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Lecturer Spotlight: Ben Samuel, Acting

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Did you hear? JMC Academy has just launched a brand new Bachelor & Diploma in Acting on our Melbourne Campus with intakes starting in January!

As part of the creation of this new course, JMC is engaging with industry experts to develop and teach content that produces entrepreneurial Actors, ready to launch a sustainable career in performance. Enter, Ben Samuel, actor, musician, educator and entrepreneur. Ben has a long-standing creative career and will be heading JMC’s Acting course in Melbourne.

Learn more about Ben

Ben Samuel's career in performing arts began in New Zealand. His passion for storytelling is demonstrated through his work across the disciplines of stage acting, music performance & dance. He completed his undergraduate studies in New Zealand in Music Performance (B.A - University of Canterbury) & Music Theatre (BPA - National Academy of Singing & Dramatic Arts). After relocating to Australia, Ben completed a Master of Music (Performance & Pedagogy) qualification at the University of Melbourne. His doctoral research is focused on exploring strategies for developing positive wellbeing practices amongst young performers, including an examination of creative burnout, emotional labour and the impacts of performance anxiety on the artist's creative process. 

He has taught at various schools and creative arts programs across Australia and is the Creative Director of Soundworks Music Studios, which offers instrumental training as well as workshops, artist development programs, musical theatre productions, and ensemble music programs to the community in North Melbourne.

Ben's musical theatre performance credits as a singer, actor and dancer include productions of Cats, Fiddler on the Roof, Oklahoma, Curtains, Carmen, The Color Purple, and Hair. His stage play credits include classics such as Caucasian Chalk Circle (Bertolt Brecht) and Pass it On (Renee). Ben has also contributed to the development of new works by Australian playwrights and the co-creation of cabaret performances and showcases in Melbourne, working alongside local arts organisations and various other theatre companies. He is an experienced Director, working with independent theatre companies across Melbourne to take musical works from script to stage (Cry Baby, All Shook Up, Seussical, Altar Boys, Disenchanted). He's particularly focused on projects which promote cultural diversity and equal representation in theatre; a current project is the production of 'In the Heights', the musical which acted as a social experiment of conscious casting within the music theatre industry. 

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Learn More About Ben

Ben Samuel
Head of Acting + Music Theatre (Melbourne), and Chair of Learning and Teaching Committee

Having recently moved from New Zealand, Ben has immersed himself in the performing arts industry in Melbourne. In New Zealand, Ben has performed in several musicals, concerts, cabarets & music festivals across the country. His performance credits include singing, acting & dancing in major stage productions such as Carmen, Cats, Fiddler on the Roof, Hair, Curtains, Coca-Cola CCITP & Nelson Opera in the Park.

Ben has also performed alongside many New Zealand artists, with production companies such as Showbiz, Canterbury Opera & Chant et Danse, and was involved extensively in the New Zealand Jazz & Arts festivals for many years. During his time in Melbourne, Ben has been building a career in singing & teaching whilst standing by the words of Stephen Sondheim “..if I cannot fly, let me sing.”
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Bachelor of Creative Arts (Acting)

Discover your passion for acting on screen and stage with JMC's Bachelor of Creative Arts (Acting) program. Build the skills & confidence you need. Learn more.

Diploma of Creative Arts (Acting)

This course equips students with underpinning skills and knowledge to apply the foundation acting principles to a performance, to develop creative and collaborative performance concepts and provides the necessary educational and academic framework to enable further study.

How to Apply

Do you have dreams of designing the next most popular game or performing in front of thousands? If so then come and apply at JMC Academy.

Melbourne Campus

JMC Academy’s Melbourne Campus is situated in South Melbourne between the south bank of the Yarra River and Port Phillip Bay. South Melbourne originated at the elevated area first known as Emerald Hill, two kilometres south of Melbourne CBD.