Ed Kovens
Encyclopedia
Ed Kovens is an American SAG
, AFTRA, and AEA
actor. Furthermore he is a Method acting
instructor
based in New York City. He is a member of The Actor's Studio and worked with the legendary Lee Strasberg
.
in acting and directing
, Kovens worked as a stand-up comic, did small parts and extra work in film and TV (mainly because of his age); directed some plays and reviews and did some Off-Off-Broadway
leads.
In 1957, he started studying with Lee Strasberg
in a small studio above the Capitol Theater, then at Carnegie Hall
, and subsequently, at the Actor's Studio (where he became a member in 1968) until Strasberg's death in 1981.
In 1965, a bunch of Strasberg students asked Kovens to form an exercise class - Strasberg's classes were packed, they wanted to work, and they felt Kovens had some expertise. Some major stars now, who were Strasberg's students then, were in that group. In 1969, he became a founding staff member of the Lee Strasberg Institute. In 1974, he left the Strasberg Institute and formed his own classes, called Professional Workshop. Kovens having taught for over 40 years is one of the most experienced Method Acting
teachers in the world. In 2006, Kovens wrote and published The Method Manual, a book for actors and teachers of acting.
Ed Kovens died on August 21, 2007.
, NYPD Blue
, and 4Pla]. For film, The Gambler
(with James Caan), The Bad Lieutenant (with Harvey Keitel
) and Muggable Mary (with Karen Valentine
). For Broadway, Kovens has been in over 75 productions, including Passione
and Three Sisters
.
Screen Actors Guild
The Screen Actors Guild is an American labor union representing over 200,000 film and television principal performers and background performers worldwide...
, AFTRA, and AEA
Actors' Equity Association
The Actors' Equity Association , commonly referred to as Actors' Equity or simply Equity, is an American labor union representing the world of live theatrical performance, as opposed to film and television performance. However, performers appearing on live stage productions without a book or...
actor. Furthermore he is a Method acting
Method acting
Method acting is a phrase that loosely refers to a family of techniques used by actors to create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances...
instructor
Teacher
A teacher or schoolteacher is a person who provides education for pupils and students . The role of teacher is often formal and ongoing, carried out at a school or other place of formal education. In many countries, a person who wishes to become a teacher must first obtain specified professional...
based in New York City. He is a member of The Actor's Studio and worked with the legendary Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg was an American actor, director and acting teacher. He cofounded, with directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed as "America's first true theatrical collective"...
.
Biography
New York-bred Ed Kovens became a professional actor at 19 after acting and directing in high school and college. While studying at New York UniversityNew York University
New York University is a private, nonsectarian research university based in New York City. NYU's main campus is situated in the Greenwich Village section of Manhattan...
in acting and directing
Theatre direction
A theatre director or stage director is a practitioner in the theatre field who oversees and orchestrates the mounting of a theatre production by unifying various endeavours and aspects of production...
, Kovens worked as a stand-up comic, did small parts and extra work in film and TV (mainly because of his age); directed some plays and reviews and did some Off-Off-Broadway
Off-Off-Broadway
Off-Off-Broadway theatrical productions in New York City are those in theatres that are smaller than Broadway and Off-Broadway theatres. Off-Off-Broadway theaters are often defined as theaters that have fewer than 100 seats, though the term can be used for any show in the New York City area that...
leads.
In 1957, he started studying with Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg
Lee Strasberg was an American actor, director and acting teacher. He cofounded, with directors Harold Clurman and Cheryl Crawford, the Group Theatre in 1931, which was hailed as "America's first true theatrical collective"...
in a small studio above the Capitol Theater, then at Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
, and subsequently, at the Actor's Studio (where he became a member in 1968) until Strasberg's death in 1981.
In 1965, a bunch of Strasberg students asked Kovens to form an exercise class - Strasberg's classes were packed, they wanted to work, and they felt Kovens had some expertise. Some major stars now, who were Strasberg's students then, were in that group. In 1969, he became a founding staff member of the Lee Strasberg Institute. In 1974, he left the Strasberg Institute and formed his own classes, called Professional Workshop. Kovens having taught for over 40 years is one of the most experienced Method Acting
Method acting
Method acting is a phrase that loosely refers to a family of techniques used by actors to create in themselves the thoughts and emotions of their characters, so as to develop lifelike performances...
teachers in the world. In 2006, Kovens wrote and published The Method Manual, a book for actors and teachers of acting.
Ed Kovens died on August 21, 2007.
Credits
Kovens can be seen in numerous film, television and theater productions. For television, Kovens has been in Law & OrderLaw & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
, NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue
NYPD Blue is an American television police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan...
, and 4Pla]. For film, The Gambler
The Gambler (1974 film)
The Gambler is a 1974 feature film starring James Caan, Lauren Hutton, and Paul Sorvino.The film is loosely based on the short novel The Gambler by Fyodor Dostoyevsky and was filmed at a time when leading actor James Caan was battling his own addiction to cocaine...
(with James Caan), The Bad Lieutenant (with Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel is an American actor. Some of his most notable starring roles were in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, Ridley Scott's The Duellists and Thelma and Louise, Ettore Scola's That Night in Varennes, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Jane Campion's The...
) and Muggable Mary (with Karen Valentine
Karen Valentine
Karen Valentine is an American actress best-known for her role as the idealistic schoolteacher "Alice Johnson" in the television series Room 222.-Early life:...
). For Broadway, Kovens has been in over 75 productions, including Passione
Passione (play)
Passione was a play by American playwright Albert Innaurato. The action is set in South Philadelphia in the present.It ran on Broadway at the Morosco Theatre from September 23 to October 5, 1980. It was directed by Frank Langella and costume design was by William Ivey Long....
and Three Sisters
Three Sisters (play)
Three Sisters is a play by Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov, perhaps partially inspired by the situation of the three Brontë sisters, but most probably by the three Zimmermann sisters in Perm...
.
Alumni
- Sissy SpacekSissy SpacekSissy Spacek is an American actress and singer. She came to international prominence for her for role as Carrie White in Brian De Palma's 1976 horror film Carrie for which she earned her first Academy Award nomination...
(Academy Award winner) - Jennifer BealsJennifer BealsJennifer Beals is an American actress and a former teen model. She is known for her roles as Alexandra "Alex" Owens in the 1983 film Flashdance, and as Bette Porter on the Showtime drama series The L Word. She earned an NAACP Image Award and a Golden Globe Award nomination for the former...
(FlashdanceFlashdanceAnother song used in the film, "Maniac", was also nominated for an Academy Award. It was written by Michael Sembello and Dennis Matkosky, and was inspired by the 1980 horror film Maniac. The lyrics about a killer on the loose were rewritten so that it could be used in Flashdance...
; The L WordThe L WordThe L Word is an American co-production television drama series originally shown on Showtime portraying the lives of a group of lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people and their friends, family and lovers in the trendy Greater Los Angeles, California city of West Hollywood...
) - Sean YoungSean YoungSean Young is an American actress, best known for her performance in films from the 1980s such as Blade Runner, Dune, and No Way Out.-Early life:...
(No Way OutNo Way Out (1987 film)No Way Out is a 1987 thriller film about a U.S. Naval officer investigating a Washington, D.C. murder. It stars Kevin Costner, Gene Hackman and Sean Young...
) - Robert Lulone (Tony AwardTony AwardThe Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
nominee) - Thomas CalabroThomas CalabroThomas F. Calabro is an American actor and director.-Biography:Calabro graduated from Fordham University in New York City.Calabro began his acting career in theatre with various roles in New York...
(Melrose Place)
- Robert CostanzoRobert CostanzoRobert Jason Costanzo is an American actor. He has an acting career spanning over thirty years and is often found playing surly New York types such as crooks or low level workers and mixes both drama and comedy roles...
over 200 films - Loretta DevineLoretta DevineLoretta Devine is an American stage, film and television actress known for her roles on Boston Public, Grey's Anatomy, and Eli Stone. She also provided her voice for the stop motion animated television series The PJs. Devine is a NAACP Image Award and Emmy award winning actress.-Early life:Devine...
"Dreamgirls" - Chazz PalminteriChazz PalminteriCalogero Lorenzo "Chazz" Palminteri is an American actor and writer, best known for his performances in The Usual Suspects, A Bronx Tale, and his Academy Award nominated role for Best Supporting Actor in Bullets Over Broadway....
(The Usual SuspectsThe Usual SuspectsThe Usual Suspects is a 1995 American neo-noir film written by Christopher McQuarrie and directed by Bryan Singer. It stars Stephen Baldwin, Gabriel Byrne, Benicio del Toro, Chazz Palminteri, Kevin Pollak, Kevin Spacey and Pete Postlethwaite....
, etc.) - Joe SenecaJoe SenecaJoe Seneca was an American film and television actor who had a lengthy Hollywood career, portraying bit parts in many major films and television sitcoms spanning from the 1970s to the 1990s....
"The Verdict etc"]] - Jill Anne Edwards (ManonManonManon is an opéra comique in five acts by Jules Massenet to a French libretto by Henri Meilhac and Philippe Gille, based on the 1731 novel L’histoire du chevalier des Grieux et de Manon Lescaut by the Abbé Prévost...
, Barber of Seville) - Debra Wiley (*) - (Opera singer/Acting Teacher)
- David Gideon Noted acting teacher