Faculty & Staff

Deb Jackel
(she/her/hers)
Assistant Professor, Acting
Theater

That moment when you see a student break through a barrier or see something they have been struggling with finally open up or make sense is really thrilling.

Degrees & Accomplishments
BFA in Acting, Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts
Meisner Teacher Training, William Esper
Winner, Backstage Readers’ Choice Awards Favorite Audition Technique and Cold Reading Teacher
Biography

Deb teaches Acting I and Acting IV in the BFA Acting program.  She has also taught acting, audition technique, and cold reading at the William Esper Studio since 2000.

She brings a fierce love for and belief in the Meisner technique to all of her work, having witnessed firsthand its power in helping actors find freedom, vulnerability, and courage in their artistry.

She is also an expert in helping actors cultivate and protect their passion, vulnerability and uniqueness during the often misunderstood, stress-inducing audition process.

Prior to training as a teacher with the renowned William Esper, Deb spent years in the New York talent agency world, representing actors at agencies including Don Buchwald and Associates, Ambrosio/Mortimer and Associates, and A3 (formerly known as Abrams) Artists. These experiences afforded her a strong knowledge of the business of acting and a unique perspective to bring to her teaching.

Deb loves guiding young artists at the beginning of their training, as they are discovering their authentic truth and artistic voice, as well as in the final stages in which they synthesize their learning as they prepare to enter the industry.