James "Jimmy" Ludwig - NMU Theatre and Dance

James has been a professional actor for three decades. Broadway credits include Little Shop of Horrors and the original cast of Spamalot; Off Broadway include Blue Man Group ‘Tubes’, De La Guarda, Two Point Oh and the original ‘john’ in john & Jen, among many others. Regionally James has playing leading roles around the country from Professor Higgins in My Fair Lady to the titular character in Hamlet. Film and Television credits include The Chappelle's Show, Daylight Raiders, Lipstick Jungle, and Ghost Town.

In 2003 James started Back40 Films, which has produced hundreds of projects on time and on budget; from the wildly popular series “The Happy Hour Guys”, to A Face In The Rock, a feature trailer based on the historical novel of the same name by Loren Graham, set here in the Upper Peninsula.

James has taught at colleges and universities all over the US and abroad, including MTL Portugal, Franklin & Marshall College, AMDA, Boise State, the University of Michigan, the University of Washington, and more. It is his intention to grow the new BFA Acting program here at NMU into one of the best in the country.