As many students began their Spring Break trips March 5, Adolf Shapiro, the world-renowned Russian theater director, was finishing his trip to NIU.

Alexander Gelman, director of the NIU School of Theatre and Dance is a respected director, master teacher and brilliant artist. Shapiro said.

Shapiro spent the previous two weeks addressing students, observing classes and interacting with students at NIU. Shapiro’s visit is a part of a program that allows theater students to study at the Moscow Art Theater.

Gelman said Shapiro’s teaching is based on the work of Stanislovsky whose ideas created the basis for most of the systems of teaching actors in the Western world.

“When our students study at the Moscow Art Theater, it is like going back to the source,” Gelman said.

Shapiro’s visit was a chance to give students more preparation for the trip and to receive a more detailed introduction to their work, Gelman said. He also said it gave Shapiro the chance to get to know and understand his American students.

Rachel Miller, a theater graduate student, said Shapiro gives off an air of confidence that draws his students in and makes them especially interested in what he has to teach. Miller said she was impressed with Shapiro’s ability to cross cultural and language barriers to instruct students in a very personal way.

“I get the sense when I work with Adolf that he does not care about what your character thinks or what your character is feeling at any particular moment,” Miller said. “It is really about what they are doing, their actions.”

Miller said Shapiro’s teaching has affected how she perceives acting and the theater as a means of communication among people. Miller also said Shapiro has provided her with a sense of history and an understanding of the foundation of the art of theater.

Gelman said learning Stanislovsky’s teaching through Shapiro at the Moscow Art Theater allows his students to reconnect to their artistic lineage and heritage. Gelman said he believes it is tremendously important for his students to reconnect to that lineage.

“When I work with Adolf, I feel like an artist and not just an actor,” Miller said. “An actor is the tool of the stage, but an artist is someone who creates something lasting and meaningful.”

Gelman said the only two American institutions that Shapiro works with are Harvard University and NIU. Gelman said NIU’s partnership with the Moscow Art Theater is an indication of the quality of work done by the NIU School of Theater and Dance.