“

Stories are destiny

”

Dan Olson, born in the farmland of Wisconsin, began a professional stage career in Orlando, FL, following graduation from Huntington University, IN. Their first acting roles were in "Antigone" and “Present Laughter” at Madcow Theatre. Over the next several years, they continued working on the stage with such companies as Secret Theatre, Theatre Downtown and Phoenix Entertainment, with whom they traveled the world as Lurch in the international tour of The Addams Family.

They took two years away to perform at Universal Studios Japan and volunteer teaching English in an elementary school in Tenpozan district in Osaka, Japan, meeting Martin Freeman at a competing play one prefecture over. They subsequently relocated to New York City and performed on stage in “The Wild Party,” the original musical “Someone to Belong To,” immersive theatre hits “Speakeasy Dollhouse: Bloody Beginnings” and “Speakeasy Dollhouse: The Brothers Booth” in the historic Players Club and in the FringeNYC sold-out production of “Jericho.”

Daniel has worked in theatre, television, film, podcasts, commercials and immersive cinema. Their breakthrough on the small screen came in 2014 when they portrayed Sergei Korolev in the television series American Genius: Space Race (2014). They have since gone on to co-stars in NBC’s The Blacklist, USA’s Mr. Robot and Mazama Productions’ short film, Mortuary.

With partner, Caitlin Winkenbach, they co-founded Rampage VR Inc., a forward-thinking narrative virtual reality company. Drawing from experiences onstage and onscreen, they’ve broken ground in what will surely become the next great leap in entertainment, immersive storytelling, experienced in the comfort of one’s home.

Mortuary - Mazama Productions - Pilot

Directed by Aaron Blanton

The Wolf of Wall Street - Feature Film

directed by martin scorsese

Mr. Robot - Season Three, Episode Nine - USA

Directed by Sam Esmail

The Blacklist - Season Four, Episode Seven - NBC

Directed by Andrew McCarthy

The Addams Family (International Tour) - Phoenix Entertainment

Directed by Jerry Zaks

Gold Man - Commercial - Connecticut

Directed by Matt Docter

Braman - Promotional - Lifetime Network

Directed by Tara Tovarek

Jericho - FringeNYC - Play

Directed by derik Wingo

American Genius: Space Race - National Geographic

Directed by Paul Abascal

Charlie - Short Film

Directed by Jeff Lebbe 

Speakeasy Dollhouse: Booth - Immersive Theatre

Directed by Cynthia Von Buhler

Speakeasy Dollhouse: Beginnings - Immersive Theatre

Directed by Wes Grantom

Death and the Maiden - Short Film

Directed by Joy Yang

Sherlock Holmes and the Final Problem - Original Stage Adaptation

Directed by Rick Robinson

Mulligan - Pilot

Directed by Ryan RoSSELL

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd - Original Stage Adaptation

Directed by Todd Nielsen

Someone To Belong To - The PIT - Original Staged Musical

Directed by Leslie Collins

Keely and Du - Ashland Contemporary Theatre - Staged Reading

Directed by Livia Genise

Two Friends Sneak Up To A House On Halloween - Short Film

Directed by Josh Caldwell Baker

Universal Monsters Live - Universal Studios Japan - Theme Park Production

Directed by Todd Schroeder

Here We Are - VR Short Film

Directed by Aaron Blanton

Kinky Boots - Musical

Directed by Keenon Hooks

KCACTF Finalist

2005

B.A. Theatre Performance

Huntington University

Daniel is a born mimic and capable of replicating nearly any accent, including ones with no perceived benefit to have learned.

 They have a personal history of audio recording, video production and writing, and they’ve produced multiple web series in two different countries.

They studied acting styles under David Shamburger, Kristi Brannon, Jeffrey Moore and Mike Peng while at Huntington University. 

They’ve studied improv under Steve Soroka at The People's Improv Theatre (The PIT) in New York City.

While living in New York, they studied film audition technique with Steve Vincent, Harley Kaplan, and Adrienne Stern, commercial audition technique with Barry Shapiro and Steven Stancato, and television audition technique with C.J. Molidor, Mia Cusumano, Joanna Davis, and Sabrina Hyman.

A longtime resident of Wisconsin, they also work locally across the Midwest in northern Illinois, eastern Iowa, northeastern Indiana, and southern Michigan.

Their first love will always be the stage, but film, television and immersive cinema have opened their eyes to a world of influence and possibilities that can only be found onscreen.