Welcome to the Jim Bonney Acting Studio website, devoted to the growth of creative artists by training actors in the MeisnerPlus® technique, a combination of traditional Meisner approach plus body and emotional work.

Best Acting Coach and Professional Mentor "Jim Bonney is an outstanding Coach in the Entertainment Industry and someone I can count on to always deliver a deeper understanding of the material being worked on and my contribution to it. I highly recommend Jim's expertise in acting and personal / professional coaching." ~ Actor, Tim Howar On Broadway in "Rent", internationally starring in Les Miserables, On The Town, Miss Saigon, Joseph & The Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat, and Tommy Best Acting Teacher, Career Builder, and Life Coach "Jim Bonney is the best acting teacher I’ve studied with, or even heard of.  With over 25 years of experience as a Meisner expert and a master at teaching emotional preparation, Jim has helped me reach levels I’ve never experienced. His class is unmatched in script and character analysis and each student has the freedom to perform their own work. Jim also encourages individual sessions giving students the opportunity to work on the craft and to discuss and approach the business. Since I’ve been working with Jim I’ve booked 10 episodes as a recurring role on One Life To Live, 2 featured roles on Are We There Yet?, 3 national commercials: Subway Restaurants, Duracell Batteries, Cheerios (now airing), booked leads in several independent films and signed with one of the top 5 commercial agents in the country! All that is only the beginning. I cannot express how much Jim has helped me.  I am so grateful to have found him!" ~ Actor, Theis Weckesser

The concept for the MeisnerPlus® technique was created out of necessity by working with all levels of actors, from beginners to professionals. The need was discovered concerning the Meisner technique and other famous acting training methods when consistently actors tried to hit an emotional note, or a moment in their scenes, yet struggled because their instruments (voice, body & emotions) could not fulfill that emotional note.

It seemed that no matter how clear and clever the technique, the actor was always limited in their capacity to express feelings, like a singer trying to hit a high note without the capacity or freedom to do so. The actor's instrument had to be open and fully emotionalized. The MeisnerPlus® techniques can increase these skills.

Buy Our Emotional Prep Training CD! Jim Bonney's Emotional Preparations for the Actor: How to Get Into the Emotional Life of a Scene By Jim Bonney Now available at: The Drama Book Shop Inc. Click here for more info!

The tradition of the Jim Bonney Acting Studio is to develop the emotional life of the actor as well as teaching the tools of the trade. Jim Bonney has discovered and created unique exercises to take the actor step by step to be fully expressive by removing blocks and mannerisms, helping to relieve jamming and anxiety, improving the actor's own judgment, and uncovering fears about the actor's feelings.

All levels of actors have benefited from this work, from Broadway, film, soaps, and stage actors to beginners. This unique method, married to the traditional Meisner technique, creates a powerful, emotionally full actor.

If you'd like to put the excitement back in your acting, contact us by email at or give us a call today at 917-721-7278. The answer to your acting is in your passion and soul. Unleash your power, creativity, and artistry.