The Wayne Dvorak Acting Studio.. I stumbled upon Waynes class about 6 months ago. I was looking to resume my acting training. The classes I had taken before were A. Way Overpriced! An actors gotta be able to support themself! B. Huge class size, only got to perform twice a month at MOST! C. Very scattered in their technique, focusing so much on breaking down a script and making judgments on what you think you should do rather than being open and allowing yourself to react organically. So I had been auditing several studios in the LA area. I was eager to get back into training but none of the studios I visited seemed to ""feel"" like a fit. Follow your instincts, right?! Auditing and watching the students perform, it felt more like they were being taught how to read the lines rather than actually respond to the situation. Over thinking in a way, which definitely shows up on those cameras!
When I went to audit Wayne's class he had me arrive about a half hour before class and took the time to tell me about how he came into the Meisner technique. I had done a few Meisner repetition exercises before, but the way Wayne spoke about it really opened my eyes. It's really a very simplistic approach. The beginning few months are strictly repetitions. This is where a huge part of the discipline comes in. Unless you are dedicated to doing the exercises in class and the 2 rehearsals a week, it gets a little repetitive. It is when you are truly dedicated to the program that you begin to feel more aware of how you are actually feeling, even if the words aren't changing, their energy is. You begin to get out of your head and allow yourself to respond organically to your surroundings.
Wayne is always very perceptive in his critiques and helps guide you by noticing the changes from week to week. You can really tell that he puts his heart into every class. I even joined the class a bit late and Wayne made time before his class to help my partner and I catch up! Oh and he also does great vocal warmups, throws in some Shakespeare for annunciation and does some exercises to really loosen you up and put that guard down!
Not only within my acting, but within my life and really at the heart of it, within myself I can feel my awareness of my own being growing yet shedding more and more of the baggage, the judgements.. things that really keep you inside your own head. The funny thing is that the same things that keep you stagnant in your own life i.e. fear, over thinking what has or what will happen rather than what IS happening are the same things that shut off your creative intuition as an actor.
Sooo..
Great perceptive teacher with lots of experience in the biz, affordable classes with a really comfortable atmosphere, I highly recommend this class for actors who really wish to become free within themselves and their acting. The things that make a character interesting are their own unique reactions, something which only comes from truth within the moment.
Be well!
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