Instructors
Instructors
Dillon Heape
Biography
Dillon Heape is an actor, director, writer and musician based in New York City. Dillon is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns. Their off-Broadway and regional theater credits include performances with the American Conservatory Theater, Summer Repertory Theatre, PearlDamour, Hunger & Thirst, Play On Shakespeare, Mile Square Theatre, Three Day Hangover, Oklahoma Shakespearean Festival, FringeNYC, NYMF and the Moscow Art Theatre. They have also appeared in national TV commercials. In 2018 Dillon toured Japan as a featured vocalist in Disney On Classic with The Orchestra Japan, and they received the 2019 Fruitie Award for Outstanding Lead Performance in a Musical for their role in Metropolitan at NYC’s Fresh Fruit Festival. Dillon holds a B.F.A. from the University of Evansville and an M.F.A. in Acting from the American Conservatory Theater.
Ben Quinn
Biography
Ben Quinn is an actor, musician, educator, and music producer. He has performed onstage regionally, in the Bay Area, and in New York City, where he now lives. His recent NYC appearances include Phantom Pains (Benefit of the Doubt), and The Waterman (Ant Fest). Ben holds an MFA from the American Conservatory Theater, where he received the Carol Channing Award, and a B.S. from the University of Evansville where he received the Jeanne Suhrheinrich Award for Outstanding Senior. As an ACT student, he performed in A Christmas Carol, Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play (u/s), as well as many Conservatory and SkyFest productions. Ben has worked as an educator with ACT’s Young Conservatory, Stage Coach, and as a historical interpreter with the Cincinnati Museum Center. As a musician, he plays all around NYC in a variety of folk & bluegrass bands.
Mark Rafael
Biography
A graduate of Brown University and the Yale School of Drama, Mark has been an instructor in Acting, Theater, and Public Speaking at the University of California Berkeley, University of San Francisco, The American Conservatory Theater, and the Academy of Art University. He is also a communications and speech coach for clients such as Cisco, Facebook, Bank of America, and Pinterest. He is the author of “Telling Stories: A Grand Unifying Theory of Acting Techniques”. He has appeared at many Bay Area Theaters and his Film and Television credits include “Titanic”, “Trauma”, “Chance”, “Star Trek Voyager”, and “The Practice”.
Radhika Rao
Biography
Radhika is an actor and improviser based in San Francisco. She has been teaching with ACT for the past 8 years. She teaches theater and improv and integrates improv in various educational settings such as Leela Improv, Urban High School, and Stagebridge Performing Arts Institute for Seniors. She is also a communications coach training for empathetic and effective conversations, at organizations such as Stanford Medical School, Cisco, Samuel Merritt University, and Santa Clara University. You can catch her next in “The Claim” at Shotgun Players in Berkeley, CA and in “Strings Attached” which will premier on Amazon Prime.
Katie Rubin
Biography
Katie is a Working Professional Actress, Acting Coach, Writing Teacher and Energy Healer. Between acting jobs, she helps people heal their deepest traumas through deep spiritual work, and supports Actors in coming alive on stage. She has an MFA in Acting from Uc Davis, and a BA in Theater and Dance from Amherst College. She teaches Acting, Improv, and Stand Up through Stanford's Continuing Education Program, and all of her offerings can be found at katierubin.com
Domenique Salerno
Biography
Dominique Salerno is an actor, improvisor, playwright and theatre educator based out of NYC. She received her MFA from American Conservatory Theater, and her undergraduate degree from Princeton University. She also has over a decade of improv performance and coaching experience, and has trained at the UCB Theater, Magnet Theater and The Groundlings. Recently, she was a staff writer/ comedy producer for an upcoming Netflix series. Her hilarious touring solo show, The Box Show, won many awards including the Overall Excellence Award from FringeNYC and Best Comedic Script from United Solo Theatre Festival. Dominique is passionate about using theatre as a tool for connection and empowering people to become their most confident selves.