Author: Ashley Roberts

Happy New Year! A Note of Reflection and Gratitude

Dear Friends:

This year has been difficult for the theater world and for artists everywhere. We have found moments of joy too, and we have triumphed in discovering new possibilities and ways of working together.

What stands beautifully apart amidst all that has transpired is the outstanding work and dedication of artists. Many, many times we were taken aback by you—by your ingenious creativity, your resolve and your humanity. As actors we learn to adapt to circumstances, and adapt you did, with grit and grace.

As we look ahead to a new year full of both questions and promise, we can acknowledge the difficult journey we have been on and appreciate the power of the work we have set out to do.

We have felt the pain of loss and hardship, and we are reckoning with deep divisions and injustices in our world. But we have also been reminded of what it really means to be an artist; what it means to wrestle with the circumstances of our world and to give that meaning.

Above technical skill, we must cultivate creative work that gives expression to our lives; work that reveals the human condition in all its complexity and touches others in the unspoken ways that only art can.

This year, more than ever, we are grateful for the connection we have with one another. HB’s community is rich with compassion, support, and inspiration, and each one of us brings an urgent and unique creative voice to that dynamic conversation.

Please join us in taking this time to reflect on all of this and to set intentions for yourself and your work in 2021. What will you bring to the New Year? We look forward to seeing you in the Studio, wherever it lives, wherever we make it together.

With gratitude,

HB Studio

The 2021 Hagen Core Training program will have Online and Hybrid options

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the 2021 Hagen Core Training program will be offered as a hybrid program, held online, with the option of select in-person classes. Choose to take the entire program remotely, or attend some classes in person.

During the first term all classes will be held exclusively online, except for the Acting Technique class which will meet in small groups, 2-4 afternoons a week at HB Studio. The in-person classes will run simultaneously online for remote students. HB Studio will continually assess the situation as the pandemic progresses to determine whether and at what point additional in-person classes can safely resume during the second and third terms. For those who choose, the entire program can be taken remotely for all three terms.

For those choosing to study under the hybrid model with select in-person classes, HB Studio will follow CDC, OSHA, and NYS/NYC safety guidelines for businesses, standards established by the actors’ unions, and the best practices of our theater and university partners.

An immersive conservatory under the Uta Hagen Institute at HB Studio, the Hagen Core Training program offers an integrated and progressive curriculum of essential classes that lay the foundation for those pursuing a professional career in acting. Taught over three terms by world-class faculty/practitioners, this program offers an integrated progressive curriculum of essential classes: Acting Technique, Scene Study, Script Analysis, Movement, Alexander Technique, Voice, and Speech. The program is eligible for college credit transfer.

2021 HAGEN CORE TRAINING:

  • Term 1: Jan 4-March 12 (Orientation: Sunday, Jan 3, 2021)
    Mon-Fri,  9:30am-4pm
  • Term 2: March 22-May 28
    Mon-Fri,  9:30am-3:30pm
  • Term 3: June 7-Aug 13
    Mon-Fri,  9:30am-4pm

Applications are currently being accepted on a rolling basis. Learn more and apply now!

Introducing the Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre!

HB Studio is pleased to honor longtime teacher Helen Gallagher and introduce the “Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre”!

The Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre, HB Studio’s first floor classroom and performance space, was recently named in honor of Emmy and Tony Award-winning actress Helen Gallagher, who has practiced and taught at HB Studio for 35 years.

Friends and professional colleagues of Helen Gallagher gathered in a private event over Zoom on Thursday to celebrate her legacy and contribution to HB Studio.

The Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre is one of HB Studio’s primary training spaces and where the actress teaches her musical theater classes. While the Studio buildings remain closed amid safety concerns, plans for an unveiling celebration are being made for when HB Studio reconvenes.

Design rendering of the exterior of the Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre (pictured below):

Helen Gallagher Studio Theatre HB Studio NYC

Helen Gallagher is an American actress and singer. She received her first Tony Award for her performance in the musical PAL JOEY, and her second for the musical NO, NO, NANETTE. She was awarded three Emmys for her role as Maeve Ryan in the long-running soap opera RYAN’S HOPE. As an active professional, she studied weekly with HB Studio Master Teacher Uta Hagen. She teaches Singing for the Musical Theater at HB Studio. Read more.

“HB Studio is my home, and teaching there has been one of the greatest joys of my life,” said Gallagher. “It is an honor to give back to Uta’s home and this artistic community that I have worked with for so many years.”

As a nonprofit organization, HB Studio relies on the generosity of its supporters to ensure access for any aspiring artist. Its professional training programs provide affordable practice, critical financial aid, and lifelong professional mentored development. Please consider making a tax-deductible contribution to HB Studio. Your generosity ensures HB Studio remains a vital and resilient resource for the NY and global theater community.

Register Now for Online Winter Term Classes & Workshops

Winter Term Weekly Classes:

  • All Classes Offered Online, in two 5-week Parts: With the exception of our writing classes, all Winter Term classes are offered in two 5-week parts, Part A and Part B. A $15 discount will apply when registering for both parts:
    • Part A: Jan 4 – Feb 7, 2021
    • Part B: Feb 8 – March 14, 2021
    • Sign up for either Part A or Part B independently (5 weeks each), or join both for the full 10-week term. You may join Part B without taking Part A. 
  • Browse Classes and Register Online. Classes available in:
  • Audit Online Classes: All classes will be held online via Zoom, allowing artists to train from any location. We encourage you to try virtual learning with us by auditing a class.
  • Classes Tailored to Online Space: HB Studio will tailor its teaching and the topic to the virtual space, taking advantage of the medium’s unique creative possibilities. Please check each course page for more information on how teachers will conduct specific classes online, and read more about HB’s online classes here.

Winter Term Workshops:

  • Special-focus topics, with short & long term options
  • Check back often; workshops updated regularly
  • Browse Workshops and Register Now

Discounts:

EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT*: Save 10% off Winter Term Weekly Classes with code WINTER21W, valid through December 1, 2020.

UNION DISCOUNT*: AEA, AGVA, AGMA, SAG/AFTRA, WGA, UFT, and Dramatist Guild Union Members receive 20% OFF Winter Term Weekly Classes through December 1 and 10% off thereafter. Discount will automatically apply for HB-verified Union Members. To become verified, email a copy of your active union membership card to registration@hbstudio.org.

*Discounts valid for weekly classes only; not valid for workshops, programs or merchandise. Discounts cannot be combined nor applied retroactively. Union discount applies for classes taken by cardholders only and cannot be used to enroll family or friends.

Auditions and Prerequisites:

AUDITIONS: Interested in our upper level classes? Audition & consult with a panel of HB’s faculty. For details and sign up info, visit Auditions & Prerequisites.

REEL SUBMISSIONS: Are you a working professional seeking a place to practice? Submit your reel for placement into our studio practice classes.

HB Studio Hosts Virtual Open House for Interested Students on November 19th, 2020

Want to pursue a career in acting and unsure about how to get started? HB Studio faculty members and alumni offer guidance and answer your most pressing questions on getting started in the field of acting in an intimate online forum held on Zoom.

This is a forum intended for those new to the field and new to HB Studio.

Getting Your Start in Acting:

A Virtual Open House for Interested Students

4:00-5:30PM, Thursday, November 19, 2020 | RSVP HERE

Space for the Open House is limited and available on a first-come basis by reservation.

Please RSVP early.

An introduction to the HB Studio training philosophy and its flexible and progressive course structure will be followed by an open discussion with distinguished members of the Studio’s faculty. The HB Studio faculty is comprised of practicing theater artists recognized for their professional work in performance in film and theater, both on and off the stage. Attendees are encouraged to raise questions and make connections among peers and mentors.

The Uta Hagen Institute at HB Studio Launches One-Week Hagen Actor’s Lab Online

The Uta Hagen Institute at HB Studio has launched a one-week actor training program online. Applications are currently being accepted to the Hagen Actor’s Lab Online, which will be held over Zoom, January 3-10, 2021.

The Hagen Actor’s Lab Online is an intensive week of online artistic practice and immersion into legendary actress and acting teacher Uta Hagen’s exercises and approach to script analysis. Offered by HB Studio, where Hagen taught her professional classes for over 50 years, the Lab provides grounded and embodied physical solo practice for the actor.

The Hagen Actor’s Lab Online offers an intensive training week for actors to maintain continuity in their practice at a time when much work in the industry has been interrupted. Actors from across the U.S. and abroad that are seeking an immersive training program are encouraged to apply.

The program is led by Carol Rosenfeld, founder of the Uta Hagen Institute at HB Studio and a student of Uta Hagen.

Rosenfeld will lead acting technique, Mark Nelson will guide script analysis and scene study, and Theresa McElwee will provide vocal exercises. Breaks and guided warm-ups will be offered throughout each Lab session to give actors a break from their screens to refresh, breathe, ground and recenter.

Hagen Actor’s Lab Online Schedule:

  • Meet and Greet: 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. ET, Sunday, Jan. 3, 2021
  • Lab Sessions: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET, Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, Jan. 4, 6, 8, and 10, 2021
  • Wrap-up: 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET, Sunday, Jan. 10, 2021

The application deadline is November 12, 2020. Upon acceptance into the Lab, participants must register in full by December 10, 2020 to secure their spot in the Lab. Learn more about the Hagen Actor’s Lab Online.

The Wall Street Journal On Actors Watching Their Work With HB Teacher Lisa Pelikan

WSJ Article "Who just started watching The Sopranos?

Many actors have avoided seeing themselves perform until now

When the coronavirus pandemic forced millions of Americans to shelter at home in March, Jamie-Lynn Sigler chose to do something she had avoided for decades: watch herself in her most famous role on television.

“I was actually way better than I thought,” Ms. Sigler said after viewing the 1999 pilot of “The Sopranos,” the hit HBO series in which she plays Meadow Soprano, the teenage daughter of mobster Tony Soprano. She said she’s now watching an episode of the 86-part show every week or so.

For many actors, the idea of seeing themselves perform is flat-out unbearable. They have an aversion that industry observers say is due to a mix of obsessive self-criticism and fear of losing the confidence required to pull it off in future roles.

“You lose precious innocence when you watch yourself,” said Lisa Pelikan, an acting teacher at New York’s HB Studio.

Read the full article at The Wall Street Journal.

HB Studio Hosts Virtual Open House for Interested Students on August 19th, 2020

Want to pursue a career in acting and unsure about how to get started? HB Studio faculty members offer guidance and answer your most pressing questions on getting started in the field of acting in an intimate online forum held on Zoom.

This is a forum intended for those new to the field and new to HB Studio.

Getting Your Start in Acting:

A Virtual Open House for Interested Students

2:00-3:30PM, Wednesday, August 19, 2020 | RSVP HERE

Space for the Open House is limited and available on a first-come basis by reservation.

Please RSVP early.

An introduction to the HB Studio training philosophy and its flexible and progressive course structure will be followed by an open discussion with distinguished members of the Studio’s faculty. The HB Studio faculty is comprised of practicing theater artists recognized for their professional work in performance in film and theater, both on and off the stage. Attendees are encouraged to raise questions and make connections among peers and mentors.

 

HB Studio Committed to Supporting Students on F-1 Visas

Dear HB Artists, Friends, and Colleagues,

We were shocked and disappointed to learn of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) July 6th directive which states that, starting in Fall 2020, international students on F-1 visas whose classwork is wholly online will no longer be allowed to remain in or enter the United States. The news was sudden and is raising confusion and concern across the educational sector. New York State has not yet cleared New York City’s cultural and educational organizations for reopening. Our theater work requires interactive and vocal practices that amplify the transmission of the aerosols that are known to spread COVID-19. 

HB Studio is resolutely committed to supporting the international students affected by this policy. We will do everything we can to ensure that we are meeting SEVP standards and requirements and that students are able to continue their studies at HB without interruption. The artists from abroad who work and study with us are essential to the character, culture and ethic of our Studio, of our city, and of the world we wish to foster. We are working with our colleagues in the academic community to understand the full implications of the directive and to frame reasonable and safe solutions for “hybrid” (online + on-site) study for our full-time students. Our International Student Office will help address your questions and concerns, and we will keep you informed as we learn more. In adjusting to these guidelines HB will put the health and safety of its students, and its community of artists, first. As previously planned, HB Studio will host its regular suite of studio classes online.

In responding to the current pandemic, the cultural and educational communities have worked tirelessly and responsibly to adapt their programs in accordance with public health guidance and the evolving understanding of the virus. HB Studio joins its University colleagues in urging the Department of Homeland Security to continue a more flexible approach to visas for international students for the Fall 2020 semester.

Sincerely,

Edith Meeks

Executive & Artistic Director

HB Studio’s Fall Term Held Online

Dear HB Studio Community:

As you may be aware, New York state is rolling out its phased NY Forward business reopening plan, which holds arts, education, and entertainment industries until the final reopening phase. Additional eligibility for reopening will be determined by health metrics for our region. We are also reviewing CDC guidelines for reopening of schools, OSHA guidelines for workplaces, and the developing Actors Equity Association standards for safe work conditions for actors. Much is still uncertain, and we will continue to stay abreast of the rapidly evolving situation.

Safety remains our primary concern. Much of our work is physical and actively vocal, and thoughtful restrictions and safeguards need to be established before we can convene again at the Studio. There is a risk associated with having multiple groups moving in and out of the same spaces, and so we need to be attentive to class sizes. Our reopening planning is an intensive process and requires our ongoing attention and assessment.

Following much consideration as we look to the weeks and months ahead, HB Studio will:

We remain hopeful for a return to the Studio at the start of next year. Decisions regarding our return must follow the New York state mandates as well as the best practices befitting our organization and our profession. When we do return, it will be with arms (safely) wide open in celebration!

In the meantime, we are grateful for the opportunity to stay connected to our artistic community and to discover new perspectives and approaches through our work online.

In our conversations with industry leaders, we will continue to evaluate how we can best serve the needs of our artists while meeting the demands of the ever-changing business. We would like to hear from you, too. Please reach out and let us know how HB Studio can be there for you during this time.

If you haven’t yet done so, please consider trying virtual learning by auditing an online class in our Summer Term, which begins on June 13th. More information about our online offerings can be found here. We look forward to seeing you there.

Stay well,

Edith Meeks
Executive & Artistic Director