David Samuel is an Ethiopian-American actor, musician, writer, & producer who loves poetry, impromptu jam sessions, reading futurist theory, and baking focaccia.
As an actor, he received his MFA in Acting from Brown University/Trinity Rep. He has performed around the U.S. and Canada in musicals, new plays, and Off-Broadway in Shakespeare. Select credits include: Charlie and The Chocolate Factory (1st National Tour), Ain’t Misbehavin’ (Crossroads Theatre at NJPAC, dir. Andrè De Shields), Twelfth Night (Fiasco/CSC), As You Like It (Classic Stage Company), Brother Toad (KC Rep).
As a writer and performer, he shared his five-act solo show, Away, You Ethiop! as part of his residency at BRIC Arts House as part of the 2022/2023 BRIClab Performing Arts cohort and in 2024 as part of the Rough Draft Reading Series at LaGuardia Performing Arts Center. He was also named a 2020 Scratch Lab Resident at Hi-Arts for his play, Mīstir (not completed due to COVID-19). His plays in development also include LĒXO (a play grieving ceremony).
As a producer, his documentary, Niguse and The Red Terror, was a selection at the 2021 Harlem International Film Festival and a semi-finalist at the 2021 Rhode Island International Film Festival. As part of the documentary release, he curated and designed a photo journal, and designed a line of apparel, through his production company, Third World Vision.
As KINGOFAXUM, David’s self-produced songs reflect his existence between the cultures of his heritage vs his upbringing. He has written, produced, recorded, and released three EPs and 13 singles and produced and directed two music videos. In 2022, his song, Immigrant Dreams, made him a finalist for Black Thought’s MasterClass at The Kennedy Center. In 2021, Immigrant Dreams was featured on the hip-hop blog, Word On Road.
In 2014, he was an Allen Lee Hughes Fellow in Artistic Development at Arena Stage, where he began his career in 2011, acting in Lynn Nottage’s Ruined.
