David Deblinger

TEACHING STATEMENT

“What is most important to me is to transform the, ‘class’ into an ‘ensemble of artists,’ who come to build a bond of trust and end up feeling supported and challenged to take a risk. That risk involves allowing oneself, emotionally, to reveal and understand, more and more, personal truth. I use a variety of exercises (Hagen, Meisner, Grotowski, my own) to help the actor create honest, compelling behavior to serve the story being told. Generally, we focus on three important ideas: Acting is doing. – The gasoline for doing is meaning. – It is of utmost importance to be present and, ‘in the moment’”

BIO

David Deblinger (writer/performer) is a co-founder of Labyrinth Theater Company. His early solo show, Shmoo, won a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship Award and was produced for Labyrinth by the late Philip Seymour Hoffman. He has appeared, as an actor, in new plays at Manhattan Theater Club, The New Victory, 59East59, Vineyard Theatre, The Public Theater, Theater for a New Audience, Williamstown Theater Festival, The Old Globe and Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, where he won The Acclaim Award for best lead performance in a play. On TV he recently guest starred in POWER: RAISING KANAN, AMERICAN HORROR STORIES, a recurring role opposite Forest Whitaker in, THE GODFATHER OF HARLEM. He has also appeared on, DECEPTION, BROAD CITY, BLUE BLOODS, LAW AND ORDER SVU, LAW AND ORDER, DAMAGES, THE SOPRANOS, SEX IN THE CITY, and the movie CLUBLAND on Showtime.  Also in 2023 he appeared in the Off bway production of KING OF THE JEWS at Here Arts Center.  He directed LET FREEDOM RING at The Great Hall, honoring The March on Washington.  In 2024 he also directed and developed MAD MYSTIC by Tomoko Miyagi.  As a performance artist David created and performed the critically acclaimed LUCKY PENNY, pairing him with world-class jazz vocalist Fred Johnson.

Current and Upcoming