Over the course of five months I had the amazing opportunity to play inmate Crystal Tawney on the new season of Orange Is The New Black. It's currently streaming on Netflix. Check out some stills from the show or watch my scenes here.
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Many of you know that in addition to being a professional actor, I'm also an acting coach who specializes in coaching children and young adults. I coached a great group of students for their performing arts high school auditions this year and I'm so very proud of all of them. We've had great wins and I'm amazed at how far we've come, and at their continued commitment and bravery. Because the audition process is just coming to an end this month, and we won't know who is accepted until next year, I can only share our callback statistics, which are FANTASTIC. This year so far eight of my students have received callbacks at their LaGuardia Drama auditions!! Of the students that auditioned for Professional Performing Arts School (PPAS), four of them were called back for the Drama program there!! Many of my students watched my informational videos before beginning our coaching sessions together and found them to be very helpful, so I'm posting them here. I share some important information in them about how to begin the preparation process for these performing arts school auditions. I recommend checking them out. Looking forward to finding out who is accepted when Spring rolls around! Season One Trailer:This month I had one of the greatest experiences of my career performing STREEPSHOW! Episodes 1-4 at The Connelly Theater with an insanely talented group of artists. The entire experience, starting with our first workshop of Episode 1 three years ago at Ars Nova, has been nothing short of exhilarating and full of so many laughs I thought my belly would burst. I'm so proud of my fellow Streeps and honored to have shared the stage with them. I'm in awe of playwright Jay Stull's genius, and director Andrew Neisler's endless creativity. Our entire design team was fantastic, as well as our stage manager, Kristy Bodall, and our crew. Basically, this was the hardest show I've ever had to say goodbye to. Here are some fun photos and videos (and the official Streepshow! Buzzfeed Quiz) from both the month long run this June, as well as the various workshops we've done over the past 3 years leading up to this production. Hopefully this is just the beginning. Love to all my Streeps. STREEPSHOW! EPISODES 1-4Featuring: Preston Martin, Claire Rothrock, Kristine Haruna Lee, Chris Tyler, Dana Berger, Joe Castle Baker, Todd Dakotah Briscoe, Sam Bolen, Emily Marro, Benjamin Pelteson, Andrew Farmer, Storm Thomas, and Jessica Frey The StreepBand: Nicholas C. Williams Sam Lazzara Written by Jay Stull Directed by Andrew Neisler Costume, Hair, Wig, and Make-Up Design by Daniel Dabdoub Scenic and Prop Design by Noah Mease Lighting Design by Kate McGee Sound Design by Ben Gullard and Jay Owen Eisenberg Video Design by Stivo Arnoczy and David Tennent Choreography by Ben Hobbs Stage Management by Kristy Bodall Assistant Directed by JB Douglas The cast sings Happy Birthday to Meryl Streep at curtain call on her actual birthday (June 22nd):Take The Official Streepshow! Buzzfeed Quiz Here This month I played Courtney Coleman, the confused bride, in Lewis Black's play One Slight Hitch at the Human Race Theatre Company. It's set in the 1980s and I had a blast with this incredibly talented and hilarious cast.  From left: Rita Rehn, Me, Alex Sunderhaus and Cecily Dowd. Photo by Scott J. Kimmins. Lewis sent us bouquets and champagne on Opening Night, and came to the show on April 20th!  From left: Brian Dykstra, Alex Sunderhaus, Alex Curtis, Lewis Black, Kyle Nunn, Me, Rita Rehn and Cecily Dowd. The audiences were fantastic and we got some awesome reviews. "Dana Berger is the bride, Courtney, more than a brainless babe... Courtney, like the mom, rides an emotional roller coaster. She has a fine grip on the ups and downs and takes possession of the stage. It’s a further display of this talent-laden cast." - Dayton City Paper "There's terrific chemistry among the seven-member cast" - Dayton Daily News "[Margarett] Perry’s energetic cast doesn’t contain any weak links... The hilariously fussy Berger gives credence to Courtney’s frustrating dilemma." - Most Metro And here are some fun backstage photos and shots from our time in dayton:CLUBBED THUMB:I performed in a workshop of Jenny Schwartz's play As Far As The Day Goes, directed by Jay Stull, as part of Clubbed Thumb's Directing Fellowship Program. My awesome cast mates were Sam Breslin Wright, Ella Dershowitz, Ean Sheehy and Keaton Tetlow.
FRENCH KISS:I guest star as Tatiana, Russian "side-bitch", in Cannibal Milkshake Comedy's new web series FRENCH KISS, which was an Official Selection of the 2015 NYC Web Fest. Watch my episode here.   I'm currently performing in the Dorset Theatre Festival's production of Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Jersey Lily by Katie Forgette, directed by Margarett Perry. We've been getting great reviews and audiences have loved the show. "What makes this all work is Dorset's taut and sophisticated production that takes you to late-19th century London and doesn't let you alone for a moment. You simply remain on edge - when you're not laughing." - Times Argus "Berger! Doubling up as Holmes' housekeeper Mrs. McGlynn, she came across as a spitfire, a smoldering Cockney wench cloaked by the niceties of society in which Mrs. Tory had to operate. We could swear she actually hissed at times - nicely done!" - The Manchester Journal "Still, one of the two funniest portrayals was by Christopher Edwards, who managed to take Dr. John Watson's earnestness to new heights. The other was Dana Berger who beautifully mixed physical humor and droll wit as the evil forger/actress Kitty Dupree. They were ridiculously funny." - Times Argus Check Out These Fun Backstage Photos and Scenic shots From Around Dorset, VT:
From top left: Peter Scolari, Sam Seder, Jeff McCarthy, Dana Berger, Bryan Fenkart, Ben Platt, Donna English, Aaron Grant, Anthony Rapp, Robin De Jesus, Kasie Gasparini, Ben Andron, Christy Romano, Sara Friedman.
Elementary: Season 2, Episode 19
Seminar @ The Kitchen Theatre
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