All Posts by Richard Sarell

Another Step Forward

By Richard Sarell | News

“You have got the role,” are the words every actor wants to hear their agent say.  JOSHUA HODGE has just heard those words because he’s got a gig on “Wentworth”.

It is another step forward in expanding his experience and it also helps in building a professional network with Casting Directors and Directors.

Although an actor is always hoping for the BIG BREAK, for most it is a question of building a reputation one step at a time. Each gig is an opportunity to gain more experience and each class is the opportunity to build more skill. JOSHUA recently completed the Advanced Workshop (for experienced actors) where in 10 weeks he explored over 15 techniques to manage character and advance the drama of the story. Those skills are aimed at generating a performance that will standing out from the crowd in the audition room.  Well done, Josh!!

TV Presenting Workshop

By Richard Sarell | Intensives

TV Presenting Workshop

Dates:

Duration:

Times:

Tutors:

Full Fee:

T.B.A. - coming soon

29 hours over 6 weeks

2pm - 6pm

Richard Sarell

$840.00

NOTE:  2 of the days may be full days + Final Review day               

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Learn practical professional TV Presenting skills.  These very effective public speaking techniques have you relating to the camera in a charismatic way.  How to write good copy, co-present, conduct great interviews and manage autocue are all explored.  An engaging performance that charms your audience will become a habit.

You will get more from the first session than you normally get from a whole course on TV Presenting.

Professional performance skills will have you feeling at home on any style of shoot.

In the final session shoot your own story that includes co-presenting, two reporting pieces to camera,  an interview and a voice over.

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What will be covered in this course?

1) Essential performance skills when working to a camera

It is important to be able to relate to the camera in a way that engages the audience - an essential starting point

2) Keeping an open and spotaneous approach to charm your audience

Often the techniques that are taught are artificial.  Here you will learn simple practical skills that utilize the strengths of your personality

3) How to cope with stresses and distractions so you stay relaxed and real

Managing nerves and understanding what generates them is a fast track to success.

4) Understanding the production process and how a presenter fits into it

You will be working with a director who has experience directing current affairs and documentary.  You will learn a professional approach to dealing with time constraints and other distractions.

5) Interviewing skills that give polished engaging results

Understanding the interviewers job is the key to doing engaging, spontaneous and entertaining interviews.  

6) Performing promos, coping with voice overs and autocue

Some specific areas require specific skills.  This course introduces a practical approach to these issues.

Adam Ford3 series of 'Tour the World' 

The thing that I like about The Rehearsal Room is that it gives you a process ... it gives you a formula that you can rely on.

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

• You have always wanted to be a TV Presenter but didn't know where to start
• You have already done a presenting course but feel you didn't learn clear techniques
• You want to be able to speak comfortably in public but lack the confidence
• You generally don't feel confident in groups and want to find a way of boosting your confidence
• You have done a tertiary degree in journalism but don't feel comfortable in front of the camera
• You believe you have the skills to be a presenter and want to learn more about how the industry works

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

• you will always misunderstand the presenters job because you believe the myths
• you will never find out how good you can be
• you will remain confused about issues that should be really clear
• you will make naive mistakes because you don't have a practical understanding
• you will make the presenters job much harder than it really is

ABOUT RICHARD...

This course evolved because The Rehearsal Room acting process was so useful to Jules Lund in establishing a career as a TV Presenter at a very young age.  Jules did all the acting classes and then found it was those skills that quickly had him working on Channel 9's "Get Away".

On the basis of Jules success Richard decided to run this TV Presenters course and it was an instant success.  The techniques that presenters learn are an adaptation of the fundamental processes taught to actors at The Rehearsal Room.  They have all the same clear, practical, efficient and common sense qualities that produce performers who are in charge of their choices in a very professional way.

Many have found these techniques make them comfortable and proficient on a professional set because they totally understand the realities of the job.  The end result has been a professional career.

And everyone has found that they learn the skills quickly because it is such a practical and supportive learning environment.​

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This video promotion was made for 2015 classes

Learn skills you will use throughout your career. 

THIS COURSE - Saturdays 12 May to
16 June 2018

(There IS a class on the Queen's Birthday Weekend)

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Hollywood Excitement

By Richard Sarell | News

Actor/Producer DARREN MORT and Lead Actor WESLEY FORKE were in Los Angeles last week to see their film “Degree of Separation” screened in the opening session of 17^th Beverly Hills Film Festival. “It was very exciting for the film to be accepted into the festival but to then be scheduled to open the festival was a huge honour,” DARREN MORT said from LA. Seeing the distinctive image of the film’s poster adorning the festival’s foyer generated a real sense of how significant this achievement is.

“Degree of Separation” was directed by KYAHL ANDERSON and DALE MASTIN. It was written by PHILIP CLAASSEN. Congratulations to everyone concerned.

Three Success Stories

By Richard Sarell | News

Fiona Banks is a busy director. With recent credits on The Dr Blake Mysteries, House Husbands and Winners and Losers she regularly runs sessions for The Rehearsal Room’s MASTER CLASS actors. This week she told The Rehearsal Room how pleased she was with JESSICA STANLEY’S performance in the final episode of The Dr Blake Mysteries (Series 5). The series has not yet been scheduled but Fiona said, “Jessica is going to be very pleased with her work.” Fiona is excited about this performance. So is JESSICA.

Congratulations, JESSICA.

INTERNATIONAL SUCCESS
Actor WESLEY FORKE is achieving international recognition at film festivals for his outstanding performance in “Degree of Separation” as is KYAHL ANDERSON the director of this 14-minute film. It’s most recent review from the Stonefair Festival in Romania gives high praise to the film’s performances which is the story of Troy played by WESLEY. The Stonefair reviewer writes, “The delivery of the simple yet powerful message is substantially aided by the outstanding performances of all actors involved, and especially by Wesley Forke as Troy and Arta Mucaj as Virianna. The delivery of each line feels completely natural, while moments of silence and quiet contemplation are just as powerful insights into their personalities.” According to this Stonefair review these performances have achieved the perfect balance between relationship and circumstance to deliver the “raw power” of this story’s message.

“Degree of Separation” was produced by DARREN MORT.

MAKING A STRONG IMPRESSION
ELLMIR ASIPI has just completed his second term of classes at The Rehearsal Room and during the term shot his first professional gig in the ABC’s new kids show “Mustangs FC”.   ELLMIR is 16 and was originally booked for an 8-day shoot with a few lines on this new ABC show. His performance attracted attention because his part grew. By the end of the shoot he had been booked for a total of 20 days. That’s every actor’s dream … a promotion that occurs because the quality of your work is recognised.

He is plainly doing the job well. Congratulations, ELLMIR.

How To Get To Las Vegas

By Richard Sarell | News

Hard working actor/singer Anthony Sparkes played ‘Cec’ in 29 episodes of “Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries”.

That’s how he got invited to Las Vegas for “A Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries Convention”. It simply was too good an opportunity to miss … so, he is on his way. He is expanding his itinerary and stopping by Los Angeles as well, of course.

Anthony has just completed the Advanced Workshop (for experienced actors) and no doubt will be thinking about joining a MASTER CLASS when he gets back. He is an actor on the move.

How To Impress Your Agent

By Richard Sarell | News

Its an ongoing battle for an actor to keep working and be noticed.  

KARLA HILLAM decided to do something to promote herself.  She found a scene she wanted to do and booked a one-on-one coaching session.  We worked for an hour using a whole grab bag of techniques developed at The Rehearsal Room.  The aim was to make the performance bold and compelling to watch.  We worked hard.  Karla slept on our efforts.  The next day she recorded the scene in one simple shot with another Rehearsal Room actor who could aid her to push the drama and the story.  

Her agent LOVED IT!!!

An Inspiring Start

By Richard Sarell | News

“It was inspiring. That is how it is meant to be,” said one participant in last Sunday’s “A New Vocabulary for the Actor” workshop.

This was the first time The Rehearsal Room’s new teaching team of Glenn Quinn, Kyahl Anderson and Richard Sarell had worked together at one event. The feedback was enthusiastic. “Everything is practical and makes sense,” was another comment.

Glenn explained how after completing his university degree it was The Rehearsal Room’s techniques that enabled him to grow from an ensemble player to a lead actor in professional music theatre. This touched a chord with an actor in the group who said, “…having spent 3 years at drama school … I sometimes feel a bit overwhelmed and have really been looking for a refined, straightforward process to latch onto, to help me work more confidently and more quickly.”

The speed and effectiveness of The Rehearsal Room techniques impressed everyone on the day.

It was a very successful day for the new team.

Callback Audition Workshop with JANE NORRIS

By Richard Sarell | Intensives

Callback Audition Workshop

Dates:

Duration:

Times:

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Tutors:

Full Fee:

7, 14 & 21 April

11 hours over 3 weeks

9.00am to 1.00pm (7 & 21 April)
3 hours morning or afternoon on 14 April

Casting Director Jane Norris
Director:  Richard Sarell

$348.00

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A great opportunity to build your skill and flexibility in the audition room.  Rise to the challenge of being called back by the casting director with a specific task to fulfill. 

Be assisted in your preparation for your call back session by television director RICHARD SARELL.

Two audition sessions with an experienced casting director plus a coaching session in preparation for your callback session.

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What will be covered in this course?

1) Build audition skill in two audition sessions with JANE NORRIS

It is as important for a Casting Director to meet and understand you as a person as it is for them to know about your acting skill.

2) An opportunity to push boundaries and find out what more you have to offer

This 'Callback' format gives actors the opportunity to explore a range of skills. - to test them out with a professional casting director and get feedback.

3) Get great tips on general casting issues

During the briefing sessions at the beginning and end of each workshop you will get practical hands-on advice from the casting directors.

4) The opportunity to ask questions

You will be able to ask questions in the two briefing sessions about the personal areas of confusion or concern you have.

5) Get specific analysis of your audition technique

In your one-on-one time with television director Richard Sarell you will get direct honest feedback about your audition technique and your acting technique.  Sometimes your acting techniques are great but your audition technique doesn't display your strengths.  Richard will assist you with clear and practical advice.

6) Make progress at being less nervous in auditions

Nerves can have a big impact on the outcome of an audition.  Making an audition an ordinary experience rather than an exceptional one is a skill that needs to be acquired and practiced.

Shane Porteous A Country Practice [Lead actor]

For an actor a scene must do more than further the plot - it must explore the relationship between the characters. Richard has a gift for making this process clear and simple. His direction gives me confidence to trust my own intuition, thus allowing the character room to breathe...

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

• You find Casting Directors intimidating
• You are never sure exactly what a casting director is looking for
• You have made great plans for your audition but never deliver them
• Don't know how to conduct yourself in an audition
• Don't know which questions to ask the casting director
• You feel an audition is a competition that you must win

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

• you will always feel uncomfortable when auditioning
• you wont have a professional understanding of the audition process
• will remain confused about issues that should be clear to you
• you will reduce your chances of doing a good audition
• be rigid in your choices rather than relaxed, flexible and professional

ABOUT RICHARD...

Over his twenty-five year directing career Richard found that many actors he auditioned didn’t actually listen in auditions.  And he realised that it took many years of experience for actors to come to terms with and understand the audition process.

Having a practical understanding of what the actor's job is when auditioning is a massive help in enabling an actor to audition well.  These workshops aim to quickly build an actor's understanding of the audition process - which usually takes actors years of professional experience to acquire. There are many myths about auditions and many confusions about what Casting Directors and directors are looking for.

Richard was one of the first acting teachers to begin running workshops that allowed actors to interact with Casting Directors.  The aim was to give actors experience of the audition room so that they can approach an audition in a relaxed, focused and professional way.

These are the only workshops where actors also receive analysis and feedback from a director as well as a casting director.  This combined input from two different entertainment professionals makes these workshops unique and incredibly valuable.

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Learn skills you will use throughout your career. 

THIS COURSE - Saturdays 7, 14 & 21 April 2018

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Building an Acting Career for Teen Actors

By Richard Sarell | Intensives

Build an Acting Career
(School Holiday Intensive)
(14 - 19yo)

Dates:

Duration:

Times:

Tutors:

Full Fee:

Wed 4 and Thurs 5 April

2 days

10am to 4.30pm

Kyahl Anderson
Richard Sarell

$320

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Are you  between 14 - 19 years old and seriously interested in being a professional actor?
If so, this course is for you! 
You will learn the key ingredients to a professional performance and you will be coached in the fundamentals of how to start a career.  You will be guided how to approach an actor's agent.

Ann Truong Hard Target 2, Hunters, Schapelle, Neighbours

"Something clicks in every class. It’s an amazing feeling - knowing that you are going to learn something profound but you are yet to have any idea of what that is until it happens. I return each week excited knowing that I am about to experience this." 

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What will be covered in this course?

1) Learn the key to the 'business' of being an actor

This course will instruct you on how to approach an agent in a professional manner and how to look good in the audition room once you start getting auditions.

2) Learn the key to being a stand-out actor

These modern acting techniques have actors looking highly professional in the fast moving world of TV and film production.  Older approaches, originally designed for actors who worked in the theatre, aren't easily adaptable to modern schedules.  These skills will have you working quickly and effectively - essential for the modern screen actor.

3) Effectively creating a character and then changing in 10 seconds

Both Actor's Agents and Casting Directors have commented that after extensive training actors often can't take direction and make changes.  Actors who train at The Rehearsal Room always stand out because of their ability to take direction.  These are proven professional skills that work.

4) Learn techniques that have you looking professional on the set

Knowing what to expect on a professional set means you won't make obvious mistakes on your first jobs.  Understanding what a director requires and how to deliver that is the key.  Protocols, etiquette and interpersonal skills are all part of a professional actors skill set.

5) Understand how to market yourself as an actor

Once you are a trained actor you are a business commodity.  You need to know what you are selling and how to sell it.  Understanding how show business works and how you will fit into it is the key to being both happy and successful.  This course will set you on the right footing to achieving those goals.

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

• You have always wanted to try acting but didn't know where to start
• You are wondering if you have any acting talent and are looking for a safe place to give it a try
• Have tried other places but found them too complicated or too confusing
• You feel you need to understand how the film & TV industry work before you step into it
• You have a voice inside you saying "I want to try acting"

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

• You will make slow progress trying to find a system that works for you
• You will make basic mistakes when you first approach an agent that reduce your chances of success
• You won't function confidently when doing an audition
• Basic acting skills will be confusing
• You won’t know how to put yourself in charge of your career
• You won’t have an acting process that grows with you and for you

ABOUT RICHARD...

Richard has been developing these remarkable acting techniques for 33 years.  He has directed 175 hours of TV drama for a variety of TV networks including the ABC.  He has a  professional directors understanding of what makes an actor stand out.  

Actors who have studied at other institutions are constantly commenting how clear and practical this approach to acting is.  It gives actors the ability to make highly professional and very effective choices quickly.  Actors often believe that a director will tell them how to play the scene.  This is rarely true.  Mostly directors are waiting to see what the actor has to offer.  Being able to make great choices and change them quickly is what this approach trains actors to do.

ABOUT KYAHL...

Kyahl Anderson has been studying The Rehearsal Room acting process for 5 years.  He is totally on top of the theory and is so practiced at using it as an actor that  he had 10 call backs for 10 consecutive auditions in 2017.

Besides working effectively as an actor he is being regularly hired as a director because he is consistently delivering performances and productions that work.  He has been teaching all levels of classes at The Rehearsal Room for 12 months and is receiving outstanding commendations from the actors he has instructed.​

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THIS COURSE  - Wed 4 & Thurs 5 April 2018

Learn skills you will use throughout your career. Learn to be real, to be versatile, to be a great listener and to be skilled in auditions. This workshop lays all the foundations for a professional acting career.

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Easter Intensive (Comedy)

By Richard Sarell | Intensives

Easter Intensive (Comedy)

Dates:

Duration:

Times:

Tutor:

Full Fee: Student Fee:

Deposit:

Friday March 30 – Monday 2 April
(Tuesday 3 April optional)

(4 days with an optional 5th)

10.00am to 5.00pm

Richard Sarell

$580 (+$100 for 5th day)
$500 (+$80 for 5th day)

10%

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Enjoy four or five days of intensive exploration of this very practical approach to acting.  This time there's a special focus on COMEDY.  Discover the specific acting techniques that made "The Memory of Water" such a hit and so funny.  Experience a clear explanation of acting process that will be put you totally in charge of your performance. A fifth day is optional for those who wish to explore further (and make Tuesday a holiday).

David Paterson Chopper, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Saving Mr. Banks, Frost Nixon

I have observed leading teacher directors in the US and UK and Richard shares with them that facility to guide actors through the guff to the heart of the scene.

What will be covered in this course?

1) Stretch your emotional range

This workshop will find new levels of emotional complexity for a character and discover what makes your character funny.   Explore techniques that raise the bar on achieving more heightened outcomes.

2) Engage an audience with the power of the story

Delivering the story is the actor’s primary focus. You will be empowered to engage your audience with the real drama in a very real way.  You will also learn how to bring the humour to any scene.

3) Understand what comic timing really is

Nowhere else is there such a clear understanding of the simple tools that create comedy

4) Define the issues that you find confronting and develop exercises to defeat them

Actors will work out how to define and remedy the acting issues that confront them.

5) Learn to work at the fast pace required for television

Being able to work fast demonstrates that you have a clear understanding of the actor's job and that you have the professional skills to do it

6) Challenge yourself, expand yourself and trust yourself

Be part of a course that takes your work to a new professional HIGH while bringing the fun back into acting

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

• You want to have fun playing with scenes that will make an audience laugh
• There are still areas of acting process you wish specifically work on
• You feel acting should be simpler and more fun
• You want to catch up with new techniques that have evolved at The Rehearsal Room
• You want to bring exciting new skills to your acting process

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

• You will compromise the consistency of your performances
• You will find it tricky to be real while exploiting the humour of a scene
• You wont be able to process director’s notes effectively
• You will often be confused about direction and uncertain how to implement it
• You wont be able to monitor the bad habits that have crept into your work since the last class
• You will miss out on the fun of the most enjoyable classes in town

ABOUT RICHARD...

Richard loves conducting the  Summer Intensive.  It is exciting to focus so intensely on the needs of a small group (maximum group size of 8).  He loves the huge leaps forward in understanding and skill that actors achieve in this environment.

After the huge success of "The Memory of Water" that Richard directed at Chapel Off Chapel (Nov 2017) he is keen to share the tools that were used to make this production so funny.  Audiences loved it.  Max Davine wrote in his blog on goodvibemelbourne.com "The realism he achieves is as funny and heart-wrenching, sometimes both at the same time, as in life."

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Richard believes comedy and drama have many elements in common.  The Rehearsal Room's acting principles delivered an outstanding result at Chapel Off Chapel with "THE MEMORY OF WATER" becoming a hit.

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THIS COURSE STARTS - Friday 30 March 2018

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Over 4 or 5 fun filled days learn skills you will use throughout your career. Learn to be real, to be versatile, to be a great listener and to be funny.

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