Have you ever wondered what it's like to travel the world touring with a symphony orchestra? Jet-setting from New York to LA, hopping from London to Paris and then on to Rome and Madrid. Maybe a few days in Tokyo before flying to Shanghai and finishing in Sydney. Ah yes, it’s a glamorous life…...or is it?   What is it Actually Like to Tour With a Symphony Orchestra? I was very fortunate to have spent 23 years as a member of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in London. During those yea

Are you wondering how to remember lines for a play? Wondering what the best techniques are make sure you're off book when the time comes? Memorization can be tricky business.  When it comes to acting, memorizing lines is a necessary evil. Having your lines down quickly and early on in the rehearsal process is helpful not only for you, but also for everyone around you. The sooner your lines are memorized, the sooner the real work can take place.  In order to really connect with the

You have probably heard that it’s standard for those that want a career in comedy to do extensive training in improvisational technique. For a while, it seems that anyone that was anyone on the major comedy shows was once a member of the famed Second City, among other esteemed improv companies!  What if I told you that everyone that wanted any sort of performing career could benefit greatly from some improv training? It’s absolutely true! In this blog article, I am going to further expla

There is a bit of a debate going on, for the last few hundred years, about “Character Acting”. There is no hard and fast rule as to what a character actor really is. One definition is, since all actors play characters, all actors are character actors. There is another definition that calls character actors the strong performers who play the sidekick or supporting roles that really need to shine for the story to work; think Donald O’Connor in Singing In The Rain. He played a very large

It’s become much more difficult to convince youngsters to get their bodies moving after the surge of tablets and the growth of home televisions, gaming systems, and smartphones.  Why would they want to go out and play with their pals when they can play video games with them virtually from the couch? Why go all of the way to the bowling alley when we can play bowling on the Wii?   However, there are times when you need to expend all of that pent-up energy to make sure your body stay