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THE MEISNER
INSTITUTE
founded 1997
Scott Trost
Executive Director
I am honored by Jimmy Carville to be asked to run the Meisner Institute. In his 60 years of teaching, Sandy Meisner invited 20 of his students to learn how to teach his approach. I was fortunate to apprentice as a teacher under one of these 20 teachers. The Meisner Institute's goals are to provide each student with a solid foundation of acting skills, to train the next generation of Meisner teachers, and, as Meisner did for 60 years, to find the best way to teach each unique actor. - Scott Trost
Cindy Rucker Trost
Creative Director
Cindy is a producer, director, actor and Meisner acting teacher with over 25 years of experience in Radio, Television, Film and Live Events. She is a published poet and a staunch advocate for safe & inclusive education programs.
Xenia Palmares (nee Cabrias)
Executive Assistant
Xenia is our Executive Assistant with a background in teaching psychology, research, and advocacy. With roots in theater and dance, she blends structure with creativity, guided by a commitment to authenticity, presence, and human connection. We are very happy to announce that she just recently married Rey Palmares (see below)
Rey Palmares
Marketing & LMS Manager
Rey is our marketing manager and our LMS manager and he just got married to Xenia. So he is a very talented, very lucky, and very busy man. He brings a wealth of experience and a generous heart to the Institute.
Wolfgang Bodison
Managing Director, Meisner Institute LA
Wolfgang is one of the premier Meisner teachers, having taught for over 20 years in Los Angeles. He is also an award-winning actor, writer & director, best known for his breakout role as Harold Dawson, starring alongside Tom Cruise and Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men. Wolfgang worked as the personal assistant to Oscar-nominated director, Rob Reiner. Wolfgang runs his own acting program, TesserAct Studio, in North Hollywood.
Endorsed By
The Meisner Estate
Jimmy Carville
A Note from Meisner's Long-time Partner "Sandy would be pleased to see his legacy carried on by the Meisner Institute which I founded in 1997 after his passing. As executor of the Sanford Meisner Estate, I fully support and endorse the Institute's efforts." James Carville
