BriteLites Studio: Michael Costello
Michael has over 30 years experience in theatre, film and TV as an actor, director, teacher and writer. He has an MFA Degree in directing from Southern Methodist University and a BFA Degree in acting from Virginia Commonwealth University. For two and a half years, Michael was on the faculty of Florida State University’s School of Theatre. He taught graduate acting classes at the FSU/Asolo Conservatory for Actor Training and at the FSU graduate Film Conservatory. In addition, he has taught at The University of Texas at Austin, Virginia Commonwealth University and St. Edwards University.
Michael was a regular on the NBC series seaQuest, playing Secretary General McGath for two seasons, and was one of the stars of the PBS series The Real Adventures of Sherlock Jones and Proctor Watson. He has also been seen in several episodes of Walker, Texas Ranger (CBS) and Dallas, and in episodes of Second Noah (ABC), Pointman (UPN), Fortune Hunter (FOX), and Buck James (ABC). Other television credits include the television movies To Live, Again, A Woman Named Jackie, and Ironclads. In films, Michael played roles in D.O.A., Heartbreak Hotel, Toy Soldiers, and was Juliet Lewis' father in One Hot Summer. On stage, Michael has had a distinguished career as an actor, performing in a variety of works from Shakespeare to Beckett, from Simon to Wilde.
Michael is an award winning stage director whose recent productions include A Day in Hollywood/A Night in the Ukraine, Dancing at Lugnasa, The Cherry Orchard, and Twelfth Night.
Michael has written the screenplay for Phoenix Rising, which is now in pre-production, and is currently completing a book based on The Physical Actor training (a unique approach to actor training which he developed and teaches at studios around the country), under the title The Actor: Body & Mind.
Michael's extensive experience as an actor, from New York experimental theatre to dinner theatres, from major motion pictures to race tracks, from corporate industrials to network TV, has prepared him to teach students with a broad range of interests and needs, and to guide them according to their talents.
"...I discover a new level each time I take Michael's class..."
- Marianna Kretschmar