All Posts by Richard Sarell

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Over his twenty-five year directing career Richard found that many actors he auditioned didn’t actually listen. They acted listening to pre-planned choices they had intelligently worked out as a result of their preparation. That pathway plainly didn’t work – it was fake. Even actors who had emerged from the major teaching institutions often couldn’t listen for real.

Jul 17

Acting – Advanced Workshop Class

By Richard Sarell | Acting Classes & Workshops

Advanced Workshop


Dates:       Thursday 17 July - 18 Sept
Duration:   10 weeks
Times:        7.00pm to 9.30pm
Tutor:         Richard Sarell

ENROL NOW

THIS WORKSHOP IS NOW FULLY AVAILABLE ONLINE WITH LIVE FACE-TO-FACE TEACHING
email Richard@rehearsalroom.com or ring 0407 226 620 for more details  
BUILD YOUR SKILLS FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

This is a workshop for experienced actors. You will learn the broad array of sophisticated techniques that have been developed at The Rehearsal Room. Making powerful decisions that engage an audience, balancing the character against the action, managing performance intensity and character complexity will all become effectively within your control.

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) Master a new acting vocabulary

Put yourself in charge of a new terminology that is totally focused on practical outcomes. The understanding you will achieve of how your acting techniques empower and activate your choices will liberate you.

2) Refine professional skills that put you in charge

These techniques will enable you to stand tall in any professional discussion about character or story and the best ways to deliver them.

3) Avoid making clichéd choices

Actors frequently make predictable choices without even knowing it. The Rehearsal Room techniques will teach you how to avoid the obvious cliché. They will also teach you how to make the obvious choice richly complex and potently real.

4) Learn how to REALLY serve the text

There is much taught about analyzing the text but the majority of that instruction is based on a ‘literary model’. Refine your understanding of story and how the writer creates the script. Put yourself in charge of the interpretation of that script with common sense and powerful techniques that are practical for the actor. This is the powerhouse of the actor’s decision-making process.

5) Realize the connection between physical action and the dialogue

Physical action and the purpose of the conversation are inextricably linked. In life they are united. It must be the same for the actor.

6) Understand the way the actor’s mind makes decisions

Actors frequently make decisions that they ‘feel’ are right but can’t explain with clarity. They can’t explain them because often they don’t actually make sense. Understanding how the mind makes decisions is very useful for the actor.

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

  • You have good foundations in place and want to build your skills more in a practical and sophisticated way
  • Your understanding of process is strong but you need bigger challenges to stretch your capabilities
  • You love what you do but you want to find out more
  • You want a bigger repertoire of skills to keep a performance fresh and vital
  • You know you can push your skills further but aren’t clear how to do it

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

  • You will make the same mistakes over
  • Will find it hard to change patterns that you know are unproductive
  • Your friends will be polite about your performances but never enthusiastic
  • You will lack confidence that choice you have made is the right one
  • You will believe everything a director tells you even when it doesn’t make sense
  • You won’t be able to interpret direction in a practical way

ABOUT RICHARD...

The major element that excites Richard about The Rehearsal Room acting process is that for thirty years it has continued to evolve. It has never lost any of its original goals but more and more practical ways of fulfilling those goals have continually emerged.

Richard makes sure that there are simple rules that assess the quality and practicality of new understandings. Those rules include...

· is the new concept simple and active

· does the new concept reflect life

· can the whole concept be clearly defined in a very short sentence

· can you do it

· does it produce an instant result.

It’s the possibility of a new discovery that gets Richard out of bed each morning with enthusiasm for the day ahead. The discoveries might come from finding a new perspective on how our minds make decisions in a psychology book. Or it might be some buried ingredient in one of the standard acting texts. But discoveries often come from an actor in a class. Because actors are empowered by The Rehearsal Room process to think about the practicalities of their choices sometimes they have sudden realizations about a new concept. And new techniques often emerge when Richard is trying to find another way to explain an existing concept.

Because the foundations of this process are so strong the new concepts always conform to the original overall goals. But Richard finds it exciting, even inspiring, to see what emerges next. You will find it exciting too. And you will also be inspired to continue the quest for further understanding.

THIS COURSE STARTS - Thurs 17 July 2025

MELBOURNE


ENROL NOW

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. The Advanced Workshop will make you the director’s best friend.

Jul 16

Acting – Intermediate Workshop Class

By Richard Sarell | Acting Classes & Workshops

Intermediate Acting Workshop

Dates:       Wednesday 16 July - 17 Sept
Duration:   10 weeks
Times:      7.00pm - 9.30pm 
Tutors:      Richard Sarell/Kyahl Anderson

ENROL NOW

THIS WORKSHOP IS NOW FULLY AVAILABLE ONLINE WITH LIVE TEACHING
email Richard@rehearsalroom.com or ring +61 407 226 620 for more details 
BUILD YOUR SKILLS FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

Are You Getting HIred?
Good acting technique translates into good audition technique.
           Good audition technique means actors get callbacks and get gigs.

A Casting Director doesn't want to see any sign that you are acting. They want to see you listening and inter-acting.  You have to be real.

To achieve that an actor needs to be able to:-
            Be relaxed and confident in the audition room (that's why you must know what you are doing)
            Prepare effectively and quickly
            Set yourself to deliver a good start to your audition offer - beginnings are important
            Be able to take direction and make big changes.

These are the skills that The Rehearsal Room acting process delivers.  It is practical, it is simple and it works.

Crispian Belfrage - London based actor

"

The week I finished this term of classes I booked two great roles in high end projects, through top casting agents.  I wish I had known about these techniques 25 years ago. 
There is an art to acting and this approach helps you understand that, in very real and simple terms. It keeps you from being in your head AND OVER COMPLICATING THINGS.

Crispian Belfrage - Obi-Wan Kenobi, Life Upside Down, B.R.I.

A Complete Acting Process
That takes you from your first read of the script through to your final performance

In this Intermediate Acting Workshop you will acquire skills to use throughout your career. Learn to be real, to be versatile, to be a great listener and to be skilled in auditions. The Intermediate Acting Workshop will make you the director’s best friend.

Stefanie Caccamo is a WAAPA graduate

"

Thank you so much for an amazing 10 weeks (they went so quickly!) I’ve really rediscovered my passion for screen acting and it’s been more fulfilling than you know. I used to leave screen classes feeling deflated and unsure of myself but when I leave you, I feel inspired to keep working harder. Truly, thank you.

Stefanie Caccamo - Beautiful: The Carole King Story, Oklahoma, Once, The Twelve, Home and Away.

What will be covered in this course?

1) Build real and effective listening skills

Listening is a core foundation skill that many actors find hard to manage. The key is to actually listen. Often the default choice for an actor is to ‘act’ listening – that never works. The focus of this workshop is on building real listening skills

2) Explore effective Meisner techniques to refine your listening

This adaptation of Meisner process is enormously effective at building listening skills. These challenging exercise develop a number of real skills that you will use in many different ways throughout your career.

3) Gain practical skills to find your place in a scene

Clearly understanding and controlling your character’s place in a scene is an essential skill for an actor. Those choices are crucial to delivering the unfolding story. These are the skills that drive the story forward and engage the audience. Nowhere else are these techniques taught so effectively. These are the skills that have you standing out in the audition room.

4) Be able to make big changes to character and story outcomes

How to change the nature of the character and balance that against the drama of the story is a skill that is not commonly taught. You will learn to make powerful choices that are dramatically engaging. With practice these skills are easy to manage. You will have a powerful professional presence in front of a Casting Director.

5) Learn to trust your actor’s impulses

Impulses are an instinctive part of daily interactions. But many actors take their importance for granted. The key to being real and believable is understanding what drives the impulses in a conversation. That understanding enables the actor to control a path to realistic but highly dramatic performances.

6) Test your skills with a professional casting director

The final exercise in this workshop is to test your burgeoning skills in front of a professional Casting Director

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...

  • Casting Directors say that you aren’t listening authentically
  • You can’t make quick and effective decisions in auditions
  • Have tried other techniques but still want to know more
  • Have tried other techniques but found them confusing
  • Want to be able to use character to push the story
  • You want to learn about acting from a director

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

  • you will ‘act’ rather than listen and respond
  • you will make vague intuitive choices rather than logical professional ones
  • be unable to effectively take direction
  • be seen to be ‘acting’ rather than be real and ‘inter-acting’
  • 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. They acted listening to pre-planned choices they had intelligently worked out as a result of their preparation. That pathway plainly didn’t work – it was fake. Even actors who had emerged from the major teaching institutions often couldn’t listen for real.

As a result a major focus of his work with actors both on the set and in the classroom has been to build techniques that develop ‘active listening’ skills. To be able to actively listen in a real and lifelike way is the foundation on which great performances are built. This workshop has a deep and powerful understanding of how our listening actually works and builds techniques that you will use in a variety of different ways throughout your career.

Richard believes this common sense and practical approach to this most basic of acting skills is unique to classes at The Rehearsal Room. It not only trains actors to make practical choices that will drive their listening in an active way but it will also enable them to monitor how their listening skills are working throughout their career.

Listening is the bedrock on which acting skill is built.

COURSE STARTS - Wednesday 16 July 2025

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. The Intermediate Workshop will make you the director’s best friend.

ENROL NOW
Jul 14

Acting – MASTER CLASS

By Richard Sarell | Acting Classes & Workshops

MASTER CLASS

Dates:       Monday 14 July - 11 August
                                 18 Aug - 15 Sept  
Duration:  10 weeks
Times:       7.00pm - 9.30pm
Tutor:         Richard Sarell

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THE FIRST 5 WEEKS are face-to-face at KENSINGTON TOWN HALL
THE SECOND 5 WEEKS are ONLINE SESSIONS 
email Richard@rehearsalroom.com or ring 0407 226 620 for more details  
BUILD YOUR SKILLS WHILE KEEPING RISK FREE

Expand the effectiveness of your skills to a highly professional level. Directors will love your ability to interpret their notes. Refine your techniques and practice very effective, uniquely practical add-ons. In the final session be directed by a professional guest TV director.

If you haven't previously studied here you can still audition for a place in the MASTER CLASS

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

The character’s emotions are directly connected to the success or failure they experience at achieving their goals. These techniques teach actors to get the emotional balance right.

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.

3) Create richly complex characters

Creating real character’s that function beautifully in different relationships is the pinnacle of the actor’s craft. These simple and logical techniques create richly textured characters in a profoundly simple way.

4) Be in charge of your professional conversations

The Rehearsal Room process will enable you to dissect Directors and Casting Directors intentions. Often you will be able to interpret their goals into actor friendly concepts better than they can. You will be empowered to share in the responsibility of finding both story and character choices.

5) Prepare efficiently and effectively

Being given a task at short notice will no longer frighten you. You will practice being empowered to prepare in either seconds or weeks with techniques that are appropriate and effective. They are proven to work.

6) No longer will you be ruled by acting myths

You will practice techniques that are so logical and so practical that the mumbo-jumbo of many of the acting myths will no longer befuddle your mind and confuse your choices.

THIS IS FOR YOU IF...

  • You have strong foundations of The Rehearsal Room process in place and want to continue to build your skills
  • There are still areas of acting process you wish specifically work on
  • You know that maintaining a craft means constantly practicing
  • You want to catch up with new techniques that have evolved at The Rehearsal Room
  • You want to keep working with actors who use these unique skills

IF YOU DON’T HAVE THESE SKILLS …

  • You will compromise the consistency of your performances
  • Under pressure of an audition you will rush to make ineffective choices
  • 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 and productive classes in town

ABOUT RICHARD...

Richard loves conducting the MASTER CLASS sessions. It is here that the learning is shared between the actors and the teacher. Although actors may still be clarifying their understanding of the detail of The Rehearsal Room process in these sessions they are now ready for big challenges and strong critiques.

Because we are all measuring performances from the same set of values the discussions are exciting and frank. It is in these sessions that new articulations of this acting process emerge. 



Actors now negotiate their performance choices with professional skills. Richard finds it very satisfying to hear actors identifying problem areas ahead of time.  That was the reason he established this course.  Its aim was to empower actors to see the possible outcomes of their choices while they are still in the preparation stage. Guest directors to classes see these skills in action.



Recently a director commented that he was impressed how well everyone could take direction.  When he discovered that the actors had never done their scenes before, but had prepared them over a 20 minute period before he arrived, he changed his mind.  "Now I am REALLY impressed," he said.



Richard believes those are the professional skills that all actors should be able to deliver with ease

THIS COURSE STARTS - Monday 14 July 2025

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. The MASTER CLASS will lift your professional skills to a new level.

ENROL NOW