Shoshana Kuttner has traveled a long way — both emotionally and physically — to get to Malibu, where she’s led the Young Actors Project (YAP) for nearly a decade.
In the last 13 years, she’s gone from a once-aspiring New York City actress to executive director of YAP, where she helps children heal and connect through the art of theater.
“I was working in the financial district in New York City when 9/11 happened,” said Kuttner. “It completely changed the trajectory of my career when non-essential employees were told not to go to work after the wake of the attacks.”
Kuttner, who worked as an investment banking recruiter to pay the bills, said many children needed help at the time, so she left her financial career and began offering drama therapy to students in New York City schools in the aftermath of 9/11.
Drama therapy, a recognized psychological intervention for children who suffer from stress, sadness, grief or need a self-esteem boost, provides a new dimension and medium for children to express their feelings in a more personal way.
“Theater helps kids to grow in self expression and develop an appreciation of their true selves,” said Kuttner.
After moving to California three years later, she met actor and producer Tom Todoroff, who became her acting coach. Later, he approached Kuttner about working with him full-time on an acting project in Malibu. Todoroff was interested in starting an acting school for children.
Kuttner made her way to Malibu and together they launched the Malibu Actors Studio, which was supported by local producers Roma Downey and Mark Burnett. She worked a few years at the studio as the executive director, but decided that she wanted to work with the kids in the studio full-time. She then ventured out on her own, founding the YAP with the aim focused on kids finding their true passion, not just finding fame.
“Many kids are exposed to a ‘fame’-based culture, so to counter the negative effects, we steer them away from the pursuit of fame and gear them to the pursuit of passion,” said Kuttner.
Geoffrey Ortiz, former chairman of the board for the Malibu Stage Company, watched Kuttner build her program from the ground up 10 years ago. He believes she does a tremendous service not only for our kids, but for the entire community.
“It is not just about acting classes, per se, but about the way she has the special ability to connect with children on another level,” said Ortiz.
Kuttner said she created the program she wanted to have as a child, but didn’t have access to because her family could not afford performing art classes. She was in need of healing from traumatic issues stemming from her own childhood, but wasn’t able to pursue acting or find healing until she started college. She believes her program produces a lifelong purpose and it can lead children into making positive life choices through the development of their own authentic true voice, where kids have the opportunity to act and participate in theater, improv and film school.
“We saw the kids filming their own movies, so we hired a professional filmmaker to work with the children so they could learn how to write, direct, and act a film,” said Kuttner.
Class sizes range from 25 to 40 students and she just wrapped up a successful summer film program, with a new fall schedule beginning this week.
“I want YAP to be a sustainable institution that keeps affecting change and keeps growing,” said Kuttner. “We have grown here in Malibu because of the community.”
At the YAP, she’s helped create a place for everyone. Kuttner has worked with many young actors who have various developmental problems, anxiety disorders and physical disorders. One young actress had an anxiety disorder, so they simply tweaked the script for her.
“We adapted the script in advance in case the actor decided she didn’t want to talk so we could allow her to be exactly where she wanted to be at the time,” Kuttner said.
“When it was over, her symptoms of anxiety decreased and she felt proud she was able to perform with her peers,” she added.
For more on YAP, visit youngactorsproject.com.
