Coaching Client Responses
“What I like most about working with David Diamond is that he has an organized process for first helping me to know my own mind and heart, and then partnering with me in formulating strategies for my career advancement. David is seasoned, mature and quite knowledgeable. His insights, guidance and suggestions were competent, welcomed and quite useful. Pursuing dreams can be a lonely road. Working with David Diamond, I had excellent company.”
- Benny Sato Ambush
“Thank you for all of your calm, great listening and for helping to propel me further! I hope to see you soon and work with you again soon!!”
- Caitlin Barton
“With David’s insightful, humorous and thought-provoking coaching, I was able to gain valuable insight into what I want to do and how to go about it. And I made wonderful contacts and friends in the group.”
- Ann Duddy
“Prior to working with David my efforts at being an actor were haphazard. I did not fully believe in my ability or in my dream’s possibility. When David became my career coach the structure of my thoughts began to change, then my actions followed suit. My acting career had been traveling on square wheels, and together he and I chiseled, filed, and sanded them down to round. (Presently we are spinning gossamer for a pair of wings.) He has helped me uncover the truth about what I want and what I need to do to get it, and he has helped me believe that I am capable and my dream viable.”
- Wendi Black
“David Diamond has supportively and skillfully invited my courage to stand behind my work and offered concrete steps to put that courage into action. I am deeply appreciative.”
- H M M Playwright/Director
“David has helped me to consider and verbalize what it is I most want to achieve for my career and life. He is able to challenge my thought process and push me into action while being sincere and extremely supportive.”
- Anonymous
“I want to say thank you so much for the wonderful inspiration and direction you’ve offered – so many incredible things have been materializing lately, and a lot has to with the focus and direction you’ve given me. It has been so helpful to write down my goals and get excited about things and the new perspectives you have given me.”
- Jennifer Garam
“I find myself looking forward to my talks with David. I get a lot off my chest, and he listens patiently, then cuts through it all, putting everything in perspective, reminding me of the big picture, and offering clear, sensible, practical, encouraging advice.”
- Rob Urbinati, Playwright/Director
“Thanks for being so understanding and your kind words. I can’t tell you how much you have helped me over the past 2 years and I will always be grateful. If you ever need me to be a referral, I will definitely say great things You are a great person…”
- Sharon Fischman
“Our work together has an important place in what I’ve done and how I feel about it. Thank you so much for everything you’ve given me this year.”
- Anonymous Director
“The two major papers in Baltimore reviewed my first show on opening night, and both were pretty good. Opening night was a dream come true: family, friends, playwrights, directors, designers all gathered together to watch the piece and then we had a big opening night party afterwards with a jazz band in the lobby. People raved about the show and said that I had raised the bar of theatre in Baltimore. The chair of the Baltimore Playwrights Festival en offered me his job and to direct his next play!
All this to say…THANK YOU. Thanks for the encouragement, the push, the affirmation of my decision to take a risk and leave NY. Thanks for helping me to think “out of the box” and to look at the many options I have as a Theatre Maker, rather than solely as an actor. Directing was a blast, a wonderful challenge and discovery.”
- Jenny
Faculty Responses to the Workshops
“My students at Columbia thought the Workshop was great. They want more, more, more!”
- Anne Bogart, Head of Directing Program, Columbia University, NYC
“I can’t tell you how helpful it was to have you come do your directing for your directing career workshop. Our graduating MFA students and especially alumni found your sessions to be invaluable. Again and again they talked about how the prospect of making a career is daunting. Your simple and achievable steps took the mystery out of it. More importantly, I think you offer a way to change perspectives on the whole idea of what success means. This is the most valuable lesson of the workshop. As an artist you are in charge of what success means, not other people. I think going out into the professional world there is no greater lesson.”
- Damon Kiely, Assistant Professor of Directing and Acting, The Theatre School at DePaul University
“David Diamond’s workshop for student directors entering the profession is invaluable. The presentation is beautifully organized, thorough and appropriate.”
- Gregory Lehane, Head, Directing, Carnegie Mellon University
“Your workshop was an invaluable experience for students and faculty alike.”
- Susan Shaughnessy, Head of Performance Area, Univ. of Oklahoma
“We all found it informative, thorough and engaging. The students were overwhelmingly positive about the experience.”
- Michael Bloom, Program Coordinator for Directing, University of Texas at Austin
“Your life is a work of art, and I feel so fortunate that my life has finally intersected yours at the most necessary time. Thank you thank you for the nurturing and challenging that you do, in the gentlest and most generous manner.”
- Mei Ann Teo
“I wanted to recommend David Diamond’s Career Coaching workshop with the greatest enthusiasm. I head the MFA Playwriting Program at UC-San Diego. I invited David to our campus to run a workshop with the graduate playwrights as well as the graduate directors and choreographers. It was enormously successful. The workshop was geared towards how to build a life as a free-lance theatre artist, how to clarify one’s goals a, and how to take action to achieve those goals The MFA students were inspired by David. David also gave them a number of very helpful strategies for navigating their post-grad school lives. The students loved the workshop. I hope to bring David back in the future. I know the MFA students gained a great deal from his generous, informative, and inspiring workshop.”
- Naomi Iizuka, Professor of Theatre and Dance, Area Head of Playwriting, University of California, San Diego
“We welcome your return and thank you so much for coming to Yale School of Drama as a guest artist of Liz Diamond’s 3rd Year Directing class on Monday, April 28, 2008. The feedback has been wonderful and we all look forward to your next visit to Yale.”
- Kathleen Driscoll
“On behalf of the Board of Directors of the Coalition, I would like to thank you for conducting such a wonderful Career/Life Coaching seminar on November 16th. You facilitated a great interaction with our members and I know they got a lot of good information from your presentation. I hope you see some new clients as a result!”
- Melanie Sutherland, Co-President, The New York Coalition of Professional Women in Arts and Media
Student Responses
“The information was practical, realistic and comprehensive.”
“His presentation of the data was systematic and thorough.”
“He was amiable, considerate, honest and thoroughly knowledgeable.”
“Great! It should be much longer.”
“Very useful.”
“This workshop was a watershed experience for us. You have clearly defined areas in a directing career that we can use to improve our careers.”
“Your honesty and wealth of information was invaluable.”
“It will be something I will draw upon for years to come.”
“Total delight.”
“Excellent.”
“David Diamond’s workshop was not only enlightening and informative, it gave my students very practical information they could apply directly to making a living in the challenging world of professional theatre. The tools he helps students develop are both easy to use and empowering as they allow students to feel confident in tackling all the complicated aspects of the theatre world. Many students who have entered the profession still tell me about how David’s workshop prepared them. David’s workshop is a must for any serious theatre training program.”
- Cathy Hartenstein, University of Colorado at Boulder