About Wayne Dvorak
As a young child, Wayne C. Dvorak grew up on black-and-white movies and was enthralled with acting and actors from the beginning. At age 15, he was scouted as a promising actor while he was in a high school play, and then immediately went into performing in community theater. Later continuing drama study in college, he was mentored at the Guthrie Theater in Minnesota by the celebrated Sir Tyrone Guthrie, who during his lifetime was considered the greatest director on the English-speaking stage including in both London and New York. At the Guthrie, Mr. Dvorak experienced first-hand the rehearsals and performances of star legends like Jessica Tandy, Hume Cronyn, George Grizzard, and Ellen Greer. And he sat in on discussions about writing and directing with the great Arthur Miller and Harold Clurman.
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In the early 1970's, Mr. Dvorak came to Hollywood. He continued his study for TV and film in Los Angeles classes, performed at the Mark Taper Forum, and he worked on television with such greats as Lucille Ball, Mary Tyler Moore, Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Angela Lansbury, William Shatner, and Peter Falk. During his acting career, he appeared in such shows as Murder, She Wrote; Hill Street Blues; Seinfield; The Nanny; Evening Shade; Everybody Loves Raymond; and The Lindbergh Kidnapping Case with Anthony Hopkins.
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Mr. Dvorak began coaching other actors in the late 1970's because he realized he had a talent for helping his fellow actors understand scripts and bring out the best in their acting. As a result, in 1982 he opened his own acting studio -- the Wayne Dvorak Acting Studio.
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When asked why he now dedicates all his time to coaching actors, he says that he simply likes seeing the actor "get it." Says Mr. Dvorak –
"I think there is a difference between teaching and coaching. I think the teacher can give you a body of information and you can get that. So, for example, if someone is teaching you about a noun and a verb and an adverb you can get that because those are definitions and you can pass on information. But a real coach is someone who has an eye for coaching and really understands what they’re seeing. I think that’s a talent. And I think some people who are teaching in Los Angeles really have it. The people that do have that coaching talent can see the person, can see what they can do to guide that person, and know what they can do to make that person freer and deeper in their work."
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Now having coached actors for almost 30 years, Mr. Dvorak has a B.A. in Theatre Arts and Psychology and a B.S. in Education from the University of Minnesota. He also has a Masters of Arts in Theatre and Art from the University of California-Fullerton -- the first masters candidate in the history of this university. He is a member of AFTRA, SAG, and EQUITY, and he is a voting member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (The Emmy).
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More about Mr. Dvorak is found on www.imdb.com.