CM Kallos Awards Proclamation to the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre
Channel: New York City Council Member Ben Kallos
Date: 2018-10-19

Ben Kallos, Council Member of the 5th District, is proud to honor The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre for its 90 years of outstanding work and the profound contributions of Sanford Meisner to The Playhouse; and

 Whereas: Established in 1928, The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre is a full-time acting conservatory whose mission is to provide a multi-dimensional and practical education in the dramatic arts to young theater students while furthering the unique type of training developed over the years at The Playhouse; and

 
Whereas: A seminal part of New York City theatre, the theatre’s approach focuses on the artistic growth of the actor through technical training in acting, movement, speech, and voice. The Playhouse offers acting students a uniquely rich tradition of excellence in actor training coupled with the practical skills for building a career. The Neighborhood Playhouse also remains the only conservatory where the acting faculty has been trained by Mr. Sanford Meisner[ED1] ; and
 
Whereas: In 1935, Mr. Meisner, one of the founding members of The Group Theatre, along with Stella Adler, Bobby Lewis, Harold Clurman, and Lee Strasberg, joined the faculty of The Neighborhood Playhouse. Over the years, he developed and refined what is now known as the Meisner Technique, a step-by-step procedure of self-investigation for actors that is now globally recognized and among the foremost of modern acting techniques; and

Whereas: In 1940, Mr. Sanford Meisner became head of the acting program. A cornerstone of his teaching, he believed that the study of an actor’s craft was rooted in acquiring a solid organic acting technique and that the learning process occurs not in a theoretical, abstract manner, but in the practical give-and-take of the classroom; and
 
Whereas: Mr. Sanford Meisner retired in 1990 and served as Director Emeritus of the Acting Department until his death in 1997. Today his legacy lives on in the continuation of his training, which is being taught to incoming students each year in The Neighborhood Playhouse’s Two-Year Program; and

Whereas: The Neighborhood Playhouse serves the New York City community at large and especially the theatre community in Manhattan, serving as a cultural resource while continuing the work of Mr. Meisner; now, therefore

 

BE IT KNOWN: That Ben Kallos, Council Member of the 5th District, proudly honors

The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre & Sanford Meisner