Born and raised in Harlem NY, as a visual arts prodigy he won scholarships to Pratt and Columbia while still in elementary school. At the age of 12 he won the prestigious "A Better Chance" Scholarship to boarding school and study to the Ph.D. level at Dartmouth College.
Providence had other plans, and he grew up in the city active in theater as actor, director, and playwright. Called to teaching at an early age, first as Sargent Major for the Haryou Act Cadet Corp and then as a martial arts instructor, he went on to study Method acting at many studios in New York, eventually serving as lead acting teacher at the New Federal Theater and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy.
Talented as a triple threat artist, he won dance scholarships to The Ailey School and Fred Benjamin Dance Center and vocal scholarships with Edward Albano and Walter Turnbull of Boys Choir of Harlem. It was Mr. Benjamin who introduced him to Prima Ballerina Madame Darvash who coached him on scholarship privately. Even with his vast physical gifts as both martial artist and dancer, after several years training he realized dance was not his calling, and moved on to other movement disciplines like yoga and tai'chi.
Disenchanted with the roles being offered black actors, and mindful of a consistent call to service, Kenshaka combined his various skills to become an interdisciplinary director and arts activist, serving as producing artistic director for youth theater companies in New York, Pennsylvania and California, where he brought traditional as well as devised theater to under-served audiences and alternative venues including hospices, halfway houses, hospitals, and prisons. Surviving life in the inner city brought him to meditation and spiritual practices, and he recognized the arts as one of the most powerful healing modalities.
In his lifelong devotion to this calling, Kenshaka earned an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts, where he focused on fully integrating the spiritual and creative aspects of the performing arts, an MA in Theater Directing with emphasis on dramaturgy, textual construction and applied theater, and a BA in Transformative Theater from City University's Special Baccalaureate Program for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies. A devoted lifelong learner, he is a recent graduate of the Professional Practitioner Program at Agape University of Transformational Studies and Leadership and is now an Agape Licensed Spiritual Practitioner. In this capacity, Kenshaka is prepared to coach actors through the ups and downs of the industry, and to help others feel better about Life.
Providence had other plans, and he grew up in the city active in theater as actor, director, and playwright. Called to teaching at an early age, first as Sargent Major for the Haryou Act Cadet Corp and then as a martial arts instructor, he went on to study Method acting at many studios in New York, eventually serving as lead acting teacher at the New Federal Theater and the American Musical and Dramatic Academy.
Talented as a triple threat artist, he won dance scholarships to The Ailey School and Fred Benjamin Dance Center and vocal scholarships with Edward Albano and Walter Turnbull of Boys Choir of Harlem. It was Mr. Benjamin who introduced him to Prima Ballerina Madame Darvash who coached him on scholarship privately. Even with his vast physical gifts as both martial artist and dancer, after several years training he realized dance was not his calling, and moved on to other movement disciplines like yoga and tai'chi.
Disenchanted with the roles being offered black actors, and mindful of a consistent call to service, Kenshaka combined his various skills to become an interdisciplinary director and arts activist, serving as producing artistic director for youth theater companies in New York, Pennsylvania and California, where he brought traditional as well as devised theater to under-served audiences and alternative venues including hospices, halfway houses, hospitals, and prisons. Surviving life in the inner city brought him to meditation and spiritual practices, and he recognized the arts as one of the most powerful healing modalities.
In his lifelong devotion to this calling, Kenshaka earned an MFA in Interdisciplinary Arts, where he focused on fully integrating the spiritual and creative aspects of the performing arts, an MA in Theater Directing with emphasis on dramaturgy, textual construction and applied theater, and a BA in Transformative Theater from City University's Special Baccalaureate Program for Unique and Interdisciplinary Studies. A devoted lifelong learner, he is a recent graduate of the Professional Practitioner Program at Agape University of Transformational Studies and Leadership and is now an Agape Licensed Spiritual Practitioner. In this capacity, Kenshaka is prepared to coach actors through the ups and downs of the industry, and to help others feel better about Life.
