Hawthorne Performing Arts Classes

she is very nice

Spent a lot of time going over my musical background and getting to know me in general. Made an assessment of my vocal ability, potential strengths and weaknesses that seemed accurate to me. Proposed a lesson plan to develop my singing that seemed reasonable and practical given my goals.

My daughter loved her first lesson

Mary is a lively, voluble person with enormous experience particularly in musical theater who enjoys working with students.
Initially and as the student moves along, Mary assesses talent and abilities and then continues to periodically reassess the learning in a manner that never ceases to amaze me. I have been working with Mary for six months and found her evaluations of my strengths and what I need to work on to be spot on every time.
What I esteem most is Mary's technical acumen, the techniques she learned from her teachers and mentors and her experience as a performer. Her keen ear and eye immediately pick out every nuance being sung that needs work. She answers questions about where "to go" in throat, mouth, tongue, torso, etc., demonstrating how to correctly produce the sounds, tones, and supported breathing in question. Voice teachers, of course, are supposed to do this. Mary does this superbly.
If you are seeking a teacher who knows her technique, especially in musical theater, I highly recommend Mary.

Hi Mary,
In my opinion, our session last night wasn't productive. My opinion is, you weren't really interested in teaching me. Out of the 60 minute session. I only did about 3 to 5 minutes of exercises. You spent 55 minutes talking about your past and present students, professional actors you know, show business, acting techniques and your accomplishments. You did talk about about the script that i would read and the emotion behind it, but that lead into more about your students and professional actors you know. it took you 30 minutes in your office to find that script, (which should have been done a head of time) then we went downstairs and another 25 minutes of talking before i could read it to you.

Towards the end when i finally spoke up about so much time being passed and nothing being done. You said you needed to see my personality so you can know where to start with me. That made no sense to me, how are you seeing my personality if you are the one mostly talking about your accomplishments and who you know and what you've done?
Why not pick a point and start there and see what my weak and strong points are? You also asked me the same questions you asked me on the phone, have you ever taken lessons before, why do you want to act, what do you do for work which to me just consumed more time.

What i found surprising and discouraging was when you asked me why would I take acting classes up here when there are some of the best acting schools in the world just an hour away in New York City? I wish you had said that to me over the phone before our meeting, I would reconsider taking lessons from you and just spend the extra money and go down to the city. If i were an instructor i would be grateful for anyone who sacrificed their time and money to come see me, and never ask why they chose me when there is better not that far away. With that said I have decided to cancel my remaining lessons with you please do not bill me any further.

Jason

PS Telling a person of color that they are a weird fit as a real estate agent in Croton N.Y, and would be a better fit in Brooklyn N.Y was discriminatory and offensive to me.

I found Mary on my search for an acting coach pertaining mostly to my upcoming drama school auditions. Her vast knowledge of this business is evident as well as her ability to help ground and craft your work. Each and every lesson was applicable towards my artistic pursuit. I consistently recommend her as a leading instructor in this field!

Nicolas is one of the best mentor I have ever came across. He is passionate about teaching and able to help you draw out the inner you. I was someone who had a great deal of struggle connecting with my emotions and being able to express it in a sensible way. Within few weeks he taught me how to tap into my feelings and express it outwards. Needless to say he is an impressive teacher and if you have the chance, visit him. It will be beneficial for your personal life and career.

Nicolas is one of the best mentor I have ever came across. He is a passionate about teaching and able to help you draw out the inner you. I was someone who had a great deal of struggle connecting with my emotions and being able to express it in a sensible way. Within few weeks he taught me how to tap into my feelings and express it outwards. Need less to say he is an impressive teacher and if you have the chance, visit him. It will be beneficial for your personal life and career.

Nicholas is a fantastic and patient teacher who is skilled at helping actors with nonverbal communication. He helped me organize my monologues into beats and we worked on transitions and changes of intention. After classes with Nicholas, I confidently made my debut on stage.

Excellent tutor! Helped me a lot!

Zach is a very fun and outgoing teacher. He is always willing to cooperate with the student and he always makes everything fun. I've improved a lot just from taking 4 lessons.

INCREDIBLE teacher. Zach is professional, dedicated, understanding, and caring. He has helped me make so much progress and I am so grateful to have found him. I would recommend him to everyone! He has helped me with auditions, performances, acting, and vocal technique. He puts so much effort into his students and will always go the extra mile. Zach is great!

Zach is very knowledgeable in his field. One of the best and most honest vocal coaches I have worked with, he helped me feel comfortable and fully prepared for an upcoming audition. I would definitely recommend his services to ANY and EVERY one I know!!

Excellent communication skills and extremely patient. Sasha keeps the pace at the right level so that the dance steps are challenging but achievable.

Sasha is an expert teacher. Puts you at ease. Her techniques are effective. I am very impressed and happy to be her student. Thanks

Great supportive teacher!

Celina was knowledgeable, friendly, and engaging. She took an interest in figuring out what my daughter was familiar with and what next steps would make sense in terms of learning more about animation.

Celina is one of the most encouraging and supportive instructors I've met. She has given me valuable feedback on the color and composition in my photos.

Celina is so patient and so funny. She really makes learning something totally new less intimidating, is flexible, and I learned so much from her! Thanks Celina!

Really great insight and learnt a lot. Very focused and on point. Looking forward to my next online session with Jake.

I became a fan of Jacob's theatre work in NYC. It's always fresh and inventive, which is why I coach with him on my audition scenes. I primarily go in for tv/film work, but his classical training foundation and fresh perspective translate to the screen. If you're looking for affordable coaching with a cutting edge, up and coming artist- call Jake!

We love Lauren. She is making violin a great experience for our daughter (11 yrs old). She is very thorough and encouraging, and introduces interesting music that is fun and challenging for a beginner student. Our daughter says she can truly feel her own improvement, and is really happy to have additional lessons with Lauren, beyond what she receives in school. Lauren is flexible with scheduling and very reliable, and we intend to stick with her - and with the violin- for the duration!

Lauren is an awesome violinist. I worked with her in a show and watched her tackle many different styles of music, improvise with other musicians, and collaborate on new material. I would recommend her to anyone!

Lauren Thomas is an excellent musician with a tremendous amount of patience and a seemingly boundless supply of talents. As a fellow musician who has played professionally alongside Lauren, I have witnessed first hand her skilled mastery of both the flute and the violin -- as intuitive as she is technically proficient. Apart from her musical abilities, she's kind, fun and sensitive and would make for either a great beginner violin teacher or as an instructor for someone with intermediate skills looking to expand their abilities. Cannot recommend her highly enough! Whether you're seeking instruction in the flute or the violin, Lauren's the woman for the job.