Esper has worked extensively Off-Broadway and regionally. He is a member of Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. He was profiled in the book "The New Generation of Acting Teachers", published by Viking Press in 1987. He is a past member of the National Board of the National Association of Schools of Theatre and a former Vice-President and Board Member of the University/Resident Theatre Association. He has lectured on acting at People′s Light and Theatre Company and the Screen Actors Guild Conservatory, New York City; SAG honored him with a Certificate of Achievement for his service to the profession. In 2011 Esper received the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE)'s Lifetime Achievement in Academic Theatre Award. In 2013 he was inducted into the College of Fellows of the American Theatre.