Hi, all, this is my first post to this forum (I mean I say it's the first but it probably won't be because I'll probably delete it and make another one if I don't like it....just kidding!).
Alright, well, why am I doing this? I live in LA and am looking for quality training in the Meisner technique. I have the Working Actor's Guide and it seems that both the Meisner Centre and the Playhouse West claim to be the place to go for Meisner training...any opinions/comparisons? How much does it cost to attend either or? I'd love to hear what you guys have to say.

Hi there,

Send me a private message and include your phone. I am at Playhouse west, I'll talk to you about my impression of it. Though you should audit the class & judge for yourself, we are all different. To put things in proper perspective, I am looking for a new class one.

God bless,

Hi AJ, I'm in Playhouse West now. I love the class taught by Tony Savant, so I'm in the M/F classes. I think it was a great choice. Not that the Meisner center isn't good, but the class I audited at PW was exactly what I wanted. It made me really happy so I signed up. I'm enjoying it so far.

They understand the theory, but I found some of the teachers to be more interested in certain types of students than others. They also talk about themselves more than anything. Also other that Bob, none of their teachers get invested in the cursory advice they give during class.

Hi Jedediah,

Yeah I think I know what you mean. By far the best class I attended there was Mark Pellegrino's because it was so small that I actually got much more out of the class. When the class is too big you spend most of your time watching other people's exercises. That sucks, because you end up going onstage only about 5 minutes. In Mark's class I went up 3 times and got a much longer critique than I ever got from Tony Savant or Chris Liebe. It's a matter of time management.
Chris talks a LOT about himself, which eats into the time. Tony not so much, but when he does he has a point. Mark is my favorite, hands down. But I might not feel this way if his were a huge class. Because then I'd feel underused.
I love Playhouse West, I think it's a good investment for the price. But my best friend wants to leave it because he feels he doesn't get enough from the teachers. He too believes the teachers give more attention to the "pretty people". I just don't see it that way, necessarily. But I do agree with him that the time could be spent better.

Yes, the teachers tend to give advice to the pretty people. I enjoyed Tony Savant; his style, criticism and systematic approach in dissecting your play on Stage and providing the student with CONCRETE ways of bettering your acting. While I can say that about Tony, I am afraid that I was totally turned off by Chris Liebe's style that does nothing but talk about himself, his life, his romantic escapades, drama, drama, drama, and take malicious pleasure at criticizing others to boost his own self ego. Criticizing is great when it is conducive and encourages the artist to strive for the better. However, criticizing to be spiteful demonstrates lack of leadership & immaturity. One thing to remember though this was based on my experience, if you are curious, go there, audit take classes for a month or so & then decide if that you wish to pursue your training there & good luck!

So, other people have noticed the "pretty people principle" at Playhouse West?
I was called a liar when I talked about it, months ago:
http://bbs.backstage.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/932105/m/74...?r=11010534#11010534

I realize "pretty people" are going to be favored in all aspects of our industry, but when I'm paying for a school (no matter how cheap), I demand equal treatment.

Oh, and I had Chris Liebe. After reading all the recent comments about him, perhaps I would've liked it better if I had been with someone else. But, all things considered, I'm still glad I left when I left. That place was a bit too cultish for me.

Out of curiosity, where do you study now?
I just got out of a class and need someplace new (hated the teacher -- ugh!) that ISN'T at a College/University.

quote:

Originally posted by burbankactor:
So, other people have noticed the "pretty people principle" at Playhouse West?
I was called a liar when I talked about it, months ago:
http://bbs.backstage.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/932105/m/74...?r=11010534#11010534

I realize "pretty people" are going to be favored in all aspects of our industry, but when I'm paying for a school (no matter how cheap), I demand equal treatment.

Oh, and I had Chris Liebe. After reading all the recent comments about him, perhaps I would've liked it better if I had been with someone else. But, all things considered, I'm still glad I left when I left. That place was a bit too cultish for me.

I recommend Wayne Dvorak -- www.waynedvorak.com. He is, in my opinion, the best Meisner instructor in L.A. right now. His class size is never over 12 people, and you don't have to weed through people in order to get instruction from him. You are going to get at least 30 min. of time on stage and in feedback for you each class evening.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of instructors in L.A. right now who are doing it for money and name value only. Many of them don't know what they are doing and do not have a rich history of film, TV, and theater to pass onto you. Many of them also are young -- not an advantage to you in a business that requires longevity and a lifetime of experience to achieve greatness.

Also, another post here mentioned an instructor who talked about himself. I believe there is a fine line there. It isn't bad for instructors to tell stories from their own life and own experience to get across points, BUT when the instructor does it just to listen to him or herself talk and not for the real benefit of the student then that is simply an ego talking. Run, don't walk, from instructors like that.

Additionally, there are a number of actors in L.A. who are into going to instructors who give them a hard time (i.e., hardline criticism, really getting on you for things, etc.); the reasoning from these students is that this is the only way they will "get it." Well, they might get something from that: a trip to a shrink to undo psychological damage. There is NO reason for abuse in classes. And you DON'T get ahead that way. Rather, you get ahead by understanding yourself and humanity -- it takes a courageous, patient, thoughtful teacher to help you get ahead that way.

Finally, there's this whole "pretty people" talk in this posting. Again, I would not stick around in a class or environment that nurtures just pretty people. I believe the healthiest acting class environments are those that nurture all kinds -- over achievers, under achievers, all shapes, sizes, looks. And if your instructor isn't trying to nurture every actor to be a character actor and achieve greatness, whether the actor is considered "pretty" or not, then again find a different acting studio. All looks have their place. And character acting gives EVERYONE longevity in this business -- even the "pretty" ones.

JOANNE BARON/DW BROWN studio in Santa Monica is by far the best Meisner training out there! SO much talent has come out of her studio and it is a very disciplined environmen, but at the same time very supportive and encouraging. Check them out!

John Ruskin, Joann Baron, and the Meisner Center itself (where I attended Sandy's memorial when I first moved out here) are the usual top names recommended for Meisner.

Playhouse West has fervent fans and really does the job for a number of people, but the one time I audited, I found the approach to repetition a little casual relative to what I learned in NY with Phil Gushee and Joe Anania. I'm not too surprised that "pretty people" can get some extra attention.

I can't dispute Queen B's statement against such behavior, when it indeed does happen. One of the beautiful things about Phil's class was watching one rather heavy woman blossom out from a very reserved, cautious attitude to exuberant self-expression. So you need to nourish every plant in the garden. On the other hand, I haven't heard anything about Wayne Dvorak, especially in regard to Meisner.

I had heard good things about PW, and audited years ago. Then after the audit the official rudely told me that I would not be allowed in the "young group" because I was too old! I might be too old now, but back then I was probably pretty close to the same age as the others. Whatever. It was weird.
I wound up at Joanne Barron's for an intensive, and it was very good. I think Patton was the teacher's name. Really good coach.
Barron's also has had a rep for pretty people, but I've never heard of any discrimination there towards the ugly.
I do think that the Meisner work is probably the best of all method training because of the emphasis on finding the truth of the moment.
The only criticism I've heard about Barron's is the two year program and how they discourage you from doing anything outside your studies. But maybe they're right in that they want to see people really "get" the work before going out into the marketplace.

I did the 6 week at Baron and my only complaint was the price. I thought the teachers were good, and there was a focus on learning the material. Some of the front office people tended to be a bit pushy and cranky.

It just ended up being too expensive for me to continue.

As far as the pretty people thing - there were definitely some hotties in my class, but I didn't think they really got that much preferential treatment. There were also very normal looking people.

Hi, I'm new here. Looking at schools in LA right now I am in Detroit and moving to LA in March.

I studied theater at a community college and film is my ultimate dream. So far I have found NYFA, Acting Corps, and now PW. What would be the difference between AC and PW? Where would a person (New to LA and film) learn the most?

And I'm also curious about the "young group"...what does this mean? They have age groups?

the Meisner Center or William Alderson