The beauty of theatre is that it does more than entertain the audience; it also builds up character for the performers on stage. For Samuel Smith, a New York-based theatre teacher, the lessons that he grew up with not only helped him get through his studies, but he has been applying them himself.
Samuel Smith was born in The Magic City, Miami, Florida, to a house that was held together by his mother, who raised him and his sister all on their own. Growing up, he watched as his mother worked hard to keep everything okay at home. This prompted him to make a promise to become successful in the entertainment industry so he could give back to his mother and show her the other, better side of life.
When he entered college, he took undergraduate studies at Alabama State University. When Samuel Smith was an undergrad, his theater professor, Director Tommie Steward, taught her students more than just acting. She taught them how to do everything from acting and production to backstage work. While partly to build character, the university didn’t always have the funds to hire the help needed to fill positions in the show.
After graduating, Samuel Smith further improved his education when he took a Master’s degree in Theatre Arts at Brandeis University. After completing his studies, Samuel moved to the big apple New York City and started teaching Theatre Arts.
Having learned so much from his undergraduate days, he taught school children with an underlying thought of helping his students build their confidence and polish their communication school.
Samuel loved how he worked so much that he was prompted to create a company to teach with more freedom and control. He saw there was a need to be filled in the way of empowerment as he worked in the New York school system. So Samuel always set aside time at the beginning of his classes to give his students the chance to share and support each other.
This empowerment method turned into a workshop and a non-profit called ‘Bridge Builder Camp,’ where he conducts after-school programs and summer enrichment geared towards empowering and educating.
On a professional acting level, Samuel Smith’s early roles include a feature on Cadillac Records as The Guitarist; the HBO hit show The Sopranos, and Law and Order: Criminal Intent. He would later gain more roles in hit shows such as House of Cards, Daredevil, The Blacklist, and The Good Wife, among many other shows. He has even nailed down a role as 6 and 8 in Godfather of Harlem and a recurring role on NBC’s Shades of Blue.
Apart from teaching and acting, Samuel Smith also owns a couple of businesses called Samuel Leon Leather and Better Than Perfect Athletics. He is set to open Samuel Leon Men’s Suit Line. He understands that being an artist and an entertainer is not enough to keep a stable income.
Samuel Smith is also a Mindfulness and Meditation instructor in the NYC public school systems. He is one of the lead mentors for the men’s group of My Brother’s Keeper in Brooklyn, New York District 19.To find out more about Samuel Smith, you may visit his website.
