Dear HB Community,

When Herbert Berghof founded HB Studio over eighty years ago, television was a new technology, the Empire State Building was the world’s tallest, and 120 Bank Street was months removed from being a horse stable. No one could have predicted that such humble beginnings would lead to Uta Hagen’s lasting acting philosophy and a dynasty that would indelibly impact American theater history.

Through the devotion and effort of hundreds of thousands of people, HB has survived recessions, gentrification, pandemics, and the internet. We were built to last. Despite all the change that has occurred in the intervening decades, HB Studio and the HB Playwrights Foundation have remained unerring in our mission to demystify the craft of acting through focused study and performance, to offer classes at affordable prices, and to provide a home for seasoned professionals to share their experience with the next generation. That collective ethos is what continues to propel HB forward. We take the inheritance of this legacy incredibly seriously. We believe that it is our responsibility to assure that HB can survive for another 80 years, continuing to uplift New York City’s performing arts community long after we’re gone.

Over the past three years, our senior staff and board, alongside a collective of close advisors and experts in the field of not-for-profit instruction, have found ourselves at a crossroads. Dozens of complex factors – post-COVID consumer behavior, long delayed structural repairs, the rising costs of living, the building’s minimal ADA compliance, an ongoing desire to keep tuition low, the popular aspirational shift from actor to influencer, altered patterns in education, and instant gratification culture, to name a few – have led us to a difficult realization. In this location, our expenses are exceeding our income. But this problem comes with its own solution. HB’s uniquely purposeful method of study will still have a place to thrive well into the 21st century. But the financial reality is that place can no longer be on Bank Street.

We are currently in the process of ratifying the transfer of 120, 122, and 124 Bank Street to a private buyer. We will likely work and teach on these premises through the middle of 2027. After that, HB Studio will eventually move to a new brick and mortar home in Manhattan, at a location to be determined, that we will build out to best meet our needs. The proceeds from this sale will be carefully managed and conservatively invested to insure the future of HB Studio.

To give our community a chance to discuss this transition, we are hosting two Town Hall experiences, one in person and one virtual. Please choose whichever date and format best first your schedule.

Our in-person HB Town Hall at 120 Bank in the Helen Gallagher Studio will be on Monday June 22 at 5:00pm with both Francesca and Christopher in attendance, along with Verdery Roosevelt (HB Board Member) and Marie-Louise Stegall (President, HB Board of Directors) to answer your questions. Let us know you’re coming by RSVP’ing here.

Our Virtual Town Hall is on Wednesday, June 24 at 5:00pm. Click here to let us know you’re coming

As always, you can feel free to contact us at ideas@hbstudio.org to continue the conversation.

With respect and determination,

Francesca Ferrara and Christopher Hibma (HB Co-Executive Directors) and The HB Board of Directors