Abdul-Khaliq “A.K.” Murtadha is a professional actor, director, and producer with longstanding memberships in Equity (Actors’ Equity Association), SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild + American Federation of Television & Radio Artists). He has enjoyed various professional classic and contemporary roles in regional and repertory theatres across the country.
A few of his most recent stage roles include: Peter Shaw in Silent Sky and Martin Luther King, Jr. in The Mountain Top at the Utah Shakespeare Festival. Duke Vincentio in Measure for Measure at the Ensemble Theatre Company (Santa Barbara),playing Claudius and the Ghost in Hamlet for the Indianapolis Shakespeare Company , Orsino in Twelfth Night at both the South Dakota Shakespeare Festival and Pioneer Theatre Co.(Salt Lake City), Martin Luther King, Jr. in Mountaintop at WBTT (Sarasota, FL) , James T in Barbecue at the Phoenix Theatre (Indianapolis), for Ensemble Theatre Co. (Santa Barbara), and Martin Luther King, Jr. in the LBJ plays - All the Way and The Great Society , as well as Dr. Prentice in Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner at Asolo Rep in Sarasota.
Some of his TV and Film credits include: a recent re-occurring role on Days of Our Lives, the role of Percy Sutton in the Shirley Chisolm bio-pic starring Regina King, NCIS-LA, All My Children, Raising the Bar, The Unit, Medium, Numb3rs, and the feature thriller 8989 Redstone on Amazon Prime.
Awards include Best Actor - New Orleans Short film festival - In the Wind and the NAACP Award: Best Ensemble - All My Sons (playing Chris Keller) at The Matrix Theatre in Los Angeles.
He is a founding member of ARTI - the Africana Repertory Theatre of I.U.P.U.I. in Indianapolis, an ensemble member of the Fonseca Theatre Company in Indianapolis, a member of the artistic ensemble at Crescent City Stage in New Orleans, and his interactive multimedia play The American Muslim Project was the resident umbrella project for the 2019 Indy Convergence in Indianapolis, Indiana.
A Designated Linklater Teacher, one of about 300 world-wide, Abdul-Khaliq has enjoyed teaching theatre and filmmaking in a variety of settings, including grades K-12, universities, private workshops, summer camps and independent master classes. His research and process stem include study of Stanislavski, Meisner, Adler, and Strasberg’s acting methods as well as the voice work of Linklater, Berry, Rodenburg, and many others.
His work with different theatre companies has used techniques from Ann Bogart’s Viewpoints as well as Augusto Boal’s Theatre of the Oppressed to devise productions for schools, prisons, and corporate settings based on social, health, and educational issues.
He received his MFA from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and his BA with honors from Indiana University, Bloomington. He’s been a dialect and voice coach, guest lecturer, professional mentor, and advised and instructed MFA conservatory students.
His work as an independent producer and writer has led him to collaborate with professional artists, feature filmmakers, and entrepreneurs in varied areas including story development and marketing. As a director, AK has directed plays, readings, and classic and contemporary scene-study workshops.
He is currently serving as Co-Artistic Director of The Mosaic Theatre Company (MTC) at Auburn University with Dr. Tessa Carr. The company is dedicated to the creation and performance of original works of theatre that investigate current issues of inclusive excellence, equity and social justice in the hopes of crafting lifelong alliances in the community.
He also teaches the foundational Voice and Movement class, Performance Techniques for the Camera, and teaches the Jr and Sr BFA studio intensive at Auburn University in the Department of Theatre and Dance.
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