The Actor's Studio of Orange County
Faculty
SONYA COOKE
OWNER & INSTRUCTOR
LOCATION Los Angeles, CA
IMDb http://www.imdb.com/name/nm2935449/
WEBSITE http://sonyacooke.com/
EMAIL sonya@asooc.com
Sonya Cooke is the creator and CEO of Seven Pillars Acting Studio, with branches in Los Angeles and Orange County, including The Actor’s Studio of Orange County. Seven Pillars Acting is the first comprehensive acting technique in the past forty years, teaching actors to transform with ease and authenticity. Hailing from New York, she has acted in TV, film, New York theatre, regional theatre, musical theatre, webseries, commercials, print, and voice-over, and she also directs and produces for Not Normal Band Productions in Los Angeles. Career highlights have been Louie by Louie C.K. on FX, working at The Guthrie Theatre, playing the title role in independent film, Lily Grace: A Witch Story, and directing The Fireturtles, a sitcom pilot. She is an international private acting coach via Skype and coaches locally in Los Angeles and Orange County. She trained at UC-Irvine’s Claire Trevor School of the Arts where she achieved an MFA in Acting, and previously she studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Her teaching career began when she started coaching actors in New York in 2008 and launched a blog on acting technique. In addition, she has worked with many institutions all over the country as a teacher, curriculum writer and program developer, such as The Relativity School in Downtown LA, UC-Irvine, The Guthrie Theatre, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, and more. Sonya's article, titled “Circumstance in The Seven Pillars Acting Technique,” was published in the Arts in Society Academic Journal in 2016, after presenting on the Pillars in Rome, Summer 2014. Her book, Seven Pillars Acting, is due out June 2017. Sonya designs the Seven Pillars Acting curriculum for all acting classes, and she instructs the Intermediate and Advanced Classes at ASoOC. She is passionate about acting technique and loves helping her students discover their talents.
BRETT DUGGAN
INSTRUCTOR Beginning Acting for Adults: Tuesday and Thursday, Improv, Teen Showcase
LOCATION: Los Angeles, CA
AND ORANGE COUNTY
WEBSITE: http://brettduggan.com
EMAIL: brettduggan@gmail.com
Brett Duggan is a passionate practitioner and teacher of the art of acting and comedy. He brings to set and to his students over 25 years of experience, including acting in network television and television pilots, writing for, directing and performing with professional comedy troupes, working as a touring stand-up comic in clubs and colleges nationwide, and acting in every style of theatre from Shakespeare to Mamet to Musical Theatre. Mr. Duggan has taught acting, comedy, improv and stand-up comedy courses at the University of California at Davis and The Relativity School in Downtown LA. He has BFA and MFA in Acting as well as training from Second City and Bay Area Theatre Sports. He wrote, directed and performed in an original rock musical comedy called the The Untold Story of Indie Rock, a Saturday night premium show at Second City Hollywood that was extended twice. Brett has written and produced a sitcom pilot, The Fireturtles: an Indie Rockumentary, based on the live show. This Spring, Brett plays the dramatic lead in a new TV pilot. His comedy band, The Fireturtles, performs the first Saturday of every month at Open Space Theatre on Fairfax.
PHILIP ORAZIO
INSTRUCTOR: Film Technique, Teen On-Camera, Beginning Acting Wed & Sat
LOCATION Los Angeles CA
EMAIL philiporazio@gmail.com
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Philip Orazio graduated from the University of Houston with his MFA in Acting. He has been cast in over 20 film/television projects including Leverage, Combat Report, and My Crazy Ex. Currently, Philip just completed his 4th television pilot and is in the process of shooting the lead in a SAG Feature. Philip has been coaching film auditions throughout the city. He is proud to claim a 100% callback or immediate booking rate for every film coaching.
MICHAEL MATTHYS
INSTRUCTOR: Beginning Acting, Wed., Scene Study for Beginners
LOCATION Los Angeles, CA
EMAIL mjmatthys@gmail.com
IMDB www.imdb.com/michaelmatthys
Michael Matthys is most well known for playing Dr. Kent on Grey's Anatomy. He has also appeared in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Profiler, and other tv shows. His feature film credits include Full Blast (with David Carradine), Nightwatch (with Ewan McGregor and Josh Brolin), Destiny Turns on the Radio, (with Dylan McDermott), and BASEketball (with Ernest Borgnine). He is a graduate of the classical acting program at the University of Minnesota, from which he holds an MFA in Acting. He obtained his BA in Theatre Arts from Buffalo State College.
He started his professional career as a member of the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis with his portrayal of Treplev in Garland Wright's acclaimed production of The Seagull (which has been archived at Lincoln Center...go watch it!). He has also appeared on the stages of the Ahmanson, Laguna Playhouse, The Hollywood Bowl, A Noise Within, Shakespeare Festival of LA, LATC, Ensemble Theatre of Santa Barbara, and the list goes on. He is the artistic director of The Ecstatic Theatre.
As a director, he gained some acclaim and notoriety with a GO! from the LA Weekly for his west coast premiere of Geoffrey Rush's adaptation of Exit the King. Other directing credits include A Midsummer Night's Dream, Being at Home with Claude (for the Ecstatic), and a staged reading of The Winter's Tale for Classical Theatre Lab starring Ron Canada as Leontes.
He is currently developing a short script entitled The Architect in hopes of shooting it soon, and auditioning his butt off.
KESLEY JACKSON
INSTRUCTOR: Beginning Acting, Mondays
LOCATION Orange County, CA
EMAIL info@asooc.com
Kelsey is a Los Angeles based Actor and Teacher. Originally from Michigan, or the Mitten state, she earned a BA in Theatre Performance, with a minor in dance, from Western Michigan University. While there, she was awarded a scholarship for a Study Abroad in London. She recently graduated from the University of California Irvine with an MFA in drama, having performed in multiple productions. Kelsey also enjoys coaching and teaching voice, acting, and movement which she has been doing for the last 3 years.
LESLIE LANK
INSTRUCTOR: Beginning Acting, Fridays, Voice and Speech
LOCATION Los Angeles CA
EMAIL leslielank@gmail.com
Website http://www.leslielank.com
Leslie is an actor and teacher currently based out of Los Angeles. A Chicago native, she holds an MFA in Acting from University of California, Irvine and a BA in Theatre and English Literature from Butler University. She has worked regionally at Utah Shakespeare Festival, A Noise Within, Illinois Shakespeare Festival, New Swan Shakespeare Festival and Lincoln Amphitheatre, as well as many productions at UC Irvine.
AMBER FRIENDLY
INSTRUCTOR Audition Technique
LOCATION Los Angeles, CA
IMDB: Amber Friendly
Originally from the land of cold winters and warm hearts, Amber is a Chicago-land native whose work has adorned both stage and screen. As graduate of the esteemed graduate acting program at the University of California, Irvine, Amber has spent much of her time in the arts both as a collaborator and beacon of support to those around her. Her screen work ranges from thrilling legal/crime dramas (How to Get Away With Murder, Rizzoli & Isles, Scorpion) to irreverent comedies (Shameless, Parks & Recreation, Children’s Hospital) with a few surprises sprinkled along the way (The Veil with Jessica Alba, Klown Forever, the sequel to the famous Danish TV show). Though she loves the adventure a creative life provides, Amber’s feet stay firmly on the ground.
She currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
SIOBHAN DOHERTY
INSTRUCTOR Accent and Dialect Workshops
LOCATION Los Angeles, CA
IMDb http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3881115/
WEBSITE www.siodoherty.com
EMAIL siodoherty@yahoo.com
Siobhan is a Los Angeles based actor, producer, and teacher. As an actor, Siobhan recently played Marian in The Music Man with SBCC Theatregroup, and Ophelia in The Hamlet Project with Loose Canon Collective, where she is a company member. She has performed regionally in theater and musical theater with Utah Shakespeare Festival, San Francisco Shakespeare Festival, PCPA Theatrefest, Utah Festival Opera, and Center Repertory Theater.
As a producer, Siobhan has worked on commercials, industrials, and web series, most recently releasing Super(fluous), a web series about a trio of superhero-roommates fighting for a place in the overcrowded superhero world.
As a teacher, Siobhan coaches accents and dialects through her company, Speaking of Accents. She has worked on American accents with students from Germany, Israel, Russia, Czechia, Argentina, Korea, and the Philippines, and has taught weekend workshops on British, Irish, German, and Russian accents with ASOOC. She has taught at UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Utah Festival Opera, and coached at PCPA. She holds an MFA from UC Irvine, and is a graduate of UC Berkeley and PCPA.
MICHELLE HERNANDEZ
INSTRUCTOR: Singing Workshops
LOCATION Orange, CA
WEBSITE michelle-hernandez.com
EMAIL contactmichellehernandez@gmail.com
A graduate of NYU's Tisch School of the Arts and CAP21, Michelle has been teaching voice, performance, and acting for the past 4 years. She emphasizes technique AND performance as partners working hand in hand to create truthful story-telling. Her private students have exceeded goals, booked roles, nailed auditions, and gained huge confidence in their performing and their daily lives. How? Technique technique technique! When armed with the tools, you can be unstoppable.
As a working performer herself, Michelle has been performing internationally for the past several years to rave reviews and packed houses. She currently fronts a high energy, top 40 party/pop rock cover band ("Retro Soul") providing lead vocals and vocal direction. Michelle acts as manager/promoter for performing artists and talent for various events and venues through her company Raise Your Glass Entertainment.
CECILY GISH
INSTRUCTOR: Commercial Acting
LOCATION: Los Angeles, CA
EMAIL: info@asooc.com
Cecily Gish is an actress with nearly a dozen local, regional, national and international commercials under her belt. Her approach is nurturing and supportive; like having your own personal, knowledgeable cheerleader!
Cecily has had a career onstage as well as in front of a camera. Her stage work has taken her all over California as well as in Virginia, New York and Washington. Previous stage credits include The Wizard of Oz at Musical Theatre West, Suds and The Andrews Brothers at Welk Resort Theatre and Honk! at Laguna Playhouse. Along with her onstage work, Cecily has found herself in the positions of director, choreographer, costume designer, sound designer, vocal coach, acting coach and producer for many groups. On the small screen, you may have seen her in one of her recent commercials for Robbin’s Brothers, Skyy Vodka and AT&T U-Verse High Speed Internet
MICHAEL CALACINO
INSTRUCTOR: Private Acting Sessions
LOCATION: Orange County, CA
EMAIL: michaelcalacino@gmail.com
Michael has been teaching since 2014 when he was a TA and substitute teacher at the Salt Lake School of Performing Arts in Utah. He taught Acting, Auditioning Technique, Movement, and Stage Combat. He has also taught undergraduate Voice and Speech, Acting, and Movement at the University of California Irvine over the course of two years. Michael received his BFA in Acting from Westminster College in Salt Lake City and his MFA in Acting from the University of California Irvine.
Michael is also as professional actor with credits including in Shakespeare Orange County's production of The Tempest, Odysseus in the touring Utah Greek Theater Festival's production of Hecuba, and other film and new media productions in California.
BEVERLY BREMERS
INSTRUCTOR: Voice-Over Acting
LOCATION: Los Angeles
EMAIL: bev@beverlybremers.com
Beverly has been an actor, voice actor, singer, and songwriter all her life. She has also been teaching these skills in tandem with her performing career over the past 40 years.
One favorite aspect of Beverly’s career is voice acting, which she began as a teenager in New York, and she relishes the time she devotes to teaching the craft and business to others.
Beverly’s voice has been heard in the various media for such products as Shell, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, The US Navy, The San Diego Zoo, Oprah, Nissan, Wild Animal Park, Jazzercise, SD Zoo, Ralphs and El Pollo Loco. Her characters have appeared on Cartoon Network’s “Cow & Chicken” & video games, such as “Mech Warriors” & “The Lost Grimoires”. Her voice acting career also includes videos, infomercials, industrials, promos, audio books, websites, IVR, and awards shows. She has played everything from moms to corporate executives, mad fighter-pilots to evil queens, and kids to friendly fungus.
Beverly’s singing voice has been heard on the airways on her million-selling recording, “Don’t Say You Don’t Remember” and “We’re Free”. She has performed on Broadway in “Hair” and “The Me Nobody Knows”, as well as in other theatrical venues in such shows as “The Rocky Horror Show” and “Menopause the Musical” in Los Angeles.
Beverly has also performed in clubs and concerts all over the world, and has appeared on television in many commercials, movies, and episodic tv shows such as “Veronica Mars”, as well as on talk/variety shows including “The Tonight Show”, “The Merv Griffin Show”, “The Mike Douglas Show”, “The David Frost Show”, and “American Bandstand”.
Also an accomplished songwriter, Beverly has written 5 produced musicals and the platinum, “Mousercise” for Disney. She has recorded several CDs in recent years, “Don’t Say You Don’t Remember Beverly Bremers”, “Been There, Done That – Prime Cuts”, “Remembering the Sixties”, and “The Best of Beverly Bremers’.
NOVA JONES
Administrative Assistant
LOCATION: Huntington Beach, CA
EMAIL: nova@asooc.com
Nova is a fresh out of College Undergrad with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Drama from The University of California Irvine. She intially studied for two years at The Universitiy of Washington. There she heavily immersed herself in community theater, prompting her transfer to UCI where she was apart of the Ensemble cast of Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o's The Trial of Dedan Kimathi during her first year. She now works for the studio while furthering her acting training here at ASoOC.
KEN GARCIA
OUR FOUNDER
IMDb http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0305309/
WEBSITE http://www.kengarcia-actor.com/
Actors Studio of Orange County was founded in 2007 by Ken Garcia to give actors in Orange County a professional and safe place to study their craft, without having to drive to Los Angles to do so.
Ken was a working actor for over 20 years in mediums including stage, TV and film who also directed and produced. He has been seen on numerous network TV shows and films including Area 407, Black Gold, The Grief Tourist, Project Purgatory Bejing, The Ex-List, The Shield, CSI Miami, Las Vegas, The Invisible Man, Fashion House and Huff.
His ongoing experience in the real world of film and television acting gave him a unique insight and perspective on the industry.
Ken taught both children and adults in Northern and Southern California. His personal studies included “Meisner” and “The Method” as well as numerous other techniques. Ken's take on studying acting was simple: You take what works for you from each technique and make it your own. One size does not fit all.
Ken focused his coaching towards working in front of the camera. Ken was committed to teaching actors to trust themselves and to live in the moment by allowing the actor to discover the art of listening and responding freely without judgment or second thoughts. His lessons will never be forgotten.
