ACT: a new podcast series with host Dawn A. Westbrook about the craft of acting, the art of directing and embracing the proce Dawn A. Westbrook

Frank Wood was raised in Boston, MA and he comes from a family of politicians. His father was a political scientist who served under the Lyndon Johnson administration and his sister, Maggie Hassan was the 81st Governor of New Hampshire from 2013-2017. She was elected to the senate in 2016 and is a junior US Senator.His passion for theatre was ignited during his college days at Wesleyan University when he got to act in the Canterbury Tale Shepherd’s plays. It was the challenge of t...

Born in the small town of Lubbock, Texas, Steven Skybell knew at the age of 10 as Pavel the peasant boy in the local theatre version of Fiddler on the Roof that the stage was where he belonged. A graduate of both Yale University's undergraduate and graduate theatre studies programs, in 1988 Steven stepped right off the stage at Yale Repertory and onto the boards at the Neil Simon Theatre for his broadway debut in Eugene O'Neill's Ah, Wilderness! Classically trained in Shakespeare, ironi...

If you are like me, you've seen this week's guest more than you can even remember. He's a face that has appeared on so many tv sitcoms, dramas and comedy specials it's impossible to name them all. Born in Bay Ridge Brooklyn NY, Brian is a true New Yorker. He was an absolute delight to interview. So funny. So open. So raunchy. Did I mention raunchy? As a stand-up comic, Brian has appeared on numerous television show to almost every comedy c...

One of the most talented actors I have ever seen on stage, Dan Ruth is a true showman, a writer, a musician, an actor, a director and a friend. A studied actor, the alcoholism that trapped and spun him into a downward spiral was the one thing that miraculously turned his life around. He singing voice is as powerful and passionate as Mandy Patinkin, his unrelenting comic timing will make your face hurt from laughing so hard, and his gut-wrenching personal tragic story about h...

I'll let these famous people give comedian, Jeff Caldwell's intro:Dennis Miller - "This guy is incredible!"Craig Ferguson - "Very funny!"George Carlin - "Funny and Smart!"David Letterman - "Very, very funny!"Jeff is such an approachable person. Kind to everyone, this comedian believes that humor is best when commonalities are found and that the stage is not a preferred platform for exclusions or bullying. Known to other comedians as "The Stand Up Guy" - Jeff is JUST that. Du...

I met Brad in 1981. He was already a star in the theatre department at Virginia Commonwealth University and his commitment to the craft of acting was inspiring and unwavering even back then. He is funny, kind and has become a master (and I don't use that word lightly) on how to manipulate the camera in your favor. His studio in Santa Monica is called Brad's Class and I would give anything to be a student on a regular basis so much so that - I am "committed" to taking his on-...