Directors Chair 10

www.theactorsworkshop.org

To My Readers,

I had planned to take this time to update our readers of our latest company news but this is a time to make a personal acknowledgement.

In our lives many of us are seeking to find out, not only who we are but how do we make a difference? The Actors Workshop of South Florida has proudly participated in being a part of people making such discoveries through the 8 week Introductory workshop and Ongoing workshop we have continued to keep our focus on the individual and our respect for the craft of acting, which is the foundation of my company because that is how I learned my craft. So when I learned this week of the passing of one who inspired me on that journey, I wanted to continue to honor his legacy and what I have learned and now teach. His name is Sal Dano, he is the creator of the foundation acting technique of The Actors Workshop of South Florida.

I met Sal in Los Angeles in 1985, I was an experienced working actress, I had studied and learned many of the great acting techniques from Stanislavsky to Strasberg but had always had this nagging feeling that something was still missing, that piece of 'going somewhere emotionally as an actress', that I did not seem to consistently see or know from my acting experiences but after such time I thought that it just must not exist.

Then, one day while in an L.A eatery I was having a conversation with a young actor named Anthony LaPaglia, sharing our mutual experiences working in Australia, when he told me of this acting studio which he was attending with these fellow actors seated in the restaurant, and so there I met Mr Sal Dano who invited me to audit his workshop. With so many recommendations to audit various workshops, this was the one which held my attention, and within that week I visited.

In this little black-box room in a rather shady part of town, my life and career were changed as I watched Sal, within two hours, transform a scene into something so exciting, I knew that missing piece did exist and I had found it.

I was privileged to study this technique which Sal created, a form of method that gets the actor to the truth immediately, taking the 'hit and miss' out of finding your intention. So when I started my company, and thought of all the techniques I had learned, which would I teach? I chose to teach the technique which had changed my life and career.

The craft of acting has brought me great joy and fulfillment, and as I continue to see our actors grow in that discovery because of this technique, I am proud to acknowledge its creator Sal Dano.

God Bless you Sal, your legacy will continue, with your extraordinary technique being the foundation of The Actors Workshop of South Florida.

Thanks for taking a look.

Jane Kelly-Director