Construction Worker Turned Actor James Duke Walker Makes Stage Acting Debut In BRO

James Duke Walker, the Construction worker turned actor whose career began with a chance meeting on a business phone call, will make his professional New York stage acting debut in Bro, a short play by Stephen Bracco which is part of The Manhattan Repertory Theatre's Playwright's Showcase .

Bro will be staged alongside four other short plays at Manhattan Rep for two evenings only- Friday October 12 and Saturday October 13, starting from 6:30pm on both nights. The other four plays comprising the programme are Darko is Somebody by Jil Frey, Sarah Sits Shiva for Herself by Megan Pope, The Disposal Guy by Henry P. Gravelle and Doing Lunch by Lawrence F. Schwabacher.

Bro is directed by award winning actor, director and Broadway veteran DeMone Seraphin, founding Artistic Director of the New American Theatre Company. Seraphin's directing credits include The Exonerated, Dutchman, Jitney and Joe Turner's Come and Gone.

The three character play also features Ben Fisher and Jeffrey Roth.

An intense drama and cautionary tale about the effects of male violence, Bro explores the dynamic and changing relationships between three alumni of St. Francis High School- two brothers, Brian and Francis (Fisher and Roth) and their childhood friend Duke (Walker). When one of them commits a deadly crime, a series of events is set in motion that ultimately requires them all to seek their salvation by whatever means necessary.

The play is the latest career milestone for Walker who, until two years ago, was a unionised New York City construction worker who had never acted professionally.

A chance business phone call and subsequent meeting with award winning Playwright, Actor and Producer David Heron- CEO of Sure Thing PR- lead to a professional photo shoot arranged by Heron, who circulated Walker's photos to several casting directors. The response to Walker was so positive that Heron immediately signed Walker to his roster, becoming his manager and first acting coach.

Within a few short months, Walker had landed his first leading role in the short film Roadside Assistance, written and directed by Ali Matlock. The film is currently on the short film festival circuit where it has played to excellent reviews and has already won several awards.

Walker has also appeared in commercials for Adidas, Chinese Red Tea and The New York State Troopers and he is now one of the new faces of Samsung's 2018 online and print campaign.

For the Queens native, his rapid rise in the entertainment industry is something he is still taking in stride.

"Everything that's happened in the past two years is a real blessing but any success I've had is really just serving as motivation for me to go further, to work harder," he says. "I'm still focused on honing my skills at every opportunity, and this is why I'm so grateful to be working with such great artists as Stephen and DeMone on such an important piece as Bro. It's an incredible learning experience as well as an opportunity to explore a very important subject, so it's really the best of both worlds in every way."

The Manhattan Repertory Theatre is located at 17 -19 West 45th Street in Manhattan.

For ticket reservations see also:- www.manhattanrep.com