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In Memoriam (1932-2019) William Esper was the head of his own studio in New York City since 1965, as well as director of the Professional Actor Training Programs at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University since their inception in 1977. He was a graduate of Western Reserve University as well as the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre, where he was trained as a teacher and actor by Sanford Meisner, and with whom he worked closely as a teacher and director for 17 years. Mr. Esper was on the staff of the Neighborhood Playhouse for 12 years and Associate Director of the Playhouse’s Acting Department from 1973 to 1976. He was a Guest Artist Teacher at Canada’s Banff Festival of the Arts, Workshops in the Performing Arts in Vancouver, British Columbia, as well as the National Theatre School of Canada, St. Nicholas Theatre Company in Chicago, Illinois, and the Schauspiel München Skool in Munich, Germany.In 1975-76 he was Director of the Circle Repertory Theatre Company’s workshop in New York City. He has directed and acted, both Off-Broadway and regionally, and is a member of the Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. Mr. Esper is profiled in the book The New Generation of Acting Teachers, published by Viking Press in 1987. He was a past member of the National Board of the National Association of Schools of Theatre and a former Vice-President and Board Member of the University Resident Theatre Association. He lectured on acting at People’s Light and Theatre Company and the Screen Actors Guild Conservatory, New York City. SAG honored him with a Certificate of Achievement for his service to the profession. Professional actors with whom Mr. Esper has worked include: Kim Basinger, Jennifer Beals, Amy Schumer, Kristen Davis, Kim Delaney, Calista Flockhart, Peter Gallagher, Jeff Goldblum, Glenn Headley, Patricia Heaton, William Hurt, Christine Lahti, John Malkovich, Gretchen Mol, David Morse, Sam Rockwell, Michelle Shay, Paul Sorvino, Mary Steenburgen, Patricia Wetting, Richard Schiff, Dule Hill, Timothy Olyphant, Molly Price, Roger Bart, Tonya Pinkins, Dean Winters, Aaron Eckhart, Wendy Malik, and Tracee Ellis Ross.
Suzanne Esper is a graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre where she studied with Sanford Meisner and William Esper. Mrs. Esper has worked Off-Broadway, in Regional Theatre and Summer Stock. For the Rutgers Theatre Company she played leading roles in Waltz of the Toreadors by Jean Anouilh and the English language premiere of Pirandello’s Cap and Bells.
She understudied Olympia Dukakis as Madame Arkadina in Chekhov’s The Seagull and thereafter played the role herself for Mason Gross School of the Arts. Outside the New York area she appeared in 1776 with John Raitt, H.M.S. Pinafore with Sir Martin Green and Camelot with Leonard Nimoy. She also toured extensively throughout the United States in The Songs of Jacques Brel. She has taught at the Studio since 1979. She does frequent professional coaching and, with her husband, has given workshops at the National Film School of Denmark, as well as in Oslo, Tuscany and Manheim, Germany. In 2008, she and Bill introduced Meisner work to the Russian Theater at the National Theater Academy in St. Petersburg.
Barbara Marchant is the Associate Chair of the Theater Department, Head of the BFA/ MFA Acting program, and Director of the Rutgers Conservatory Training Program at Shakespeare’s Globe at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University. She was awarded the Teacher of the Year Award by Rutgers University and is the co-founder of the Rutgers Conservatory at Shakespeare’s Globe in London England. Barbara was trained by William Esper and, for the past thirty years, has taught at the William Esper Studio in NYC. Her acting credits include numerous productions in New York, both on Broadway and Off Broadway, US regional theatres and network daytime television. She is a professional coach with experience in theater, film, and prime time television both in the U.S and the U.K. Her work with Black and Blue resulted in a coveted Tony Award in New York and internationally, France’s prestigious Moliere Award as well as a nomination for England’s Olivier Award. Barbara is the author of “A Young Actors Scenebook: A Training Tool,” published by Rowan and Littlefield, is profiled in “Who’s Who of American Women” and is the recipient of the Rutgers University 2017 Warren I. Sussman award for Excellence in Teaching.
David has been working as an actor in the theater for over twenty-five years. Having been bi-coastal for a great portion of that time, he worked extensively in both New York and Los Angeles as well as regionally. During his time in New York he co-founded the Stillwaters Theatre Company, in which he shared artistic directorship. He has appeared in numerous films, soaps, and on television, most recently on Law & Order. His film credits include the lead role in Performance Anxiety, winner of the Prix De La Critique (Critic’s Choice, Best Short Film) at the Cannes Film Festival in 1994, and the feature film Thinking with Richard. Theatre credits include Clean Living, Cold Flesh, Carry the Tiger to the Mountain, Dinner with Friends, Rounding Third, Split Second, Gun Club, Parker Family Circus, Texas Homos, Magnetic North, and Noon Day Sun.
Directing credits include Eden End, The Blue Room, The Last Supper, Exit Neon, Tape, Orphans, Danny and the Deep Blue Sea, The Dumb Waiter, Mary MacGregor, Red Light Winter, This is our Youth, and Home Free. In addition to teaching at the Studio, David has taught acting at North Carolina School of the Arts, the Asolo Conservatory (MFA Program, FSU), University of the Arts in Philadelphia, California State University at Fullerton, Fordham University and Rutgers University Professional Training Program. He has also spent ten summers teaching a Meisner intensive with Deborah Hedwall, at the Ensemble Studio Theatre Summer Conference.
David holds an MFA from Rutgers University.
Bruce was most recently seen on Broadway as Michael in God of Carnage and on HBO’s The Wizard of Lies. Other Broadway: he appeared as MacMurphy when he filled in for Gary Sinise in the Steppenwolf production of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, directed by Terry Kinney, and As Is. He played Adrian in the Westport Playhouse production of Arthur Miller’s The Archbishop’s Ceiling, directed by Gregory Mosher; The Dew Point by Neena Beeber, directed by William Carden; According to Goldman by Bruce Graham, directed by Pamela Berlin (Barrymore Award for Leading Actor nominee). He appeared as Robbie the genius homeless man in The Subway Plays at HB Playwrights Foundation. National Tour: Mass Appeal. A long time member of Circle Repertory Company, he performed extensively Off-Broadway with Circle Rep and other companies, including: Another Vermeer by Bruce Robinson; Endpapers by Thomas McCormack; The Destiny of Me by Larry Kramer, directed by Marshall W. Mason; Balm In Gilead by Lanford Wilson, directed by John Malkovich; Oregon by Peter Hedges, directed by Joe Mantello; Borderlines; Raft of the Medusa; The Moundbuilders; Moe’s Lucky Seven by Marlene Meyer; Babylon Gardens and many more. Regional: Two Days by Donald Margulies, directed by Lisa Peterson; Coastline by Alice Tuan, directed by Dan Bonnell; The Woolgatherer directed by Joe Brancato; Belmont Avenue Social Club; End of Summer directed by Kent Paul, and more. Film: The Crow: Salvation, Love Potion No. 9, Blowback, How To Be Louise, True Colors, Tortilla Soup, The Boy Who Cried Bitch, Ripe, Shut Yer Mouth, etc. He was Micah Simms in the Sam Raimi – John McNamara ABC series Spy Game. Other TV: Law and Order, The Practice, Profiler, Raising Kate, Judging Amy, Ally McBeal, Chicago Hope, Mercy Point, among others. His directing credits include: The Parts I’ve Played, a cabaret, starring Dana Reeve, which he also co-wrote with Ms. Reeve; Major Zero by Dean Cushman; White Men With Afros; They All Choose Dancing, two short plays by Adam Rapp. Currently he is directing the one woman show Running Into Me, which is written and performed by Vickie Tanner, an Esper Studio actor. He participated in the 2008 Sundance Directors Lab.
Monaco earned a degree in Acting from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, under the leadership of William Esper, where she studied the Meisner Technique and trained in London at what is now called Rutgers Conservatory at Shakespeare’s Globe. Monaco taught BFA and MFA Acting and directed productions at MGSA, Rutgers University, was lead acting instructor at Ealing Studios MET Film School in London and teaches workshops in Australia. As a professional actor Monaco is a proud member of The Factory theatre company having worked on numerous productions with director Tim Carroll. Monaco is a collaborator, director and writer whose work focuses on developing projects inspired by true stories. Monaco has created television series, films, a graphic novel, stand-up comedy, and one-person shows. Some notable artists she has collaborated with are Kennedy Yanko (painter-sculptor), Jeremy O. Harris (Slave Play, Daddy), Gil Perez-Abraham (The Batman), Brandon Flynn (13 Reasons Why), Annasofia Facello (Uruguayan Actor, TV Presenter), Kerstin Coco Qvortrup (Danish Actor, Lover), Shantell Martin (visual artist), and Cautious Clay (musician). Monaco directed TIGER DAUGHTER, OR: HOW I BROUGHT MY IMMIGRANT MOTHER ULTIMATE SHAME, Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2024.
Karen Chamberlain holds an MFA in Acting from Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of The Arts, where she studied under William Esper. A few years after graduation, Mr. Esper invited her to train to teach at the William Esper Studio. She has been teaching now for over twenty years. She is on the faculty at NYU, Tisch School of The Arts where she teaches First and Second Year Meisner Technique at The Meisner Studio and Advanced Acting at Playwrights Horizons Theatre School. Karen was an Assistant Professor for The BFA Professional Actor Training Program at Rutgers University and the first On-Site Resident Director for The Rutgers Conservatory Program at Shakespeare’s Globe, London. In addition to teaching at The William Esper Studio, she has taught independently and at The University of The Arts in Philadelphia. She is a proud member of The Collective- NY, a Theatre and Film Production Company, founded by Esper graduates, including Amy Schumer. Karen continues to work professionally as an actress and on-set coach. Most recently she coached for “ Crashing”, a comedy-drama series on HBO and “ Master of None” on Netflix. Karen also directs a production annually for NYU.
Shannon Esper received her BA in Classics from Wesleyan University before completing the full time Actor Training Program at the William Esper Studio where she studied with Karen Chamberlain. She continued her training in Master Class with her father, William Esper, while she began her professional acting and music career. Film credits include Kentucker Audley’s Open Five, Small Engine Repair (opposite John Pollono), Coming Up Roses (opposite Rachel Brosnahan and Bernadette Peters). TV credits include Law and Order: Criminal Intent and four seasons of Orange is the New Black. Theaters Credits include Rapture, Blister, Burn at Boston’s Huntington Theater (dir. Peter duBois) and The Talls at Second Stage Uptown (die. Carolyn Cantor) and participated in the Sundance Theater Lab. After working in the Voice and Speech department for ten years, she trained as an Acting Teacher (under Suzanne Esper and Barbara Marchant) for five years and is thrilled to now teach the work that has always been a part of her life.
Patricia Fletcher earned her Master of Arts in Voice and Speech from Antioch University, and is a Designated Linklater Voice Teacher. She has worked as Speech, Dialect, Voice, and Audition Coach for actors both on and Off-Broadway, in feature and independent films, documentaries and television, and has been a guest artist at many colleges and universities.
Her highly acclaimed textbook, Classically Speaking – Dialects for Actors, is used in university, conservatory and actor training programs throughout the United States and abroad.
In addition to teaching at the New School for Drama and the William Esper Acting Studio, she has also taught for Rutgers University/Mason Gross School of the Arts, the Actors Studio Drama School, Brooklyn College, and the New Actors Workshop. Ms. Fletcher has appeared as an actress on Broadway, Off Broadway, in regional theatre, film, and television.
In her 20 plus years of acting and teaching, Patricia has coached a wide range of stage and screen actors including Harvey Keitel, Lynn Redgrave, Jean Reno, Drea De Matteo, Elias Koteas, Gina Gershon, Michael Esper, Aaron Sanford, Leïla Bekhti, Géraldine Nakache, Manu Payet, Carman Lacivita, as well as business professionals at Court TV, Merck Pharmaceuticals, Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, IBM, among others.
Abroad, she has served as a member of the American delegation to the International Theatre Institute 23rd World Congress in Marseilles, to the Swedish Theatre Union Biennial in Våxjo, and as panelist for the Dürrenmatt Theatre Festival in Singapore, at the invitation of the Swiss Embassy. Patricia’s work was the subject of a featured article in the May 2007 edition of MORE Magazine, “The Sound of Experience” by Amanda Robb. For a more detailed bio, book reviews, selections from the book and CD, visit: www.patriciafletcher.com
Nancy Mayans has been teaching, performing, and directing for over twenty-five years. She has also coached numerous actors on their auditions and roles for television, film and stage. After receiving a Bachelor of Arts in Drama from Stanford University (Phi Beta Kappa) and a Masters of Fine Arts in Acting from Yale, she went on to teach at Yale, Carnegie Mellon, Trinity Repertory Conservatory, NYU, Columbia University, and several New York acting studios. Since 1990 she has been teaching at the William Esper Studio, specializing in voice, speech, and classical text. She also spent over 12 years teaching MFA’s with Mr. Esper in the Professional Actor Training Program at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University.
Nancy is the creator of The Unlimited Actor, an energy-based acting method for auditions, character development, and unlocking your full creative range. She currently teaches this method at the William Esper Studio as well as in Los Angeles. Her book The Unlimited Actor is available now on Amazon and Balboa Press.
Nancy has served as acting/speech coach for HBO, MTV, and two PBS children’s television series. She has been a dialogue coach on feature films starring such actors as Gretchen Mol, Tom Conti, Jorge Sanz, Stephen Rea, and Alfred Molina. As a director, she has worked at the Riverside Shakespeare Company, the Millbrook Playhouse, Carnegie Mellon, and numerous showcase houses. As an actor/singer Nancy has performed around the world with Julie Taymor’s award-winning Juan Darien. She has also acted with the Public Theater, Manhattan Theatre Club, Yale Repertory Theatre, and the American Repertory Theatre in Boston where she is a founding member.
Eric was trained as an actor by William Esper at Rutgers University. Prior to his Broadway debut in David Leveaux’s Romeo & Juliet, Eric worked off-broadway in New York, and regionally at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Florida Studio Theatre, Actor’s Shakespeare Company, Drury Lane, and First Folio Shakespeare Festival. Most recently, he starred in The Man of the Hour, a “New York Times Critics Pick” directed by Leonard Peters (Metropolitan Playhouse). As a singer he has performed in several musicals, including the multiple Jeff-award winning 1776 with director Gary Griffin.
Film work includes Letters from Bagdhad (TE Lawrence), and Tapestry with Stephen Baldwin, Burt Young and Tina Louise.
He has taught at Rutgers University, NYU, SUNY-Purchase, Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute, The Actor’s Studio MFA program at Pace University, and is a proud member of SAFD, SAG/AFTRA and AEA.
Danielle Liccardo is a Designated Master teacher of the Williamson Technique Certified by mentor Loyd Williamson. Ms. Liccardo has been teaching physical technique to actors for over twenty-five years and one of few appointed by Mr. Williamson to train teachers in his technique. Ms. Liccardo studied towards a BA degree in English/Literature and Drama as a double major from Caldwell University - Summa Cum Laude. As an actress she studied under the direction of Kathryn Gately in New York City, in the classical conservatory at London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts in London, master classes with the SITI company, the American Globe and with The Original Shakespeare Company in the UK. She has worked abroad, off-broadway, regionally, in voice-overs and in film. Ms. Liccardo has been the core movement specialist in the professional acting conservatory at Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, where she is an Asst. Professor, teaching physical technique as well as advanced movement and period style work to the BFA and MFA acting candidates since 1997; and is the resident movement coach for the Rutgers Theater Company. She has designed a unique physical training component for the actor that envelopes the teachings of mentor Loyd Williamson, Tadashi Suzuki, experimental theatre and composition, and ensemble creation. Ms. Liccardo directs and creates original physical performances annually at both Mason Gross School of the Arts and in New York. She is an Intimacy Director and strong advocate for actors, coaching and teaching workshops in this realm to actors, directors, stage managers and designers in the theater world, film and television. She is an active movement coach and consultant in NYC, regionally and abroad; and has been the co-founder of Inertia Productions, Inc. a not-for-profit theatre company in New York City where she has served as Artistic Director for over twenty years. Ms. Liccardo has also been on faculty at Drew University, New York University - Tisch School of the Arts, at Actors Movement Studio/NYC, at Maggie Flanigan Acting Studio, has been a member of the Association of Theater Movement Educators and has proudly sat on numerous artistic and educational panels and committees collaborating with interdisciplinary studies across the arts and sciences.
Caitlin graduated from Mason Gross School of the Arts with a BFA in Acting. It was there where she learned the technique she later embodied and now teaches. She is a certified movement teacher of the Williamson Technique and is back in the big apple after spending six years working with artists on the west coast. Caitlin is a full believer of the craft. She is an actor, movement specialist and choreographer who works with a variety of artists of all levels. Whether they are beginners or established, working actors, she gets them grounded in their instruments so that they can feel more open, available, receptive and confident. She also is certified by the British Academy of Dramatic Combat in single sword, rapier/dagger and unarmed. With various theater, film and commercial credits under her belt, she is a firm believer that acting is with the whole body and that one must be connected to their instrument in order to thrive in this business.
Joseph has earned degrees in both Exercise Science and Kinesiology and is certified in various movement disciplines related to the function of the human body. This knowledge laid the foundation of understanding when studying the Williamson Technique at the William Esper Studio where he completed his actor training in the Professional Actor Training Program. Upon graduation he trained to teach the Williamson Technique.
Judith Grodowitz brings an extensive background in performance and movement arts to her teaching. Alexander certified in 1987, she has private practices in NYC and Shelter Island, NY, and regularly travels internationally, teaching AT in performing arts venues. She began teaching at The Esper Studio in 2007. Judith periodically offers her workshop, Inspiration in the Aegean, taught in the Greek Islands. The workshop integrates Alexander, movement improvisation, ancient Greek art and mythology, and landscape.
Performing with numerous NYC choreographers, Judith originated leading roles as a longtime member of the Obie-Award winning company (Best New American Play), Skyfish Ensemble, directed by Lee Nagrin. She incorporates in-depth training in a variety of movement, dance and improvisational techniques into her teaching. She was certified in The Art of Breathing in 2003, and has studied with many leaders in the international Alexander community. A lifetime of involvement with visual, language and movement arts inspires her teaching. She has a B.A. in Literature (U. of MD).
Ms. Grodowitz specializes in working with performing artists through private lessons, group classes, and rehearsal settings; her students also include people of all ages and walks of life with a variety of motivations for study.
Former and/or ongoing positions include: Bard College Graduate Vocal Arts Program; ImPulsTanz Contemporary Dance Festival, Vienna, Austria; Actors Studio Drama School, and Mannes College of Music, New School Univ.; P.A.R.T.S. Dance Conservatory, Brussels, Belgium; New York Theater Workshop, NYC; Vassar College Drama Dept (performance consultant); Gati Dance, New Delhi, India; Sloan Kettering Integrative Medicine Ctr (cancer patients); numerous workshops for Pilates teachers and massage therapists.
Anne is a professional member of the American Society for the Alexander Technique. She is a certified teacher who has maintained a private practice in Manhattan since 1984, and in addition recently in East Jewett, NY. Anne has extensive experience presenting the work and training teachers nationally and internationally in Europe, Japan, Korea, Mexico and the US.
From Master Classes in classical flute in Tokyo and Osaka, to massage therapists in Ohio, to a Mexican orchestra in Guana Juato, working with singers from City Opera and the Met and The Actors Studio MFA Program in Manhattan, she continues to work with performing artists.
In addition Anne was a Senior Faculty member at the American Center for the Alexander Technique from 1987-1998, where she helped train many teachers who practice today. Since 1992, she has been on the faculty at Sweet Briar College, a 1-2 week long immersion in the work. Coming from a dance background, Anne incorporates movement, anatomy, the breath and the voice.
David Kaplan is the author of Five Approaches to Acting, a college textbook used in the United States, Canada and Italy since 2000, now issued as a series by Hansen Press. This fall the preview edition of his newest college text — “An Impolite Guide to Theater History” – will be released under the title “Shakespeare, Shamans, and Show Biz.”
He has held classes for actors since 1980 in Europe, Asia, Africa, North and South America. He has taught and lectured at Bard, Hofstra, NYU, Rutgers, The University of New Mexico, The University of the South, Mississippi State University, California’s USC, The Siberian Academy of Fine Arts (in Ulan Ude), the Moscow Pedagogical University (in Samara) the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, the Lee Strasberg Institute in New York, Metodifest in Tuscany, Italy, Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey, and at Acutuando sin Actuar in Mexico.
Mr. Kaplan is also curator and co-founder of the Provincetown Tennessee Williams Theater Festival, now in its fourteenth year. He has staged Williams’ plays worldwide: in 2003, The Eccentricities of a Nightingale in Cantonese at the Hong Kong Repertory Theater; in 1993 the Russian premiere (in Russian) of Suddenly Last Summer; in 2016 Ten Blocks on the Camino Real in Ghana. He is the author of the book Tennessee Williams in Provincetown, and the editor of the centennial anthology Tenn at One Hundred: the Reputation of Tennessee Williams.
Seasons past include staging:a Sufi King Lear in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, performed in the Uzbek language; Genet’s The Maids in Ulaan Baator, Mongolia, performed in Mongolian; the first Russian productions of Auntie Mame and Eugene O’Neill’s Ah, Wilderness! Also in Russia: Macbeth and Midsummer Night’s Dream. Plays directed by Mr. Kaplan have appeared in 40 of the 50 United States.
Kathleen is an alumni of The Juilliard School of Drama and professional actor, director, and teacher. Her acting credits include: Broadway,THE MINUTES, THE FATHER, ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE, FISH IN THE DARK, CORAM BOY, DEATH OF A SALESMAN, THE CONSTANT WIFE, AFTER THE FALL, A FEW GOOD MEN. She has worked extensively in the regional theaters. Her TV credits include: The Bite, The Enemy Within, Elementary, Blind Spot, All the Law and Orders, Chicago Justice, BlackBox, Black List. She is on the faculty of Juilliard School of Drama where she teaches Physical Acting including Lucid Body and Mask work. She also has taught at Rutgers, UCSD, AADA, and numerous other institutions and studios. She is a founding member of the Cape Cod Theater Project and a member of the Actors Center. She wrote, produced and directed a web series called PILLOW TALK with Preston Bailey that appeared on the Huffington post online publication. For more info: kathleenmcnenny.com
Hailed by critics as the most accomplished and renowned mime of his generation, Bill Bowers currently performs and teaches the art of physical storytelling throughout the world. His methods and exploration of universal truths transcend the spoken word to educate and touch audiences in countries as varied as Poland, The Netherlands, Scotland, Japan, Macedonia, Romania, Italy, Norway, Germany and Austria. An award-winning actor, Bowers has also performed in all 50 United States and Puerto Rico appearing on the stages of Broadway, The Kennedy Center, The White House, Steppenwolf, LaMaMa, Theatre for a New Audience, St. Anne’s Warehouse, Urban Stages, Rattlestick Playwrights Theater, Ensemble Studio Theater, Radio City Music Hall, HERE, and the New York International Fringe Festival. His Broadway credits include Zazu in The Lion King and Leggett in The Scarlet Pimpernel. He has also portrayed the great silent clowns: Charlie Chaplin in the world premiere of Little Tramp, Pierrot in the world premiere of Beethoven N Pierrot, and Petruchka with The Colorado Symphony. A passionate student and educator, Bowers studied with the legendary Marcel Marceau and currently serves on the faculties of New York University, Stella Adler Conservatory, and William Esper Studios. He is also presently a Visiting Professor at Williams College. He holds an MFA from Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of the Arts, and an Honorary PhD from Rocky Mountain College. www.Bill-Bowers.com
ROBERT Z GRANT is a New York-based actor and improviser. He is a founding member and former co-artistic director of The Collective NY. He appeared Off Broadway and toured the country (and internationally) for over a decade with an improvised musical comedy show. Robert trained as an actor with Bill Esper at the William Esper Studio. A very physical performer, Robert also studied Dance at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, clowning with Christopher Bayes at The Public and at Juilliard, and improvisation with Ralph Buckley. Robert has been performing and teaching improv for over 20 years. He has taught classes and workshops for high schools, colleges and universities across the country, and as far away as South Africa, and facilitated corporate training for companies such as Merrill Lynch, IBM, CNN Money, Pfizer, Astra-Zeneca, Swatch and more. He has taught and/or performed at every major New York improv venue (and even outlasted several), including UCB, The P.I.T., Caroline’s on Broadway, American Comedy Institute, Improvolution, ComedySportz and The Yes Show, and he performed two seasons of “Spontaneous Broadway” at Freestyle Rep. Robert also collaborated for several years with the Writers’ Improv Workshop to develop and create improvised stories and characters for film. The first collaboration was an award-winning feature titled “42 Seconds of Happiness,” followed by “The Rainbow Experiment". He has made regular appearances on all five seasons of “Inside Amy Schumer” on Comedy Central. Robert is the author of “Improv and the Actor’s Imagination” which explores the relationship between the skills of improvisation and the Meisner technique. His second book exploring character through improvisation is in the works. He continues to try to lead an improvised life, and to share his experience and skills to help actors become more confident and free in their craft and in life.
