“I really like to look into the physical acting characteristics of my character, because it helps me to transform. The Alexander Technique helps me to burrow into roles like gay cowboys and drug addicts by focusing on my posture, movement, and presence.”
– Health Ledger, Actor
– Peter Hermann, Actor
“The absolute best Alexander classes are given daily by my four-month old son. Jean-Louis and Kristof are a close second. They are not only expert in the theory and application of this incredible technique but pursue their work with a vibrant, contagious love. Their endeavor to help performers choose a new physical life that allows them to be more fully present–in essence, to use themselves differently–is profound, and has implications not only for life on the stage, but for life in general. Jean-Louis and Kristof create a beautiful work environment: safe, rigorous, personal–and sprinkled with a healthy dose of humor. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with them. And they don’t spit up nearly as much as my son!”
– Pamela Gien, Playwright/Performer
“One of the greatest gifts to my work was when Larry Moss enlisted the assistance of Jean-Louis Rodrigue in our preparation for The Syringa Tree. Jean-Louis is a master of physical energy. He is an intuitive and gifted teacher who aligns the actor’s body with its own natural power through profound relaxation. He greatly enhanced my performance physically and vocally, giving me an innate understanding of the deep resource of energy within my own body. Spiritually he linked what I was working to accomplish, the creation of more than twenty characters in one body, to the vast scope of energy in the universe. He grounded me to the earth, and lifted my vision to a wider expanse. I use Jean-Louis’ teachings in my work, in performance every night, and as I go through my day, to keep my body and spirit calm and energized. I will continue to seek his wisdom in all my work.”
– Miguel Esteban, Co-Founder, Verbier Festival & Academy
“Jean-Louis’ awareness of how to apply the Alexander principles to any of the performing arts is something in my experience that few teachers possess. It must be rooted in his training as a performer, but this alone cannot explain why he is so successful at what he does. At the opera training workshop, I remember distinctly how he could help unleash a free and resplendent voice from the throat of a soprano who was doing everything to imprison it, and all this just by speaking to her and applying his hands at the right moment. Although the Alexander principles are seemingly straightforward, it takes a special individual to not only master them, but to fully inhabit them that the instructor’s personal vision and life experience raise them to a new level.”
– Larry Moss, Director
“One of the most important things an actor can posses is a relationship to their own body and breath. Jean-Louis Rodrigue works with actors in such a way that they immediately understand from deep within themselves their true impulses. Jean-Louis is more than a teacher, he is a spirit that enters the actor’s instrument and teaches them the truth of the character they are going to portray. His work is invaluable and I cannot imagine doing a project without him.”
– Esa-Pekka Salonen, Principal Conductor, Philharmonia Orchestra, London
“The Los Angeles Philharmonic has had the pleasure of collaborating with Jean-Louis Rodrigue, teaching the Alexander Technique within the framework of the Los Angeles Philharmonic Institute from 1983 to 1988. During the past eighteen years, his exceptional work has grown in demand and he has expanded the reach of his teaching to include programs at the UCLA Department of Music and the Verbier Festival and Academy. The results of his Alexander Technique lessons are often remarkable. The improvement in all aspects of playing including tone quality, rhythmic precision and musicality can be dramatic. Jean-Louis works tirelessly to improve the quality of the Alexander Technique programs, and he is committed to making it available to all artists, especially the young ones to prevent bad habits of playing and future injuries.”
– Emeran A. Mayer, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Physiology and Psychiatry, Executive Director, UCLA Center Neurobiology of Stress
“I got to know Jean-Louis in my role as Founding Chair of the UCLA Collaborative Centers for Integrative Medicine, and during the past few years became familiar with his therapeutic approach and his remarkable ability to teach the Alexander Technique to individual patients, as well as to demonstrate its principles in large class type settings. I am convinced that the Alexander Technique is uniquely suited to prevent strain injuries from prolonged, repeated movements, such as required by professional performers. In addition to optimizing posture and efficiency of bodily movements, the technique appears to have additional benefits in terms of giving individuals a sense of control of their body, and calming to their mind.”
– Kira Davis, Vice-President - Production, Alcon Entertainment
“Jean Louis Rodrigue is an incredible asset to any production. He zeros in on the role as well as the actor to work together in shaping the character in a very special way. We had the opportunity to hire Jean Louis on THE AFFAIR OF THE NECKLACE, where he worked with Hilary Swank and the other actors to bring all the attributes of that period in movement into the filming process. His knowledge, expertise and presence were not only beneficial to the actors, but to the production as well. We would welcome the opportunity to work with him again.”
“I started studying the Alexander Technique by way of a class at the Howard Fine School. Kristof Konrad and Jean-Louis Rodrigue were the teachers. I had always heard really good things about the technique, and was very curious what it was all about. I was looking for a way to improve my posture, flexibility, and overall responsiveness both on stage and in life. After one class I was hooked! I immediately saw the connection between physicality and emotional availability. More importantly, they took the technique a step further, and showed the direct application of the technique by having people do monologues or scenes. I then started studying privately with Kristof. Each week, I felt myself getting just a bit more open, a bit more connected to my body. I do a lot of plays, and Kristof and I would work on sections of the play together. For example in John Patrick Shanley’s BEGGARS IN THE HOUSE OF PLENTY, I had to portray a 5 year old, an 18 yr. old rebellious teenager, and a 40 yr. old man. Thanks to Kristof, I was able to capture the physicality and essence of each one of these persons, and do so convincingly. Furthermore, just by working on posture, I was so much more emotionally available night after night. I felt like a whole new actor! I cannot say enough good things about Kristof, both as a person and as a teacher. If you have an open mind and a desire to learn, he will bring out the very best in you.”
– Johnny Clark, Artistic Director, VS Theatre Company
– Martin T:son Engstroem, Artistic Director, Verbier Festival & Academy
“The number of musicians, singers and actors touched by the Alexander programme is astonishing as a total of 253 lessons were given by two instructors in 2003 within the short space of three weeks. Participants of the programme learn to improve the quality of their performances while reducing the amount of tension, stress and even damage that they are doing to their own bodies. As their physical pain decreases, their expressiveness and precision increases. With such obvious success the demand for F.M. Alexander Technique lessons has inevitably grown and was even made obligatory by the Theatre Workshop professor, Larry Moss, for his acting students last summer. Mr. Rodrigue works tirelessly to improve the quality of the Alexander Technique programme and is continuously available and open to discuss it’s philosophy and to give professional advice outside of the workshops. He is committed to his work which is evident in the sensitive approach he uses to help top talents alleviate the stresses of their careers.”
“It is hard to describe the impact Jean-Louis has had on my work, but it is profound. When I started studying with him I recognized the power of his gift as I experienced immediate results. He helped me harness my creativity and my ability to work with actors. He helped me learn to relax in order to do my best work, a crucial lesson for me as a director that I would soon put to practical use when I got my first network television break to direct FAMILY TIES. He inspired me and continues to do so to this day.”
– Lynn Hamrick, Film & TV Director
– Joanna Settle, Director
“In September 2005, I was remounting my production of Heather Raffo’s 9 PARTS OF DESIRE for the Geffen Playhouse. The actress/author was beginning to reach a serious problem level with the vocal challenges, as well as the mounting psychological pressure of her LA debut. Jean-Louis was referred to me by the staff at the theater, and he came in. Immediately the 3 of us were comfortable with one another. What I had assumed would be needing him for a few hours a week to warm up the actress became a much deeper collaboration, entirely due to Jean-Louis’ abilities and nature. He was quickly working on stage with her, helping her ground in the Alexander Technique and preparing her vocally for the task at hand. He stayed with the show through the entire performance schedule. Heather and I both found him to be a vital contributor to our work, and I very much look forward to working with him again. He is clearly a teacher and a collaborator of the highest caliber. I am eternally grateful to him for the success of our production in Los Angeles.”
– Elisa Bocanegra, Actor
“I came to the Alexander Technique because I wasn’t comfortable with my body onstage. I had just lost a great deal of weight and felt like my body wasn’t connected to my emotions as an actor. My teacher, Larry Moss, suggested that I contact Kristof Konrad and Jean Louis Rodrigue. In Alexander class, I started working on my body through singing songs. I started out as a professional singer and Kristof Konrad encouraged me to connect to my body through my music. It was an intensely freeing experience. Everytime I get cast in a role, I come to Kristof. I enter the lesson with a strong idea of what my character should move like and Kristof and I experiment with creating my character’s physical life, many times using animals. For my role in ELECTRICIDAD, my character was trying to change from being a tough girl to finding her inner-peace. She’s very misunderstood because of the way she looks and carries herself. Kristof and I built her physical life to be that of a dog, specifically a Boxer. Kristof Konrad is a kind, brilliant artist. I won’t enter the theatre without him!”
“Jean-Louis Rodrigue has been my Alexander teacher since 1991. The influence he has had on my life and my professional career has been immeasurable. I only have the highest praise for his skills as a teacher. After a serious back injury I needed to alter my position for playing the flute. Because of Jean-Louis’ help, I have been able to return to work, playing and practicing my flute many hours a day. It is because I have adapted a more improved way of holding my instrument and using my body while playing my flute. Jean-Louis has helped me to eliminate the unnecessary twisting and to have more symmetry in my body while I perform. I have improved the relationship of my head to my body which has had a direct result on the sound I produce on my instrument. He has helped me with breathing and having a better flow of air into the flute, i.e., not being hampered by poor position. This too has resulted in more clarity of phrasing. Besides being a first-class, fine teacher, he is one of the kindest and gentlest people I know.
– Susan Greenberg, Flutist, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra
– Jessica Wolf, Faculty, Yale School of Drama
“Jean-Louis has distinguished himself by working with more professional actors than anyone else in the profession. He is the only teacher who has consistently worked closely with actors on film sets. Jean-Louis has been exposed to many genres of theater, film and television. He has an extensive background as an actor, and is familiar with the techniques and skills that are required to create truly talented people. His teaching manner is confident and creative. His clarity of thought and skill of observation enable him to meet actor’s needs. He knows how to train their voices and their bodies for maximum expressiveness.”
“I am the first student with a disability to be trained in UCLA’s MFA acting program, and I feel very fortunate to have had Jean-Louis as an instructor. Jean-Louis has been instrumental in helping me re-connect with my body. Many disabled people experience a loss of connection with their bodies due to pain and societal influences to ignore such pain. Excess tension is created from trying to function in a way that limits pain, but actually ends up producing more discomfort and tension. Jean-Louis understands the compensating factors involved, and has completely transformed the way in which I use my body. His expertise in the Alexander field allows him to help me release the tense areas. I was in a fairly constant state of pain and discomfort that I was not even aware of before studying the Technique. Through his guidance, I was able to become aware of how I was mis-using my body, and subsequently change my habitual tension patterns. An actor who gets to work with Jean-Louis is a lucky one indeed.”
– Ann Stocking, Actor
“I was very enthusiastic about the value of the Alexander Technique and I made it possible for all members of the “Richard III” and “The King Lear” companies to have lessons whilst rehearsing.”
– Sir Ian McKellen, Actor
“I was having trouble with my singing. It was becoming difficult for me to maintain range and flexibility in my singing was waning. Kristof has been an excellent teacher! He is most patient and persevering in leading and teaching me the Alexander Technique. My lessons have given me tools to relax and thereby regain flexibility and the wide range I need in the type of singing that I do. The help that I have received from Kristof has been enormous. It is a joy to work with him, because he is pleasant, intelligent, interesting, knowledgeable, careful and exacting. He really cares if I understand and apply the technique correctly. I look forward to a session because I have learned that I will come away with new valuable techniques for my professional and personal life. Kristof is careful in his work. I know that through the application of the technique, as I have been taught by Kristof, I have regain the voice that I formerly had with wide range and great flexibility, and I am most grateful. He has not only helped me with my singing, but with walking, climbing stairs, general motion – all of which I had been allowing tension to inhibit my freedom. I would highly recommend the Alexander technique and Kristof’s teaching of the technique in particular to any one.“
– Joyce Sweeney, Opera Singer
“Using the Alexander Technique empowers me and gives me a balanced sense of tension rather than relying on creating tension to do something in order to produce a sound or an act that is preconceived. I realized that I cannot control a set of circumstances outside of myself so I can go on a journey relying on the state of mind and body that the Alexander Technique gives me.”
– Alan Rickman, Actor
“Playing a character as consistently and absurdly demanding as Salieri in “Amadeus”, I certainly used Alexander to great effect, because at times I simply had to wipe the slate clean and relax so then I could go into another hugely demanding emotional state. The Alexander Technique can help the actor release tension and move more freely in the character’s experience.”
– Brian Bedford, Actor
