AboutBenjamin Kersey is a Franco-Ontarian music director, collaborative pianist and writer known for his stylistic versatility, who specializes in theatre and classical music. At an early age, he became interested in piano performance, and subsequently realized a passion for working with other musicians as a collaborative pianist.
Benjamin has been particularly interested in shaping and creating new Canadian work over the last few years. He has had the pleasure of working on new musicals by Britta Johnson and collaborators Sara Farb, Anika Johnson and Nick Green, as well as shows by Scott Christian & Lezlie Wade, Suzy Wilde & Rose Napoli, Darnell Thomas & Liana Del Mastro, Adam Sakiyama & Kat Sandler, Anthony Palermo, Fatuma Adar & Ben Elliott, and Matt Stodolak & Katie Kerr. Among other positions, Benjamin has worked as a conductor, keyboardist, accordionist, programmer, playwright, copyist, arranger and orchestrator. Recent credits include Hadestown, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, & Juliet (Substitute Keyboards and/or Conductor, Mirvish Productions), Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Emma Bovary (Synthesizer, National Ballet of Canada), Chris Mrs. (Keys 2, Boldly Productions), Kelly v. Kelly, Retold, Take the Moment (Musical Stage Company), The Last Five Years (MD, Olive Branch Theatre), Nobody’s Children (MD, Yellow Door Theatre Project) and Stephen Sondheim’s Follies in Concert (Koerner Hall/Royal Conservatory of Music). For the rest of the year, he is serving as the assistant conductor and keyboard 2 player for the Shaw Festival’s new production of My Fair Lady. As a classical pianist and coach, Benjamin has worked with many companies, soloists, and ensembles, including Tapestry Opera and a world premiere with University of Toronto Opera. During his time at the University of Toronto, he was a prominent accompanist to students and faculty alike, in vocal and instrumental performance, in classical, musical theatre, and contemporary commercial music. Scholarly settings such as competitions, masterclasses, studio classes and lessons have all seen Benjamin’s collaborative work. As a solo pianist, his playing has been described as “absolutely wonderful, both musically and technically.” He is committed to making new music more accessible to mainstream society: in early 2022, Benjamin premiered a new solo work and two chamber works, each by Canadian composer Michael Nunes. Benjamin has performed with acclaimed musicians and actors all over the province, including internationally renowned artists who have graced Broadway and Mirvish stages, as well as those of the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Opera, Shaw and Stratford Festivals, Berlin Philharmonic, and Canadian Opera Company, among many other top ranking performing arts organizations in the world. He is also a sought-after music director and pianist for concerts and cabaret acts all over Ontario and New York City, with performers such as Cynthia Dale, Eliza-Jane Scott, Robert Pilon, Via DeRoche, Sherry Garner, and Kelly Holiff. Benjamin is a two-time Dora Mavor Moore Award nominee as well as a recipient of the ARTES scholarship, a prestigious award for Franco-Ontarian artists. He has studied piano, theory and voice, and has been mentored by Elizabeth Baird and Paul Sportelli among countless others. Benjamin completed his Bachelor of Music with majors in Classical Piano under the tutelage of Steven Philcox and French Literature at the University of Toronto, and was the 2022-23 RBC Apprentice Music Director at The Musical Stage Company. Ben is also Series Assistant for his partner Saffron Maeve’s film series CONTOURS at the Paradise Theatre, a bimonthly screening series which examines films that deal in the world of visual art. In his spare time, Ben can most often be found at the cinema. Benjamin is a member of the AFM, proud to be represented by The Talent House, and his resume can be found here. |