www.acotonline.org/Pages/Classes.html
This article appears in July 1 • 2005.