Ross MacKenzie began his acting journey at Arena Stage in Washington, D.C. In 1968 he moved to New York City, where he studied with Sonia Moore. Two years later he relocated to London, training at the Guildhall School of Drama and the Actor’s Forum. 

After three years in the UK, he returned to the United States, spending a year in Los Angeles studying with the legendary acting coach Nina Foch. 

Back in New York, Ross taught voice and diction at the Puerto Rican Traveling Theater while building a career that spanned nearly a decade of Off-Broadway and Off-Off-Broadway productions. Seeking a deeper change, he took a leap of faith and moved to Kyoto, Japan in the late 1980s — without knowing the language or a single person. There he immersed himself in an ashram, teaching Kundalini Yoga as he consciously stepped away from acting.

Fate, however, had other plans. He was soon invited to direct Macbeth in Kobe, which led him and his producer to found Fusion, a pioneering bilingual theater company. Over the following years, Ross moved between Japan and Los Angeles, directing and producing bilingual productions including Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Death of a Salesman, and A Doll’s House, among many others.

A passionate educator as well as a director, Ross has taught acting at the Stella Adler School of Drama and the Theater of Arts in Hollywood. His unique international journey, deep commitment to craft, and cross-cultural work have made him a distinctive voice in both American and Japanese theater.