STAFF
To truly be able to teach an actor, the best instructor is not only fluent in the language of acting with decades of experience to back it up, they must also come equipped with unequivocal professional experience in directing, writing and producing.
ActorClass is proudly taught by founder and teaching-artist, David L. Epstein, an NYU Tisch alum whose career began after starring in and associate-producing the award-winning film, Ground Level B, written and directed by Andres Heinz (screenwriter of Oscar-winner, Black Swan), with cinematography by Edward Berger (Oscar-Winning director of Conclave and All is Quiet on the Western Front). Their film together won the highest honors at NYU Tisch’s prestigious film school, including Best Picture for Mr. Heinz and Best Actor for Mr. Epstein.
David went on to a successful career in theater, where he directed the world premiere and NYTimes Critic’s Pick, Coronado, co-produced with its world-renowned author, Dennis Lehane (creator of two-time Oscar-Winner for acting, Mystic River). Their production together was nominated for Best Original Play at the Independent Theatre Awards and was published in full by Harper Collins. David also directed and wrote the development production of GO WEST, produced by Broadway Across America, Moritz Borman (producer of Terminator Salvation), and Daniel Sladek (Emmy Nominated producer of Prayers for Bobby).
For thirty years, David has been a member of SAG/AFTRA and Actor’s Equity Association. Early in his acting career, he toured nationally and internationally as far as Cairo, Egypt, and acted in lead roles for the Drama Desk Award-Winning theater company, Godlight. David produced and directed more than a dozen of his own plays which are now published in The Best Men’s Monologues 2019, The Best Women’s Stage Monologues 2014, The Best Men’s Stage Monologues 2014, The Best Ten-Minute Plays 2006 & 2005, The Best Contemporary Monologues for Kids, 221 One-Minute Monologues for Women, and the global anthology, NEW PLAYWRIGHTS: The Best New Playwrights of 2003, from Applause Books and Smith Krauss. These plays have been performed at theaters around the world including Venice Playhouse of Los Angeles, Mirror Stage of Seattle and Soho Theatre of London, many of which David directed. His work as an actor, writer and director has been named a critic’s pic in the New York Times, Time Out NY, The New Yorker Magazine, Show Business Weekly, Backstage Magazine and more.
In recent years, David was a guest speaker at NYU Tisch’s Master Program for Acting and Singing. He has also developed projects with Gloria Gaynor (Emmy-Winning singer of I Will Survive), and Anthony Jaswinski (Nicholls Fellowship Award-Winner and screenwriter of The Shallows, starring Blake Lively). David’s LGBTQ feature film screenplay, GIRLS DON’T RIDE, was optioned by two-time Spirit Award Winner Rene Bastian (creator of Oscar-Nominated, TransAmerica), and Jonah Markowitz (creator of the award-winning documentary, Political Animals, and director of HBO’s, Room 104). In 2023, David was hired by the team of Ryan Serhant (real-estate mogul and star of Million Dollar Listing New York), and executive producer Thomas Kelly (mastermind behind The Real Housewives franchise), to serve as a creative consultant for the Netflix show: Owning Manhattan.
David has taught acting for over twenty years. In July of 2022, ActorClass was recipient of an eighteen-thousand dollar grant from Guaranteed Income for the Arts, “a financial supporter of artists who make a difference in the cultural landscape of New York City.”
ActorClass was named, “#1 Acting Studio in New York City,” by Distinguished Teaching 2023, and is a proud sponsor of the Bronx Collaborative Internship Program.
Read more about David’s Productions, Reviews & Publications.
“Early in my own acting training, I spent years at a prestigious studio where I was bounced between teachers who all had conflicting ideas about what acting was and how to approach it. When I broke away and chose to train in a less “known” environment where the focus was on the student and not the approach - I started landing gigs in national commercials, international theater, and award-winning film. This gave me the confidence to create my own production company in NY where I would act, write and direct in everything from basement theater to gala premieres. Unexpectedly, fellow actors began to approach me for guidance on auditions and before long, I was coaching a growing army of performers who were landing work at the highest levels of film, television and theater. At our studio, we don’t force actors to study acting techniques from a different era, but rather, we teach the evolving and present art of acting itself.”
- DLE
GO WEST cast, produced by Broadway Across America, Moritz Borman, Daniel Sladek, Henri Beloli (center with Epstein), and Jamie King
guest artists
Ben Durocher
Canadian-born ActorClass alum and Emmy-Winner, Ben starred in 1200 Performances of Broadway’s Avenue Q (Princeton & Rod), the National Tour of Toy Story (Woody), John Tartaglia’s ImaginOcean (Puppeteer), and is working on Disney’s, Winnie The Pooh, coming to Broadway. Durocher’s first professional acting job in New York was the lead role of legendary producer Henri Belolo, in Go West, produced by Broadway Across America, written and directed by David L. Epstein.
Mark Tallman
An ActorClass alum with an extensive career on television now filming his third season of First Wives Club, Mark also starred in Rise, State of Affairs, The Last OG, Law and Order, Dietland, Damages, Single Ladies, Step Up, All My Children, Guiding Light and dozens of national commercials. Mark enrolled in ActorClass in 2012 and became a fixture for six years, never missing a class rotation while simultaneously building his television career.
8/31/21 Tallman and Epstein at ActorClass
Ryan Serhant
An ActorClass alum who began training in 2006, Ryan is now a top American real estate broker, best-selling author, and reality star on Bravo's hit series, Million Dollar Listing New York, and its spin-off, Sell it Like Serhant. Other credits include While We’re Young, by Noah Baumbach; Inside Amy Schumer and On The Money. As his career was taking off, Serhant produced plays with Epstein including Purple Hearts which premiered Off-Broadway.
Be sure to watch Serhant’s ActorClass interview to get insight into why he chooses to work with us.
Serhant ActorClass interview
2014 Serhant & Epstein working a self-tape