Teaching and Artistic Portfolio

student testomonials

  • “I have felt seen in Josiah’s class in a way I have not in others. He can find you exactly where you are — meet you there — and joyfully widen the aperture of what you feel capable of as an artist.”

    Jessie

  • “Working with Josiah has been transformative. He has a very clear and direct approach to the work. Nothing feels muddled or over-complicated… I have found that my work has opened up in a remarkable way… and he has made me extremely excited about the possibility of where my work could go.”

    Ariana

  • “Josiah was a godsend!  He taught me how to find spontaneity in my work through playing specific actions.  I booked a leading role in a play after working with Josiah!”

    Jarod

  • “I’ve had the privilege to study with Josiah for quite some time, and I can easily say that he is one of the most wonderful teachers I’ve ever met. His classes are always filled with laughter, beautiful work and brilliant writing.”

    Kasia

  • Josiah’s energy and excitement for teaching and coaching is infectious. Working with him has been a wonderfully empowering and joyful experience on both acting and human levels. He creates such a supportive environment where students can play, challenge themselves, and learn from others’ work—and have a lot of fun doing it. I can’t recommend him enough.

    Caroline

  • "I love studying with Josiah - he has a way of helping you focus on the energy you're bringing with you into the scene and how you're sending that to your partner. But mostly I love being around HIS energy and enthusiasm for the work, and I always leave every class inspired and having learned more about myself."

    Katie

  • Josiah’s classes invited me to challenge myself from every angle possible both as an actor and as an artist in general. Tapping into my instincts and trusting them in a safe environment that he created was a joyful and eye opening process to be a part of. Josiah's classes were filled with training that shaped the body and mind. I gathered tools that were both fundamental and nuanced. - Ali

    Ali, MFA Acting graduate, Brooklyn College

  • Josiah knows the material backwards and forwards, challenging his students to do the same, and he brings an unrivaled amount of enthusiasm for the process that makes each rehearsal exciting and new. He is a constant reminder that all of you is a part of the work — your body, your heart, your eyes, your ears, your mind — all of you must be brought to the table to do your best. You don’t get to take the easy way out and resist investing some part of yourself in the process because you're afraid you might fail. Josiah teaches that risking failure, braving through the scary things, and putting all of yourself out there is exactly what we need to do. Beyond the teaching though, Josiah is also a wonderful listener. He’s thoughtful, insightful, and takes care of his students.

    Evan, MFA Acting graduate, Brooklyn College

Brooklyn College MFA Acting Showcase, Spring 2025

Below are excerpts from the Brooklyn College MFA Acting Showcase, which I directed this past spring. I collaborated with the graduating cohort to find and shape material that revealed their offerings as performers and people.

press and media (acting)

“Josiah Bania is wonderfully tender.”

Charles Isherwood, NYtimes review of Ironbound, by Martyna Majok, at Rattlestick Playwrights Theater

“Bania gives equal weight to the character’s flightiness and integrity.”

— Charles McNulty, LA Times, on Ironbound at Geffen Playhouse, directed by Tyne Rafaeli.

“Josiah Bania's Orestes is so tormented by Apollo's visions and orders that he arrives to complete his bloody task already shaking and tortured. Bania's progression from this to a hollowed out, helpless boy over whom judgement must be passed is heartbreaking.

— Barbara Mackay, DC Theater Arts, on The Oresteia at Shakespeare Theatre of D.C., directed by Michael Kahn.

“Bania... is endearingly rabbit-like.”

– Charles McNulty, LA Times on Archduke, by Rajiv Joseph, directed by Giovanna Sardelli at Mark Taper Forum (I have no idea what “rabbit-like” means in this context, but it’s a positive review.)

“Josiah Bania’s Gentleman is seductive...”

— Patti Hartigan, The Boston Globe on Fingersmith at American Repertory Theatre, directed by Bill Rauch

“Bania epitomizes the traits of the charming scoundrel...”

— Nancy Grossman, BroadwayWorld

In March of 2022, I was invited to travel to Fort Leavenworth by Adam Driver’s non-profit, Arts in the Armed Forces (AITAF) as part of a small company of theater artists. We performed for incarcerated service members currently in maximum security, and held a talkback with them afterward. We then performed for active service members on the base. (Bill Heck and I did scenes from True West — which, like, yes. Good casting.) Taken together, it amounted to one of the most profound artistic experiences of my career.

Growing up below working class, I had no exposure to the theater, art, or culture beyond what network television gave me. Extraordinary turns of fortune made a life in the theater possible. Sharing some of what I’ve devoted my life to with people who resemble the folks I grew up with meant the world.

Adam and the AITAF team worked for years to sustain the organization, and brought actors from the stage and screen to military bases around the world. But like many non-profits, they faced a sharp decline in funding and donations during and after COVID, and in 2023 sadly had to dissolve. I’m deeply honored to have taken part in their mission to bring art, and the more expansive and inclusive view of humanity it can foster, to members of our nation’s military.

Arts in the Armed Forces