ACT: a new podcast series with host Dawn A. Westbrook about the craft of acting, the art of directing and embracing the process

Send a text George Bernard Shaw once said, "Don't wait for opportunity, create it.  Geoffrey Nauffts is a Producer, a Broadway and Television Actor, a Tony-award nominated playwright and television scriptwriter, and a director. He has worked as an actor on and off Broadway, regionally, and extensively in film and television. He’s directed plays by Kenneth Lonergan, Frank Pugliese, Theres...

Send a text Billie McBride is one of Denver's top theatre personalities. I first saw her when she appeared in LOVE LETTERS at Boulder Ensemble Theatre Company on Valentine's Day. The show was wonderful, but Billie stood out to me as someone I wanted and needed to know; but, it was her immediate & kind response (to this unknown Boulder commodity) that led me to realize, YES, she was a...

Send a text Charles Busch is a creative genius!  With his quick wit and hysterical way of weaving stories, he is that person who can make you laugh at times when you think you may never smile again. I have always loved comedians and interviewing Charles Busch was not unlike reading his book LEADING LADY: A Memoir of a Most Unusual Boy - both were hysterical, informative, and yet extremely moving. ...

Send a text Actor/Director/Playwright Paul Stroili takes to the mic for episode 5 in an interview with Dawn.  Paul is currently working with Jeff Daniels at the Purple Rose Theatre in OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTY GRINCH IN FIGHT WITH RUDOLPH POLICE which is a world premiere both written & directed by Jeff Daniels himself.  Paul is a Resident Artist at Jeff Daniels’ Purple Rose Theatre, where his pla...

Send a text Richard (Rick) St. Peter is an award-winning stage director, producer, and educator with more than 20 years of experience in professional and academic theatre. He has worked internationally with the English Theatre of Ukraine , Prague's MeetFactory,  and the National Theatre of Romania in Craiova, Romania. During the height of the Covid Pandemic, he was one of 100 international di...

Send a text Amanda Berg-Wilson is the co-founder and artistic director of The Catamounts Theatre Company, an immersive theatre experience in the Boulder/Denver area.  She has directed over fifteen productions, including God’s Ear (2011 Camera Eye Award, Best Director), Failure: A Love Story (2013 True West Nomination, Best Director), and Rausch (2018 True West award, 2019 Henry Award nomination). ...

Send a text Humble , Kind . Uber-talented , and Devoted to storytelling since she was a child are just a few takeaways from my interview with Candace Joice.  From the moment I met her, I knew she had "IT" - and let me tell you, she has "IT" in spades.  She is an avid reader, and ever since her first stage role as a duckling, she relishes the experience of collaborating with a w...

Send a text Schmigadoon Season One AND the new season of Virgin River , honey Troy McLaughlin is on a roll! Troy McLaughlin and I go way back and I knew I wanted him on as a guest on ACT this season and was so happy that he found the time to give to both you and me.  We met at Varina High School, in Richmond, Virginia but I was (…ha hem) just a little older than he!  I first met him when he was a...

Send a text Frank Wood was raised in Boston, MA and he comes from a family of politicians. His father was a political scientist who served under the Lyndon Johnson administration and his sister, Maggie Hassan was the 81st Governor of New Hampshire from 2013-2017.  She was elected to the senate in 2016 and is a junior US Senator. His passion for theatre was ignited during his college days at Wesley...

Send a text Born in the small town of Lubbock, Texas, Steven Skybell knew at the age of 10 as Pavel the peasant boy in the local theatre version of Fiddler on the Roof that the stage was where he belonged.  A graduate of both Yale University's undergraduate and graduate theatre studies programs, in 1988 Steven stepped right off the stage at Yale Repertory and onto the boards at the Neil Simon...

Send a text If you are like me, you've seen this week's guest more than you can even remember.  He's a face that has appeared on so many tv sitcoms, dramas and comedy specials it's impossible to name them all.  Born in Bay Ridge Brooklyn NY,  Brian is a true New Yorker.  He was an absolute delight to interview.  So funny.  So open.  So raunchy.  Did I mention raunchy?  As a sta...

Send a text One of the most talented actors I have ever seen on stage, Dan Ruth is a true showman, a writer, a musician, an actor, a director and a friend.  A studied actor, the alcoholism that  trapped and spun him into a downward spiral was the one thing that miraculously turned his life around.  He singing voice is as powerful and passionate as Mandy Patinkin, his unrelenting comic timing will...

Send a text I'll let these famous people give comedian, Jeff Caldwell's intro: Dennis Miller - "This guy is incredible!" Craig Ferguson - "Very funny!" George Carlin - "Funny and Smart!" David Letterman - "Very, very funny!" Jeff is such an approachable person.  Kind to everyone, this comedian believes that humor is best when commonalities are foun...

Send a text I met Brad in 1981.  He was already a star in the theatre department at Virginia Commonwealth University and his commitment to the craft of acting was inspiring and unwavering even back then.  He is funny, kind and has become a master (and I don't use that word lightly) on how to manipulate the camera in your favor.  His studio in Santa Monica is called Brad's Class and I wou...

Send a text Dr. Karen Turner Ward and I met back in 1983.  She was a force to be reckoned with back then and her energy and creativity still abounds.  She adds theatrical expertise, musical prowess, and a kind heart to every production she touches and every person she meets.  She has toured nationally with shows such as Mama Dee's Girls that she not only wrote but share the stage with the lov...

Send a text Jon Kretzu lives in the beautiful pacific northwest and a graduate of Cal State.  He bills himself as a director, dramaturge and journalist and is one of the busiest and energetic theatre directors in Portland, OR.  He has worked professionally all of the world and was the Associate Artistic Director at ART (Artist Repertory Theatre) for 20 years and directed over 50 shows.  His passio...

Send a text I met Toney Q. Cobb in the mid 1990's and immediately fell in love with not only the actor, but the man himself.  As Toney says, he came to this career later in life and feels very blessed to have met some wonderful mentors and friends.  His work with the African American Repertory Theatre Company under the tutelage of the late Ernie McClintock and Richmonder, Derome Scott Smith w...

Send a text You know when you meet a woman that just changes the room the moment they step inside?  Well...that's Eva DeVirgilis! HER magazine named Eva's TEDxRVA presentation as one of the most inspirational talks in TEDx history and her one woman show IN MY CHAIR has taken her around the world.  She is an active member of the ACLU,  LGFB (Look Good Feel Better) and Safe Harbor.  Eva is...

Send a text Mark Delabarre and I became friends in the early 1980’s where we met at Virginia Commonwealth University. His gorgeous tenor voice, handsome face and height (I believe he is 6’4) caught my attention immediately.  He’s not only talented but just a lovely soul.  He has lived in NYC for about 30 years and made a living as late night comedian, model, television actor and if my memory serve...

Send a text I met Cliff Morts in the early 1990's at Mill Mountain Theatre.  He was playing the gentleman caller in A GLASS MENAGERIE .  What struck me immediately was the honesty and ease in which he delivered each line.  We later got to play on stage together (if only in a staged reading) and I realized that his honesty made me better.  He was just SO present and in the moment. Every moment...

Send a text I met this week’s guest back in 2015 when he designed sound for a show that I was directing at Richmond Triangle Players in Richmond Virginia.  He is now  Artistic Director of that theatre.  Lucian Restivo is a force to be reckoned with – he is a one man band and I don’t think there is anything in theatre that he cannot do.  Hiring him as the Artistic Director of Richmond Triangle Play...

Send a text I met Michael Mastro in 1988 at the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain on the River Thames.  His stories about a life in the theatre over the last 39 years are both funny and insightful.  For me, it's stories like his hysterical broadway debut understudying Mario Cantone in Love! Valour! Compassion! to hearing Bernadette Peters sing " You Made Me Love You" TO HER DO...

Send us Fan Mail Week One is an introduction of ACT's host, Dawn A. Westbrook and what to expect in the coming weeks.  This week Dawn polled actors on the ACT Facebook Page.  "Ever heard the phrase "actors are the lowest on the totem pole?"  See what the listeners and fans had to say. To learn more about ACT contact Dawn Westbrook by heading over to her website at www.dawnwestb...