Board of Directors
Richard Mawe, President
Donna de Matteo, Vice President
Jesse Feiler, Treasurer
Ellen Ball
Theodore S. Berger
Holly Harper
Tracey Jackson
Rochelle Korman
Austin Pendleton
Rochelle Oliver
Richard Pergolis
Marie-Louise Stegall
Staff
Edith Meeks, Executive Director
James Mallinson, Operations Manager
Bernice Sobel, Finance Director
Gerard Nazarian, Night Manager
Lois Carlo, Int'l Student Coordinator
Snezhana Chernova, Int'l Student Coordinator Assist.
Jim Boerlin, Administrator, Hagen Summer Intensive
Office Assistants
Paula Dattner
Letty Ferrer
Fernando Gambaroni
Daniel Gurian
Mindy Luce
Dan Navarro
Ayse Richardson
Kenneth Thompson
Julia Wolfermann
Caterina Xiroyanni
Studio Maintenance
Dimitry Sister
Alberto Encarnacion
Bob Woloszyn
Faculty Arts Council
Carol Rosenfeld, Chair
Jim Boerlin, Co-chair
Martha Bernard
Barrie Estes
Eric Michael Gillett
Edward Morehouse
Michael Blake (Alternate)
HB Studio is a school created by theatre artists. We believe in a process of training that is essential to all the performing arts. We offer a rigorous, well-rounded curriculum of study for committed students of all levels where the actor’s unique potential is cultivated and encouraged. We provide a haven for working professionals, free from commercial pressures. Working in partnership with the HB Playwrights Foundation and Theatre, we uphold a standard of performance that can play a significant role in shaping today’s contemporary and classical theatre – a standard envisioned by our founder, actor/director Herbert Berghof, and championed by the actor and master teacher Uta Hagen.
Established in 1945 by the renowned Viennese actor/director Herbert Berghof, the Herbert Berghof (HB) Studio was created to provide professional theatre training and practice for aspiring and accomplished actors of all ages.
The legendary actress Uta Hagen joined the Studio in 1948 as Berghof’s artistic partner. The two were married ten years later. Miss Hagen and Mr. Berghof trained many of the outstanding actors of the American stage and screen. Hagen’s master classes became the basis for her two classic acting texts, RESPECT FOR ACTING and A CHALLENGE FOR THE ACTOR. Uta Hagen's "Acting Class" video captured Uta in action in the classroom.
With course offerings in a full range of essential subjects, including acting, voice, musical theatre, dance, movement, improv, fencing, writing, and stage combat, the HB Studio is a fixture in New York's cultural realm that continues to thrive and evolve.