Playhouse West Acting School and Repertory Theater

I want to preface this review by saying that I am a trained Meisner actor. I went through a reputable 2 year Meisner program and it was life changing. In addition, I read Sanford Meisner book and have really studied and valued my Meisner training.
With that being said, I was looking for an acting school I could go to to take a scene study class to keep my acting skills sharp since I’m not currently working on a project. I decided to audit The Playhouse West as they offered affordable prices and decent amount of opportunities to work.
I was very disappointed in the QUALITY of training I saw during my audit. It was very very sloppy Meisner work. Now, I understand this was a beginner class I was auditing but a lot of bad habits you need to address early in your training.
1. I noticed A LOT of actors were standing with their legs crossed, arms folded, leaning on the walls, or had their backs turned to the audience WHILE performing. This one of the first things an acting teacher should address! On top of that many students did their activities behind the table which blocked the audience from being able to see them, or they did it in the corner. At the very least you need to learn that you CANT turn your back to the audience on stage and you shouldn’t have something obstructing view of you. The teacher NEVER not once called a student out on that.
2. While during their activities and even the person coming to the door with the Back Pocket Objective (BPO) NOT ONE STUDENT EVER ASKED «what are you doing?» «Why are you doing this for?» They were too busy trying to have «opinions» that they forgot to probe and REALLY find out what was going on with their partner. But the worst part was that THE TEACHER never asked any of the students what they were working from.
And that is crucial because your circumstance will change how you behave. Not to mention having clear intent will give you a line through so you’re not just standing around trying to have an argument but you have something to do something to get back to.
3. The students didn’t stick to the repetition long enough so it made their exercises very sloppy and unclear. One important aspect of Meisner training is specificity. Every little moment has a meaning all its own. So, when you make a change to the repetition it should be specific, concise, and targeted. But these students were just flailing around with the repetition often saying the same thing with different words, or forgetting the repetition altogether. The teacher should’ve kept them on the repetition. But he just let them go. The repetition is a tool used to lengthen the time between moments so we can see them clearly and play off of them. So, if you’re not being precise it’s going to lead to missed moments and unclear acting.
4. Since it’s a month to month class all the students were at very different stage in the training. (though to be honest everyone should’ve still been at the «I like your shirt» stage.) that can be detrimental because how can you teach a balanced class with everyone at different parts of a technique class. That’s not unlike having 4,5,6^th graders all in one class and trying to teach them all. They’re education is going to suffer.
It’s unfortunate that they have this quality of teaching because they do offer A LOT of classes for a VERY reasonable price. One of the most affordable prices of any LA acting school I’ve come across. Not to mention they seem to have a great community with plays and film festivals going on. That’s a very good thing.
I wanted to put specific examples in my review because I’m not trying to come on here and throw hate. However, As a Meisner actor I was able to spot these things immediately and it speaks to the quality of instruction given at this school.
There are better Meisner schools out there who are really dedicated in giving you a great education. Shop around!

I attended the school for 1.5 years and was in advanced when I moved on

Hi Everyone!
I have read most of the comments and I was shocked to see in every negative one the same thing. People were complaining about their teacher and the actual time they were able to spend on stage in class.
Well, I would like to tag on those things!
I was a professional athlete for over 10 years and you believe it or not I had not one coach in my life who was nice to me during the trainings. Not one! They pushed the shizz out of me over and over and again and again. Let me tell you something!-instead of whining, I was working harder and harder and what a surprise I became better and better. But I did not get better at the games. I got better in the trainings. If you as an actor wanna get better in school, You are lost my friend!-You don’t get better in school! You only get better by rehearsing your butt off and reading some valuable book. In other words: Study your craft!-if I may say so…
And most importantly never quit!
Don’t listen to nobody but your intuition. It screams at you!
So when I see comments like most of the bad ones all I can do is smile and acknowledge the fact that acting is not for everybody. Same way that not everyone have the capability to become an athlete. It takes courage and deadly serious commitments with yourself!
Those aren’t for everybody!-Have you heard about natural selection?!-same thing here.
I have to tell you, I grown so much in Playhouse West not only as an actor but a human being. The teachers are hard on us but that’s what we need! I don’t wanna hear my teacher tell me how good I am. That will be the beginning of the end!
I love this school with all the different teachers who ever taught me. I’ve learned something from each and every one of them. I will keep continue going to this amazing place until I can!-because the training is very important. You never know where your limits are until you’ve stretched your boundaries!
I wish you all the best!

Hi Everyone!
I’ve been going to Playhouse West for little bit more than a year now, and will keep going as long as it gets. It has been nothing but a rewarding experience and I’ve learned a lot. I’ve met with amazing people, working with amazing teachers. This is one of the good schools in the city you can attend and work constantly. I’ve read the negative comments about this school and want to respond to some of those negative comments.
1. People talk about name dropping and teachers talking about 30 mins of what is going on in the school. We call this «announcements», where they announce the shows, scene nights, plays we are having at the school. This is an acting school where its students are constantly working, so we have shows and scene nights and plays going on and of course they will announce them in the class so that students can attend. More over it is to motivate the students to be a part of these shows. We are actors, and a part of our training is to watch other actors and their work. Also, they announce the students who are out there and working and who has parts in TV shows and films. They announce them for 2 main reasons: a) watch their work. b) knowing that your former school mates being out there motivates you and put your school’s name out there. It is always good to know your school mates who are working and you can use those names when you meet with agents, managers and CDs.
2. People talk about the classes being 30 people and no time to work during class. First of all there are lots of classes and teachers in the school. You can always go to another class, especially the morning classes are less people because that is not a popular hour, I was in the morning class and I got to work twice in each class. But your schedule may conflict with it, that’s fine. Playhouse West offers its students rehearsal classes twice a week. So in addition to your 2 classes you also get to go to 2 additional classes and you do NOT pay for them. So you have a chance to go to school 4 times a week. And when you are intermediate you also can go to intermediate/​advanced rehearsal class. Plus all teachers are open for you to audit their classes and if there is time left they can make you work (you can audit those morning classes and most likely you will get to work). At some point I was going to 5 classes a week. Some of my friends keep auditing the other teachers classes and they work most of the time. I had teachers who woke up 2 hours early to coach me for an audition. And in addition to this you rehearse with your classmates. So, when you want to work, you find a way to work.
One of my favorite part of this school is they have their own Film Festival. This encourages us to work and create projects constantly.
Aside from all these, don’t forget that not every technique is for everyone. As an actor you need to be patient. I’ve seen some actors coming to our class and didn’t like it because it takes time to learn this technique and they wanted to do scenes right away. However, if you are building a technique, you need to be patient and work really hard. What I like most about Playhouse West is our teachers encourages us to work really hard. We have a reading program, they give us the list of suggested books to improve our craft. When you write a book report, you get a discount from your monthly payment. Some people complained about that as well but as an actor you need to learn constantly and reading is a big part because it helps you for reading comprehension, which helps you to understand your scenes better. Because, as an actor, our biggest job is to understand the scene so that we can live it.
I want to end my review with one of my favorite quote.
«You can’t have a million dollar dream with a minimum wage work ethic»
Hope this review is helpful.
AE

I’ve been going to Playhouse West for about a year now and it’s definitely been a rewarding although difficult experience. I started (obviously) in the beginners class and am now in Intermediate. I actually planned on stopping when I graduated to intermediate but after going to a couple classes at that level I decided there was even more to learn and it’d be foolish to quit early. I say difficult because it is two three hour classes a week minimum and outside of class you have to rehearse so it is extremely time consuming and I don’t have a lot of time … but once I was able to reconfigure my schedule it was well worth it.
I really came to the school to simply just learn acting techniques (I’m a director) hoping that I wouldn’t have to participate but that went out the door pretty fast. Each student must participate at least once in every class.
This is an excellent place to learn Meisner because you are studying with teachers that were personally taught by Sanford Meisner so it’s a logical place to attend.
The cost of the classes is definitely competitive (perhaps you could say even cheap) and the fact that you get two 3-​hour classes plus a bonus rehearsal class (if you want to go) plus free admittance into plays that happen every month certainly makes this a great deal.
All in all a great place. They will make you dig emotionally deep but of course that’s what you should want and you’ll meet some great people in the process so go audit a class and see for yourself. The technique might look a little odd at first but the best things usually do.

Ready for the brutal, honest truth?
If you are a beginner, with absolutely NO acting experience, then yes, playhouse west might be a good fit for you.
If you have a single LICK of experience, i mean ANY acting, ANY technique, ESPECIALLY if you’ve had a little bit of Meisner experience before? DO NOT GO TO PLAYHOUSE WEST. I REPEAT, IF YOU HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE, DO NOT GO TO PLAYHOUSE WEST.
after 15 months in a meisner program, I was SO excited to check out playhouse west when I got to LA. boy, how disappointed I was!
–there are almost 30 students in the class. the class is 3 hours. You work once.
I came from a class where I worked 3 – 4 times in a 3 hour period. This was insane. I get that you learn and grow from watching others perform and work. But sitting there for 3 hours watching the same door over and over and over and then working for literally 3 minutes? You do not grow as an actor like that, at least I certainly do not!
–the feedback from Mr. Carnegie is totally useless! He offers nothing practical. I attended 4 classes before officially calling it quits with Playhouse, and Mr. Carnegie literally complimented every exercise. Everybody was apparently amazing and learning so well! Really?
–Meisner is obviously taught /​interpreted differently by EVERY MEISNER SCHOOL. I thought, like most of you are probably thinking, that because Meisner specifically taught at the Playhouse West for 10 years or whatever, that this place has to be the End all Best Meisner School EVER. James Franco, Right?
Mr. Carnegie does not adhere to repetation, it is not reinforced as being important, and most exercises, early through advanced, barely include any at all without comment… The exercises are like a phone conversation with a friend. There was so much space and time for people to GET IN THEIR HEADS and «try to be funny».
blah!!! that is the biggest turn off for me. Thats worse then listening to teachers name drop the celebrities that attended their school.
I’ve audited a bunch of meisner classes in multiple cities and i’ve never seen anything like this before! Everyone was a stand up comedian because they weren’t actually repeating off each other. Mr. Carnegie apparently considers this to be the actors «showing their personality», but really anyone, even someone outside the acting world would be able to see right through «performance».
–there were many, many auditors for each class I attended, that never returned.
–all in all, a huge, huge, huge dissapointment. But there are 10 other Meisner classes in LA, and many of the teachers have taught with meisner himself, and have other degrees of relation, which makes them just as special as Playhouse West!
I don’t want other people to feel like crap like I did because they didn’t like this place. Every actor gets a different feeling from an instructor /​class and thats ok. It’s 2015, the «brand name» of your acting school doesn’t matter on your acting resume. Your reel counts, thats it. This place was just so not for me.
–There is also a review which sums up my points and MUCH more, a little more eloquently than I did, below. definitely check that out.

So after reading the absurd reviews, most by people who haven’t even attended Playhouse West as a student, I was inclined to write this one. I’ve been attending classes at Playhouse West for a little over three months now and I can honestly say I have grown immensely. Not only am I given the opportunity of learning from Mr. Carnegie (who 110% has a method to the madness that can occur in this class) but the studio even offers FREE classes people. That’s unheard of. Every teacher has a different style but what they all have in common is they genuinely want you to succeed. If you want to be in a class where you are praised for mediocrity and little effort this is not the place for you. That being said, there are many different types of acting classes/​teachers. Of course what may work for one may not work for another. Come to this studio with an open mind and I suggest reading the first 5 chapters of Sanford Meisner on acting so you can actually understand the work that is being done.

It truly bothers me to read the negative comments posted. I have full respect for people’s opinions but I do NOT have respect for people that LIE! I have experienced going to many different acting schools in New York, Chicago, Miami. First of all, do you guys understand that Stanford Meisner himself taught here for almost a decade? Mr. Meisner could have literally taught at any other school in the World, but he chose to teach here. That says a lot, and please correct me if I am wrong.
We have hundreds of Acting schools across the country that «teach» the Meisner technique, and I’ve been to a good amount of them and they honestly all scared me away from the technique. I came to Play House West knowing that this is the technique here and I’ll admit I was a little frightened coming here because of my past experiences with the technique were bad, but I figured maybe since the man (Stanford Meisner) who created the technique taught here for almost a decade, why not give it another shot. To me it only made the most sense.
So with that said, since I came to the school I LOVE the Meisner technique and wouldn’t want to go anywhere else. As long as you show up to class, rehearse, and can play truthfully under the imaginary circumstances, this school will do nothing but benefit your craft 110%.

I am so taken aback by the scathing reviews. I have been at PHW for about 4 months and I feel completely at home and confident that I am growing as an actor. While I am sure the technique and this particular school are not for everyone, I have never felt more confident in a school and group of instructors’ ability to foster my growth. And I have not been this excited to work on my craft in a very long time.
I also truly appreciate the low monthly rate and generous amount of class and guided rehearsal time offered. It is without a doubt the best value for your $ in LA. The school is not out to take advantage of young hopeful actors and suck them dry. There’s a sense of integrity, and focus on the work that I love.
I need to point out that, in my experience, the rule is that if you are tardy or absent class on account of work of any kind, you are completely excused. There is no texting or coming and going from class permitted. I have never experienced berating or abuse from instructors. While challenged, I feel I am in very good hands.
In my opinion, if you are not interested in becoming a great actor but want to take up a fun hobby, this is not your ideal starting point. If you want to build and hone your craft, dig deep and act from your guts, give it a try. It is raw and messy and sometimes scary, but ultimately the most rewarding and exciting training I’ve received.

What people need to understand is that, there are many different kinds of acting classes. Playhouse West was recommended to me by multiple actors and instructors. It’s a great scene study and Meisner technique class. The price is reasonable and they have multiple opportunities for you to rehearse throughout the week, aside from your scheduled twice a week classes. They had rehearsal classes open for practice 2 – 3 times per week. And then someone in class was always holding outside group rehearsals aside from rehearsing with your scene partner. The reason I gave it 3 stars was because I have heard a few instructors talk about specific students who left the class or dropped out. Whether their reasons for leaving were financial or they wanted to move on, or whether they really weren’t serious about the class I don’t know. But whatever their reason for leaving, I feel it should be a personal matter between teacher and student and not gossiped about. They do demand that you rehearse daily with this, however most students work to support themselves and can’t make the rehearsal classes every time they’re offered ON TOP of rehearsing daily with their scene partner and going to the scheduled twice a week classes. Certain instructors seemed to not be so forgiving when it came to work and paying rent, at least for a few students.
That being said, Meisner is a really interesting technique that you should take even for a bit so that you understand the gist of it. Meisner and scene study are both a great experience to have at some point in your career. Leaving one class for another shouldn’t be a personal matter, rather than the fact that Los Angeles is filled with so many great instructors. Why not experience and learn from all while we have this opportunity?! :)

ridiculous excuse for the meisner technique. go somewhere else quickly. these unprofessional «teachers» will ruin any instinct or talent you may have. run away.

If you want to put in minimal effort once a week, and dream that you will one day be an actor, this is not the place for you.
If you want to work harder than you have ever worked at the craft of acting, know yourself inside and out, and apply that humanity to bring characters to life than you have found your place.
This school is one of the best choices I have made in my life. If you really want to be an actor, come here. You won’ t be disappointed.

They will help you with your craft. This is the only place I studied the Meisner technique so I can’t compare it to other Meisner schools. I will say this though — I grew as an artist during my time here and my acting became much more truthful.
The downside — it is pretty political here. Some of the inner circle of students seemed a bit stuffy. But I still had a great time with the students in my class. We met outside of class to practice the technique and these meetings would often grow into social events and some of us bonded, so I didn’t totally hate it.

First and foremost, Playhouse West is a school where artists can learn to practice their art.
It is not the school for every actor in Los Angeles as every artist is stirred by different techniques because every artist has a unique approach to acting the same way every painter has their own approach to painting.
That said, if Playhouse West is the school for you, it can completely change your life, both as an actor and as a human.
Prior to coming to Playhouse (I’m a current student and have been studying at PW since July 2013), I had been through several different acting schools and always got something out of them, but never felt like I had anything replicable to call my «technique». I had good moments in class, but could never pin down the details of what I was doing right (when things were going well) or what I was doing wrong (when they weren’t).
Studying the Meisner technique with Mr. Carnegie is the first time I’ve ever felt like an Actor from the standpoint of having tools and a technique to call my unique, individual approach to acting.
In my time at Playhouse I’ve come to understand how much I was missing in all my previous classes and studies. I began acting in high school in 1999 and yet I feel like I REALLY started acting just this past summer.
User reviews are such a dangerous thing to use in order to make a decision — especially on something as subjective as art school — because every place is going to resonate with each individual artist differently, and because so many people only take the time to review when they have an exceptionally bad experience.
If you’ve read some of the older reviews on Playhouse you’ve undoubtedly seen some of these negative ones. Let me save you some of the suspense:
Yes there are some elitist actors here.
No they are not the majority.
The majority of people you meet here are the amazing, genuine, beautiful kind of people you will want to work with for the rest of your career and hang out with in everyday life.
Yes the actors that attend Playhouse West are enthusiastic about the school.
No it’s not a cult.
You’re talking about a school full of students who are being trained to get more in touch with their emotions and break out of the non-​committal, mediocre, closed-​off, say-what-you-«should”-not-what-you-really– feel habits we Americans tend to rely on in our everyday lives. And it just so happens the school does a pretty good job of teaching that kind of emotional availability, which means, yes, we students tend to be pretty passionate about the school if you ask us about it. But nowhere is there some dark room where we hold special meetings and drink kool-​aid together while writing stage plays in blood.
Yes Mr. Carnegie has some unconventional methods and mannerisms.
No this is not any different than working with almost any director who exists or has ever existed.
Every coach is different, every coach is human, and every coach is entitled to the same idiosyncrasies as the rest of us (especially actors, good Lord). Not every coach is perfect for every student.
Yes there is a lot of work involved in going to school here. Reading outside of class and rehearsing with classmates is not only encouraged, it’s expected if you want to grow as an actor at a faster rate (or put differently: …if you want to become the successful working actor you’re striving to be at the fast rate you’re hoping to become it).
No it does not feel like work at all if you’re an actor who is acting for reasons of the heart.
If you’re acting solely for reasons of the ego, this school may not be for you (though transformation is a definite possibility if you’re open to change within yourself).
Any of the professional sports players you see on TV don’t get to where they are by approaching their sport casually for 3 hours one day a week. It’s a commitment. But if it’s what you really want to do, it’s an easy commitment to make.
Having said all this, if you’re considering Playhouse West for your acting studies, I’d highly recommend you audit one of the classes (Mr. Carnegie’s class is the 12:00 to 3:00 Tuesday & Thursday class but there are classes in the evening as well which can also be audited, see the PW website for exact details).
Do bear in mind you’re auditing a beginning class (your only choice as an auditor because it’s where every student starts), which means you’re seeing students’ foundations be rebuilt from the ground, up. The school includes intermediate and advanced classes as well.
The only way you’re ever going to know if this technique (and this school’s method of teaching it) is for you is if you come try it. If it doesn’t ring your bells, cool, there are so many other great acting schools out there and you should not stop until you’ve found one that you absolutely love and believe in with a passion. But if Playhouse West resonates with you, you’re in for an incredible ride that will change both your acting and your humanity for the better.

Save your money and find a better place to train in acting and in the Meisner technique.
This is based on my audit experience on January 14, 2014. I wrote a long response before but fell asleep and lost it some how, so now I’m just going to keep this as direct and short as possible.
What worked & why
— The website looks very appealing, professional and draws you in, making you want to visit.
What didn’t work & why
Low quality of Meisner Training
–Read «Sanford Meisner on Acting» by Sanford Meisner. It is his book he wrote about the technique and applied it to his class. Then audit this class and compare the two. The instructor teaches the superficial/​surface layer of the technique in minutes, then graduates the students to the next step. He gives thumbs up on b.s. (Ex: Forced emotions and actions not rooted in truth), doesn’t give much feedback for others to work on, leaves it up to others to solve the problems they run into (which is true to an extent, but there is a time when guidance is needed, and he can easily use that explanation as an escape to not have to deal with the student), and he doesn’t teach the depth and entirety of what Meisner is all about. Sure, one can say it will be taught in the level 2 or 3 classes, but every foundational step learned in the Level 1 course is vital to understand before moving on to the next step. READ THE BOOK. If you’re too lazy to do so, then you get what you pay for.
Lack of professionalism
— The class had 22 – 30 students and the course is 3 hours long. We started 40 minutes late because the instructor was busy talking & not busy working. That’s your money wasted and time. And while students were working on their scenes and activities, people (auditors, students, even the instructor) were walking in and out of the room constantly or texting on their phones.
Name dropping
— Constantly name dropping James Franco. I hope people realize that actors get trained at different places and leave. Even studios which didn’t help them at all can still claim they were apart of the actor’s success. Personally, if a business has to drop other people’s name more than their own, something isn’t right.
Give this place a chance and audit it despite what I’ve said (AND READ THE BOOK BEFORE YOU GO) but do shop around and check out other studios before settling.

There are some solid things you can learn about acting, yourself, emotional connection to other actors on stage/​screen, and the ability to not plan things out in your work– but rather to let the dynamics of your interaction with the other actors guide your real emotional journey.
That being said, you can learn these things at other schools.
This is one good choice out of many.
One problem I have with PHW, is that (like many other schools/​teachers) they really promote themselves as the right technique and approach to acting.
They discount other schools and techniques as if this were science and not an ART form.
They also have very high demands. Not only are you in class 2 times per week for several hours, but they expect their students to rehearse the techniques outside of class, plus read. Now, that might not look like a lot as I’ve just explained it– but try doing it realistically with a family while holding down a job (which they frown upon if it ever conflicts with class) and trying to have some kind of a life.
Another side-​note about income and career investments: They specifically get frustrated (and belittle students) who miss class for paying work such as background (extra) work. Some people have living expenses such as food, water, rent, gas… etc. (oh yeah, and expensive acting classes). Shooting down a student who is trying to survive because they miss a class isn’t very kind, sympathetic, or understanding.
They also frown on students who miss class for non-​paying acting gigs. HELLO! This is Los Angeles! Who started their career with a paying gig??? People invest their time and talent in non-​paying gigs so that eventually those sacrifices will (hopefully) lead to paying gigs!!!
While commitment to one’s craft is essential, balance is also essential for healthy living.
Also, REAL LIFE is the BEST school for acting. If you spend your class time, your down time, your spare time, and whatever free time you might have meditating on and practicing a specific acting technique, then you are dehumanizing yourself.
Be a human. Live your life. Experience REAL things. Take a good class, but don’t let it dominate your existence.

I was at Playhouse West about 5 years ago, in Robert Carnegie’s class and until I just read the reviews on Unilocal I pretty much had no idea that there were others who felt the same way. First of all Carnegie mentioned James Franco at least 5 times per class. Because I was much older than anyone in the class and a guy, Carnegie used me as the example as to what NOT to become. Everything I did onstage he would point out my extreme lacking in talent, craft, skill, etc. He warned the young students that they too would become an old washed up out of work actor if they didn’t religiously attend Playhouse West. He promised the students that they could become James Franco if they were committed to Playhouse West. I stayed in the class for at least 6 months because I thought that Carnegie was pushing me like a Marine Drill Instructor and that if I quit his class I was a coward. It got so bad, one of the other actors-we’re still friends to this day-​came up to me after class and said that I was not so bad and he noticed that Carnegie was picking on me and while he really liked the class, he told me that I was crazy to be paying someone money that was consistently destroying my confidence as an actor. To this day I am grateful for this person’s intervention. I stopped going to Playhouse West and felt so much better for doing so… if your not young and hot this guy-​Carnegie-​is not for you. The other teachers might be great so I can’t say the school is bad. Meisner technique is phenomenal! I’m not a great actor but I’ve had some success-​btw, according to Carnegie my early success was solely due to my «good looks» and I had no business being an actor in my forties:

I have been going to Playhouse West for Years… The moment I walked in to audit the class i felt home. This place is full of talented, hardworking actors who amaze me every day. I am constantly inspired and have tried other schools but this is the real deal! I have been on auditions and as soon as i mention Playhouse they light up with excitment. Everyone here is super passionate about the work they do here and there reputation proceeds them !
Thank You Playhouse West!!! v

I have been attending (and am currently attending) Robert Carnegie’s beginner classes for the past 3 months. While the method taught here is very good that falls all on Sandy Meisner. Bob doesn’t really provide any real feedback after your first few weeks in the class. Every scene I do receives a easy good, but there’s no advancement which means I haven’t grasped something and he’s not willing to enlighten me as to what it is but rather expects me to figure it out on my own.
I like the school, I love my classmates but the lack of feedback towards positive growth is extremely frustrating for me.

Note: I AUDITED the beginning class.
I agree with Michael S. I have taken Meisner in San Francisco with a great teacher (1^st year material) and I moved to LA. I called The Neighborhood Playhouse in NY to recommend a meisner school to continue my training, and they recommended Playhouse West. So, I was excited.
The first 20 minutes, the teacher talked about the events and plays going on. Then, the class started. The first two went up: one did door, the other had an activity. The girl’s activity seemed meaningless to her. The other girl walked in and seemed emotionally dead. There were so many missed moments; the listening and answering was horrible, and the teacher never stopped them. In fact, he said, «Good» to everyone, gave a few adjustments that were useful, BUT not enough to catapult the actors
into really doing what they needed to do to be the best they could be.
Also, there were two «newbies» that had just joined the class. Most of the students in this class have been doing doors and activities for months, and new people (who haven’t taken meisner) get to join the class and start at basic repetition in THE SAME CLASS? That isn’t a cohesive class feeling and interrupts the flow of learning as a class.
Overall, this school seemed okay/​better than the average acting class, but it didn’t seem to challenge the actor to the extent that the Meisner Technique should do. I was extremely disappointed. I will study elsewhere.