Sarah is passionate about mentoring actors and strives to prepare students not only for the realities of the industry but also for a meaningful and sustainable artistic life.

As a former Casting Director, I created the "One-on-Ones" to offer actors an inside view of the casting process. Having been an actor myself for many years, the experience of sitting on the other side of the table inspired me to help actors balance their professional demands with their artistic impulse. This experience clarified the overarching theme of my teaching philosophy: the ultimate goal is to cultivate and support actualized, joyful, and self-directed artists.  I’m committed to helping students design a life rooted in creative fulfillment and deep self-knowledge—equipping them with the self-mastery needed to thrive at the highest levels.

After completing my MFA and working professionally in the Bay Area, I moved to New York and began writing and producing my own work. What started as a creative impulse soon became a turning point in how I understood the artist’s role. Creating my own material shifted my identity toward entrepreneurship and expanded my sense of what was possible. Through this process, my artistry naturally extended into additional arenas: directing, editing, coaching, artistic management, and casting. These roles not only deepened my creative practice, they also provided financial stability and professional resilience. Together, they offered a sustainable framework for living a creative life on my own terms.

This is what I now want to offer to my students: the tools and mindset to become self-generating artists who can not only audition well but also make their own work, forge their own connections, and imagine lives that are not dependent on gatekeepers. I want to help them see that creative entrepreneurship is not a detour from the artist’s path—it is the path. By taking agency over their craft, their careers, and their voices, they gain access to a kind of power that can carry them through the ups and downs of the industry and into a life of long-term creative fulfillment.

In the classroom, I see myself as the architect of a rigorous yet generous structure. I create space for students to discover their innate longing to connect with one another. My pedagogy is rooted in the belief that acting is a noble pursuit and an act of service. We take the work seriously and hold ourselves to high standards, but of course we also return to play. The freedom to play wholeheartedly depends on our ability to trust— to trust the moment, trust one another, and ultimately to trust ourselves. It is in this trust that our grip on the ego can fall away and we find our true personal power.  The freedom to really “be” comes from this sweet spot of presence and offers us rooted authentic moments of shared human connection.  We are so lucky as theatre artists to be given the gift of theatre; to be shown entry into this world of magic.  It is who we are.  And it is up to us to be grateful.

As we look ahead to the future of actor training, I believe the field must evolve alongside the transformations happening in our culture. Though my foundation is in classical methods rooted in Hagen, Cohen, and voice and movement fundamentals, I am committed to innovating the form. In a time when AI is poised to automate many of our non-human tasks, the artist’s role becomes even more vital. What remains uniquely ours is our capacity to feel, to connect, to tell the truth through our bodies and imaginations. 

To this end, I am developing a new actor training method called The Persona Process, which integrates somatic techniques, modern neuroscience, and the psychology of self-mastery to unlock impulse, emotional memory, and creative flow. Grounded in Brainspotting and “parts work”, this process offers students tools not only for character development and devised work, but for self-awareness and healing—skills increasingly essential for modern creators and citizen-artists.

The most important role of a teacher today is to launch resilient, curious, self-aware individuals who are inspired by their potential and empowered to carve their own paths. I want my students to leave my classroom with the skills to craft their art, the wisdom to navigate the world with integrity, and the courage to remain in pursuit of meaning. I expect them to show up with energy and passion—and I promise to do the same. Because that’s what it takes.

MFA, Acting: University of Minnesota/Guthrie BA, Theater Arts: Western Washington University

Teaching Positions: The University of Minnesota, Portland Community College, Foothill College, Nancy Hayes Casting, Camp Reel Stories Film Making Camp for Girls, and The California Film Institute.

SARAH OFFERS ONE-ON-ONE AND GROUP COACHING SESSIONS. Reach out via the contact page for more information.