Inside A.C.T.

Mairin Lee, A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program class of 2010. Interested in applying to the M.F.A. Program ? Applications are due by January 11, 2013. On November 14, Facebook friends of A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program class of 2010 graduate Mairin Lee read the young actor's excited post: "I am making my Broadway debut today as Mrs. Montgomery in The Heiress ! I'll be working with the wonderful David Strathairn, Jessica Chastain, and Dee Nelson!" Lee is an understudy for Tony Award–nominated director Moisés Kaufman's production of The Heiress , which opened on November 1 at Broadway's Walter Kerr Theatre. She went on for the matinee and evening shows on November 14 and again on November 15, sparring with A.C.T. favorite David Strathairn ( Scorched , The Tempest ) in what she calls a "Victorian verbal boxing match: Dr. Sloper v. Mrs. Montgomery." While at A.C.T., Lee made her mainstage debut in A Christmas Carol and also performed the ro...

Olympia Dukakis Elektra continues through November 18. Learn more about the production and order tickets . Meet Olympia Dukakis, who plays the Chorus Leader in  Sophocles’ Elektra . What are your preshow/postshow rituals? Naps, food, yoga. What's your favorite thing about San Francisco? Stephen Anthony Jones [who plays Aegisthus in Elektra ]. If you weren't an actor, what would you be? A better human being. What was your most memorable Halloween costume? Never had one—believe it! What is your favorite moment in Elektra ? Enjoying Carey Perloff's acting. What is the most outrageous thing you've done to take revenge on someone? Who, me? Related Posts Wednesday, November 7, 2012 Meet the Cast of "Elektra": Titus Tompkins Thursday, October 25, 2012 Meet the Cast of "Elektra": Allegra Rose Edwards Wednesday, October 17, 2012 Q&A with "Elektra" Translator and Adaptor Timberlake Wertenbaker  P...

As part of a two-year summer international exchange program, the A.C.T. Young Conservatory (YC) will collaborate with Scotland's Aberdeen Performing Arts (APA) Young Persons Company to explore actor training in residencies in Aberdeen and San Francisco. Following each summer workshop, the companies will present a co-commissioned work at their respective theaters. For the inaugural session of the program, the YC and APA Young Persons Company co-commissioned Scottish playwright DC Jackson to write [untitled] Reality Project , which brings audiences into the world of reality television. Students from the YC traveled to Aberdeen, Scotland, over the summer of 2012 for two weeks of acting and cultural immersion, workshopping the new play with the playwright and taking part in classes and extracurricular experiences with the APA Young Persons Company. 

Theresa Wong Elektra continues through November 18. Learn more about the production and order tickets . Meet Theresa Wong, who plays the cello onstage in  Sophocles’  Elektra . Visit theresawong.org to learn more about her career! What are your preshow/postshow rituals? Some or all of the following: Dedicating the performance to someone, a shot of whisky, vocal warm-up, breathing/visualization exercises, being still. What’s your favorite thing about San Francisco? Berkeley. What was your most memorable Halloween costume? Edvard Munch’s painting “The Scream.” What is your favorite moment in Elektra ? When Aegisthus enters and holds court. What is the most outrageous thing you’ve done to take revenge on someone? Forgive them.

Rebekah Brockman, A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program class of 2013 As part of the ongoing partnership between A.C.T.’s Education Department and the Visual and Performing Arts Department of the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), in mid October the six members of the A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program class of 2013 participated in a brown bag workshop for students attending the Ruth Asawa School of the Arts (RASOTA), San Francisco’s acclaimed (and only) public visual and performing arts high school. RASOTA students across all disciplines were invited to attend the lunchtime workshop, organized by A.C.T. Director of Education Elizabeth Brodersen, SFUSD Artistic Director Susan Stauter, and RASOTA Theater Technology & Design Department Chair Keith Carames. Connecting their own work to the RASOTA theater students’ theme of “Legacy: Fame v. Infamy,” the A.C.T. M.F.A. Program actors presented self-selected scenes from Arthur Miller’s Crucible, William Shakespeare’s ...

The A.C.T. Master of Fine Arts Program  class of 2014 recently returned from Moscow, where they were honored as the only U.S. acting school invited to attend the prestigious Stanislavsky Festival. They performed Federico García Lorca's  The House of Bernarda Alba , were featured on the  evening news , and interacted with students from England, Hungary, Germany, Italy, Poland, France, and Russia. We asked the students to share their photos and reflections from this unforgettable trip. To read more about their experiences, search for hashtag  #ACTinMoscow  on  Facebook  and  Twitter . A backstage sign at Moscow Art Theatre. Photo courtesy Elyse Price. Elyse Price Dobre OOtra! Good morning from the foggy streets of Moscow City. I woke up this morning to the smell of cigarette smoke and the sensation of the cold, crisp Russian air creeping in through my hotel room window. This is not a complaint, rather a surreal reckoning. In this ...