Lesly Kahn & Company, Actor Training

Day Three of our whirlwind SeeTheTonyNominees’26 Tour turned into what can only be described as The David Hornsby Experience.

David, dashingly dashing from cocktail party to cocktail party, somehow found time to usher us into the newly renovated Palace Theatre just before curtain for THE LOST BOYS, the Broadway musical he co-wrote with his longtime writing partner, Chris Hoch.
THE LOST BOYS arrived on Broadway with a mountain of acclaim, and after seeing it, I understand why. It was a phenomenal, mind-blowing, thrilling evening in the theatre. And David freaking WROTE IT!!!!

While writing and producing television, acting in multiple series, developing films, raising a family, and somehow maintaining the demeanor of a fairly normal human being, David spent years helping to shepherd THE LOST BOYS from idea to Broadway stage.
Most people know David as an actor from things like IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA, where he created one of television’s most memorable recurring characters. Others know him from MYTHIC QUEST. What many people don’t realize is that he’s also been one of the creative forces behind those shows as a writer and producer.

What fewer people know is that the qualities that make David remarkable have very little to do with his résumé. He’s an artist, a husband, a father, a loyal friend, and one of the kindest people I’ve encountered in this business. That’s the part that never appears in biographies or credits.

Congratulations, David! You blow me away!
Please see the link to my blog above for a lot more about David.

I’m just gonna keep reposting this ‘till you do it, ‘k?

Thank you, Screenplay Tips !

Today in class y’all were talking about how frustrated you are that you miss things in the text, sometimes aren’t really listening, have trouble understanding the character, etc. “It takes tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime to get great at this stuff!” I said. Loudly and emphatically. Y’all looked at me with an alarming amount of skepticism.

So I asked Kayla LaVine to demonstrate a dance combo and teach it to me.

Now listen, I studied some dance. When I was born the doctors told my mother I was going to be six feet tall and a klutz. They suggested she put me in dance classes. So I took ballet, modern, jazz, tap — all of it – every day after school — for TEN years. I danced, lemme tell ya’.

As I turned out to be 5’4 1/2” and a klutz, the dance combo did NOT go well.

On the other hand, I haven’t danced in 50 years.

“How long,” I asked, “do you think it would it take for me to get good enough at the combo to book a job doing it?”

The answers varied.

“Two months.”
“A year.”
“Never.”

I think I could get to about 80% in 48 hours. Not 100%, but a good 80%. But I wouldn’t book it. Even at 80%.

“Luck can find you but it has to find you working.” Not fu***ng around for 50 years.

We saw the exceptional Bradley Stryker in Joe Turner’s Come and Gone on the second night of our whirlwind SeeTheTonyNominees’26Tour. The house was packed and it was all I could do not to scream and applaud hysterically when he walked out on stage playing opposite Cedric The Entertainer and taraji p henson .

If you want to read the unbelievable story of Bradley’s booking, check out my post of March 6 below or see link in my bio.

There’s been so much talk of late about “being different,” surprising the auditors, and setting yourself apart, and so much – you’ll hopefully forgive me – bad advice about how to do that. Contrary to popular belief you don’t accomplish that by doing something different just for the sake of doing something different. You do it by going more specifically into what the writer has written. And that’s what Bradley did. He didn’t go to the audition wearing a funny hat, breaking out into song or using a weird accent. He just did the job. THOROUGHLY. So much so that he stunned the crap out of everyone watching his audition. So much so that they hired him ten minutes after he left the theatre. So much so that they cancelled the chemistry reads that were to have taken place the next day. He didn’t try to be different. He DID HIS JOB. Exquisitely. And they saw it. And they cast it.

We can all take a page out of Bradley’s book/script. Just do the job and do it as it is asking to be done (and then, of course, it’s helpful to get lucky and be the right age, gender, race, type, etc.). Not an easy task in this day and age of three hundred tapes and three seconds. But Bradley did it. Under duress. And he’s out there on the boards doing it again and again, every night, having the time of his life.

*CONTINUED IN COMMENTS*

Brilliant Intimacy Coordinator extraordinaire Mia Schachter changed our lives today! We had a wildly educational Kahnversation with her. She was so knowledgeable, comforting, easygoing and just lovely. We learned so much! She made everything so clear! And easy!!!! Y’all can go out there and be intimate all OVER the place now! Thank you, Mia!

You absolutely must follow Mia on Instagram Unsolicited Advice from Mia Schachter 🏳️‍⚧️🏳️‍🌈 and Mia Schachter / Max Silver . She is unusually wise. I, for one, have so much trouble with boundaries, and she is beyond expert!!!! Check out the chart she drew to help us understand boundaries. And if you go to her Instagram she has more versions of it as well.

Plus she has a book coming out! I can’t wait!!!!

Mia teaches all kinds of classes on consent and creativity, she makes art, has a newsletter, and offers workbooks for people pleasers - I mean, she’s something!

Thank you again, Mia! Y’all go get yourselves some Mia!!!!

I’m pretty sure this is Rumi’s way of being Nike. You know, “Just do it.” Make the audition tape, go to the workshop, make the phone call, write the email, do the second draft of the script, send it for notes, make that short, make those TikToks - just do it.You ‘re not going anywhwere if you’re just sitting there. Rumi’s smart.

Thank you .