We caught up with Alyssa Reichel, studio coordinator and youth acting teacher, and Sarah Kirby, studio manager, from the Margie Haber Studio to discuss their unique approach to acting. Their method focuses on building authentic relationships and tapping into imagination, creating a fresh, human-centered take on performance.
Both passionate actors themselves, Alyssa and Sarah, share their insights on the power of community, advice for young actors, and how reconnecting with your “why” can keep you motivated in this unpredictable industry.
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What is the technique at Margie Haber Studio?
It's a very non-technical approach to acting. I studied acting in school, I studied in many places, and there's a lot of “here's the steps that you have to take.”
and “think about this objective and you're super objective” but I don't think like that, as a person in day-to-day life, we think like that. I feel like the Margie Haber technique brings a lot of the humanity back to acting, it's very focused on relationship, and that being the most important thing, and building that out, using your imagination to build that out. And then I mean, I think that the studio is also just special 'cause of the community that's built there.
It's definitely a method based on creating the life of this human that you're stepping into and really using your imagination, coming from some place, and just getting out of your actor brain and into the character and...having fun, playing. For me, it really reminded me of why I wanted to be an actor in the first place.
What advice would you give to the parents of children who want to start acting?
Have the child kind of take the reins a little bit. The kids in my class who have been the most successful are the ones who are just following it because they love it. And it makes me think about myself when I was a kid as well, because I started acting very young and my parents were very kind of like, “okay, you do what you want to do, we're here to support you”. And so really letting them be themselves, be free, having fun , and leaning into the creativity and not losing that inner playful child that they have so freely and easily accessible, just tapping into that and being themselves.
What other advice would you give to young actors?
Build your tribe, like work on finding the people around you who inspire you creatively, who you feel like you're on the same wavelength with, who are going to motivate you. It's a tough business to be in, and it's even harder when you feel like you're alone. So finding places like an acting class, or a group that can help motivate you, a group that you can write with, or even read scripts with, or just surrounding yourself with people who keep you motivated and keep you grounded. It's just nice having those touchstones that you can go back to and it's like, This is why I'm going to keep going. We're in this together and we got this.
Community is so important, so important. This is a crazy industry, it's a crazy town, it's a crazy job. And so having those people that keep you connected to your creativity. I think it's important to stay connected to your “why” as well, for why you wanted to be an actor in the first place. I think reconnecting to the reason why you wanted to get into this can help carry you through, especially on the tough days and the tough months and years. And if you feel like the opportunities aren't coming your way, make them. If there's not a path forward, blaze your trail. Make it happen.
