Young Actors Classes
Run by Amy Ruskin, our Young Actor Classes teach age appropriate Meisner Technique because we believe no one is too young to be a great actor. Enrollment is ongoing; please send us an email if you are interested. Class descriptions and current schedule below. Both online and in person classes are available.
What is the dream?
When parents come to our school to enroll their children or teens, our first question is, “What is the dream?” Whether the answer is to get into a top university, book more auditions, or simply to feel more confident we tailor the material your child works on in our classes to support that dream.
Class Offerings
Classes follow the school calendar and are run by semester, but student are welcome to enroll at anytime and tuition will be prorated. Semester pricing and scholarships are also available.
Childrens Classes
For children starting at 8 years old, we teach a combination of Meisner Technique, Spolin Exercises and Scene Study. These classes are fun, engaging, and teach real acting techniques that can be applied on set or in the school play.
60 min classes $25 per class
90 min classes $40 per class
Teens Classes
For teens up to 19 years old, we deepen the Meisner Technique training with scene study from age appropriate work. Many of our teen students are also preparing auditions or competing for various programs, and we focus on those individual goals in our classes.
90 min classes $40 per class
2 hour classes $50 per class
Coaching
Whether you need help with a role, audition, or a self tape, or would prefer one on one training, we are here for you. Email us to book a private coaching session.
Filmmaking Summer Camp
Meet the Team
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Amy Ruskin
Director/ Young Actors Teacher / Media Training
Born and raised in New York City, Amy was six years old when she fell in love with acting and began performing in plays, film and television. Amy earned her degree in Theatre Arts & Comparative Literature from Brown University and trained in programs with Julliard, NYU Tisch School of the Arts and Shakespeare & Company. After moving to Los Angeles, Amy continued training while working in production, supervising many network reality series including FOX, NBC, USA and E! directing on-camera talent, as well as writing scripted children’s shows. Amy is proud to have launched the Classes for Young Actors program in 2009 at the Ruskin School, and is honored to have supported hundreds of students as they have grown into incredible young adults. Amy also merges her training in Meisner Technique with years of directing and cultivating talent to offer unique perspective on Media Training that brings authentic connection and communication to the business world. Amy resides in Topanga with her husband, John, their sons, Bodhi and Cooper and their dog, Champa.
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Laurel J. Barham
Young Actors Teacher
With more than 25 years in the theatre, she continuously serves as an acting coach, teacher, performer and director. Performance credits include more than 30 musicals and plays: a few favorite roles include Ainsley (Misadventure), Mama (Night Mother), Madame Thernardier (Les Miserables), The Mayors Wife (Seussical The Musical) Mother Frog/Turtle (A Year With Frog and Toad)) and Betty Blast/Irene (Footloose-the Musical). An award winning director (“Starmites”, “Scarlet Pimpernel”, “Measure for Measure” “Twelfth Night “, ”Smokey Joe’s Cafe”), she has directed over seventy five one acts, plays, musicals & revues -including Cafe Plays with the Ruskin Group Theatre- and has produced and directed short films and a documentary. A graduate of The Ruskin School of Acting Two Year Meisner program, she continues to study the craft of acting and the business in Los Angeles and New York and loves to share all she learns with her students. Laurel is known for her passion to inspire young artists to celebrate their individual creativity, while learning to collaborate with their peers. She abides by the philosophy that Theatre is Life and each young actor is encouraged to dwell in the realm of possibilities onstage and off. Her students can be seen on Broadway, National Tours, Independent Films and Commercials. She is a lover of nature, laughter, silliness, warm hugs and all things Disney- she is proud to be a facilitator in the Youth Education Series program at the Disneyland Resort! Laurel currently resides in Orange County with her amazing husband Robert, awesome son Nathan, adorable rescue dogs Zoey & Tilly and Max the cat.
What People Are Saying
“If I could pinpoint anything in my 13 year old son's life that has made a difference in his growth, it is Ruskin. He has been taking acting classes with Ruskin since 4th grade and it has boosted his self- confidence, made him a better listener and of course made him a better actor. I recently overheard him talking to someone about the classes and he said he feels like he is part of a safe community where it is okay to put yourself out there and okay to fail. The combination of the Meisner Technique and the warm, supportive and collaborative teachers have helped him grow into a thoughtful, open minded, empathetic young man. I was so impressed by Ruskin, that I did the 2 year program. I can’t say enough good things about this special school and what it has done for us. Thank you Ruskin!”
—Jane Keller
I cannot recommend this acting school more highly! This was - and still is, one of the most awesome inspiring and amazing experiences for my son- all through his teen and high school years. Amy Ruskin gives and gives- and is genuinely the most amazing teacher there is! She has not only created a class of talented individuals but continues to give them a place to know how to recognize and use their talents with confidence! THANK you so much - you have built a community that will last long after the student moves on in their careers! xoxo
— Ruth Steinberg
“Amy and her staff work with the highest integrity and intentions. It’s our go to source for acting and the creative process.”
— Venice Guardiola
Both my children started their acting training with Amy Ruskin and her team and my son is now a freshman at DePaul university (one of the best theater programs in the country) on an acting scholarship. Amy helped him get auditions for film, and theater rolls over the years until he went into the acting program at Santa Monica High School.
— Andrew Chase
"I am so grateful to have found Amy and The Ruskin School of Acting. My son has found a home within the Ruskin School of Acting and has learned skills I believe he could not have learned anywhere else! The attention to the young actor is authentic and inspiring!"
—Sara Essner