A founding teacher of the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute, Mr. Kovens is now the director of The Professional Workshop. As an actor he has appeared in Three Sisters (directed by Lee Strasberg), Passions on Broadway, Waiting For Godot and Galileo directed by Andre Gregory. He starred in Monsters and Law & Order on TV and appeared in Police Academy and The Gambler.

What makes an acting teach necessary for young as well as experienced actors?
To paraphrase Parimo Levi: "while you may not like being judged and one must be cautious in accepting judgements, you have to nevertheless accept at least one. Living without it, you renounce a certain insight. It's like piloting a boat without a compass. Today practically anyone sets themselves up as a teacher - casting directors, agents, ad agency execs .. They all seem to think they can teach, what they teach is opinion. One must be aware of their qualifications and who else they taught. I never heard anyone say: "I'll go to New York and study acting with an agent." Now when we talk about talent, we're not talking about voice and the body, these are tools and they can be trained. With talent, you're talking about the actor's ready accessibility to the emotions. the ability of logically carrying the needs and wants of a particular character in a situation and the ability to be private in public, especially in film - to dare to take time to think. Look at Brando in Last Tango In Paris or De Niro in Once Upon a Time.

So actors should continue to study
To stretch. To work on future roles. In England by a certain age you do your Hamlet, your Macbeth, your Lear. But American actors don't work enough on a consistent basis, not considering what they'll do in 10 years. Acting is an art and a craft. What you choose to achieve the desired results is what makes you an artist. As a teacher, I can guide but it's up to you to choose what color to use. Look at Olivier's choices or today, the interesting choices of Al Pacino, Johnny Depp and yes Brando.

You also feel very strongly about the use of microphones
They're the death of energy in the theatre. Actors are afraid to let loose, they'll blow the system. They also walk with a lower energy. The audience is also to blame, we expect to hear what we hear on a CD. We expect perfect performances today.

Do we have a responsibility to provide our audience with a wider view of our society in the theater?
Absolutely. Young people today go to the theater and see African-Americans dancing with spears, acting like lions, but they don't see the work of August Wilson, Athol Fugard, Handsberry, Lonne Elder III, or the new voices of new African-American writers. Half this city is of ethnic origin and we're eliminating half of our audience. We also have such a wealth of Latino, Asian, and Native American writers that aren't being heard.

Are actors taking enough chances today?
Well who is the young actor to emulate today? The one who plays it safe and gets good reviews and retreats from the theatre to Hollywood or the actor, like Hoffman or Pacino who take a chance and sometimes fall on their face. Lon Chaney, Sr. was one of my favorite actors; also Paul Numi, from one role to the next, their walk, the way they talked was different. John Barrymore was like an acrobat in Don Juan. Al Pacino's concept of Richard III took him years to work on, it's the most exciting Shakespearean process since Orson Wells.

Why did Lee Strasberg have such an impact upon you as a teacher?
Not only did he have the ability to deal with you as a human being but his vast knowledge could point you in a certain direction. In class, he'd mention books on psychology, music, art. I was a stand-up comic. Then began directing in college, but I took acting classes because as a director I didn't know how to help the actor get what we both wanted. Strasberg opened up a new world for me, making me aware of things I'd forgotten and details I didn't know existed. After my first scene, the things he said made me think: "how can this man see right through me?" The most revealing thing he ever said: "you're all getting up and expressing yourselves, but who gives a damn. If you want to express yourself, go home and build a chair. You're here to use yourself to express the author's feelings, through the character, nobody wrote a play about you." As Vakhtangov said: what adjustments do I need to do what the character does. Remember Stanislavski said "every part is a character part." I've learned now to be much more patient, with an understanding that not everyone has the same ability. My job is to discover what is individual about a person, quickly and fully, and develop it. My job is to help people get work. A teacher can guide you but your imagination takes off after you're trained. A total knowledge of your technique leads you to freedom, a full commitment to what you're doing.