About I Mime I Director I Movement Therapist I Physical Acting Coach I Teacher I Artist in Residence
Michael's Coaching in Action
Physical acting brings out the story and characters, whether on stage or ice. Physical Acting for Skaters is Michael’s program developed specifically for figure skating, a sport relying heavily on expression (not only facial...the entire body!) to bring out dramatic elements in a wide variety of program themes. These skaters have all improved their dramatic expressions with Michael's help.
Olympic Champions:
Scott Moir & Tessa Virtue (2010)
Meryl Davis & Charlie White (2014)
And these Champions too!
Tanith Belbin & Ben Agosto
Madison Chock & Evan Bates
Patrick Chan
Nathan Chen
Gracie Gold
Anna Cappelini & Luca Lanotte
Megan Fee
Brandon Frazier & Haven Denny
Maia & Alex Shibutani
Miami University Collegiate Synchronized Teams
Nick Buckland & Penny Coomes
Elliana Pogrebinski & Alex Benoit
Madison Chock & Evan Bates
Tessa Virtue & Scott Moir
For Pairs, Ice Dancers, Synchro...and more!
Michael has coached physical acting for numerous productions...Including Our Town, It’s A Wonderful Life, The Comedy of Errors, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Elephant Man, and most recently Peter And The Star Catcher.
Consider how a theater audience is watching, along with hearing, the action on stage. When actors know how to physically develop and portray a character, their entire interpretation expands. Knowing when to play “rich” and “poor” (from the work of Jerzy Grotowski) in relation to the text is the key to an actor’s success.
Clip of a larger production coming soon...
For Theatrical Productions...
“It is very difficult to put a single label on Michael. Suffice it to say, he is an energetic, engaging coach/actor/technician/comedian/mentor who is able to push students to develop and portray characters and story lines with sincerity.”
- Janice Benoit, Ice Dance coach and judge, Chicago
“All teams did best performance at nationals! Thank you so much[...]
For all your great work with them!!!”
- Marina Zoueva, Ice Dance Coach of the Year, 2011