ACTING COACH: Heidi’s career has spanned over 20+ years and includes time as the lead Casting Director at Telsey + Co. for the Broadway musical RENT, as well as casting for 70+ projects in theater, film, television, commercial, and voiceover. Most recently, she coached and prepped Halle Bailey for her audition and screen test for Disney’s upcoming live-action The Little Mermaid.
Read more about my journey below, and check out some press & media.
For director bio, click here.
After studying at Carnegie Mellon University and Pittsburgh Filmmakers, Heidi initiated and received the first directing internship at Humana Play Festival at Actors Theater of Louisville. Here, she directed Balm in Gilead and assisted John Jory, Anne Bogart, Tina Landau, and Lisa Peterson.
Heidi then completed a fellowship through The Drama League and headed to New York City, where she began working as an assistant for Bernie Telsey’s casting office. It was an “accidental” stopover in her 20s that led to a career launch: her first casting project was RENT. In the midst of RENT’s explosion into mega-hit status, Heidi became the show’s lead Casting Director—for seven years, she found and developed talent for its Broadway casts and national/international tours. Heidi also served as Casting Director for Baz Luhrmann’s La Bohème on Broadway for which the rotating cast all won a TONY Award for Excellence in Theater.
Baz’s artist mentorship led to a shift away from casting; Heidi was then hired as Resident Director on La Bohème, which had a critically acclaimed Broadway run. She later directed La Bohème for Baz at the Ahmanson Theater in LA.
Her work as a director continued when she was selected for the prestigious American Film Institute’s Directing Workshop for Women.
She returned to Broadway as an acting coach for The Color Purple and worked with Fantasia, Chaka Khan, and Bebe Winans. She also served as an Associate Director for The Adamms Family musical from development through opening night.
Today, Heidi’s directing experience spans film, television, documentary, theatrical events, regional theater, off-Broadway, and Broadway.
Her film Muscle has won 7 awards and has played at over 30 festivals worldwide, including Oscar-qualifying fests. She continues to work as a director, independent filmmaker, and acting coach and teacher.
Heidi actively champions inclusivity in front of and behind the camera. Over 4,000 actors have been taught and coached through her private studio in the past 20 years. She purposefully surrounds herself with passionate actors, collaborative filmmakers, theater lovers, and driven artists who care about Community.
“When I have breakdowns, I often send them to theater actor friends to send to actors who don’t have agents who I should know about. I reach out to theater schools, to alumni. Heidi Marshall, who’s an acting coach in New York City, was actually a casting scout for the original cast of ‘Rent’—she has a real special eye and she’s someone I reach out to often.”
—Carmen Cuba in “‘Stranger Things’ CD Carmen Cuba Is Always Searching for New Faces—Here’s Where“
Johnny and I were invited to speak at the SAG Foundation about actors producing their own work.
I was invited back to speak at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation about actors processing and handling rejection.
In Episode 7: “Heidi Marshall,” I chat in depth about casting RENT, Jonathan Larson, what inspired me to start my coaching career, filmmaking, and more.
In Episode #20: “RENT Audition Throwback (and new tips!),” I talk behind-the-scenes casting tips.
In Episode 90: “Sixteen Candles,” I discuss the iconic film Sixteen Candles.
I share my best practices for working with actors, including live scene work with two actors, followed by a Q&A.
“When Heidi Marshall, a filmmaker, director, acting coach, and former casting director, is in the process of casting a project, she heads to Google first. She wants to see auditioners’ social media profiles and if they’ve done any on-camera interviews. There are so many more avenues for actors to show their personality today, Marshall says, providing a sense of control they never had before…”