Joanna Merlin & Bethany Caputo: Michael Chekhov Technique
Ripley Grier 520 8th Ave, New York, NY, United StatesIn-Person Workshop Joanna Merlin & Bethany Caputo: Michael Chekhov Technique Weekend Workshop Dates & Times Saturday, November 5, 2022 – 11:00am-2:00pm Sunday, November 6, 2022 – 11:00am-2:00pm Ripley Grier, 520 8th Avenue, 16th Floor, Studio 16D This workshop will take place in person. We are unable to accommodate observers for this workshop. About the Workshop Esteemed actress, educator, and the last living student of Michael Chekhov, Joanna Merlin, returns to The Actors Center alongside colleague Bethany Caputo to lead a two-day workshop on Chekhov’s Psychological Gesture. Chekhov developed this technique as a psychophysical approach in which transformation, working with impulse, imagination, and inner and outer gesture are central. Joanna and Bethany will guide participants through various qualities of movement, physical exploration of gesture, and character choices, aimed at provoking the actor’s body, spirit, and imagination into action. Sessions run 11:00am-2:00pm each day. COVID-19 Safety Policies For this workshop: At-home rapid covid test required before each session Masks optional Daily health screening questionnaire Large studio Windows and ventilation system About Joanna Merlin & Bethany Caputo Joanna Merlin, a student of Michael Chekhov, is an actor, teacher, and former casting director. She is a faculty member at New York University’s Graduate Acting program at the Tisch School of the Arts and currently serves as President of the Michael Chekhov Association. She is the recipient of two Casting Society of America Artios Awards for casting Bertolucci’s The Last Emperor and Sondheim’s Into the Woods. As Harold Prince’s Casting Director, she cast the original Broadway productions of Sondheim’s Company, Follies, A Little Night Music, Pacific Overtures, Sweeney Todd, and Merrily We Roll Along, as well as Evita, Candide, A Doll’s Life, Play Memory, End of the World, and On the Twentieth Century. As an actor, her Broadway credits include Becket opposite Laurence Olivier and Fiddler on the Roof in which she created the role of Tzeitel, the eldest daughter. Films include Sarah’s Key, The Wackness, Invasion, City of Angels, Class Action, Mystic Pizza, Fame, The Killing Fields, The Ten Commandments. She has appeared on “The Good Wife” and “Homeland” and had a recurring part in “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” as Judge Lena Petrovsky. Joanna is a co-founder of the Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts (formerly the Non-Traditional Casting Project) and was a member of the Tony Awards Nominating Committee. Her book, Auditioning: An Actor-Friendly Guide, was published by Vintage in May, 2001 and is still in print. Bethany Caputo is an acting coach and...

