New York's acting studios face a shrinking role

New York

IN the late 1950s, Robert Duvall was studying acting at the Neighborhood Playhouse, sharing a Manhattan apartment with Dustin Hoffman and going to parties at Gene Hackman's place.

The three friends would all go on to win Academy Awards, helping to establish the classic blueprint for pursuing an acting career in New York: move here, hone your craft at a gritty acting studio, do a handful of plays, conquer Hollywood.

Things have changed since the heyday of theatre-trained movie stars and the independent acting schools that shaped them. Many small studios, threatened by rising rents, decrepit buildings, well-funded university programmes, and instant Internet stardom, are struggling.

Just ask Mary Boyer, who moved to the city from the Midwest in 1973 to pursue an acting career. She eventually became a teacher and a director, opening her own school in 2003. But by 2008, Boyer's 150 students had dwindled to abo…