Cooper James (he/him) is a Melbourne based performer and composer originally hailing from Adelaide. He is currently finishing his tertiary training of a Bachelor of Fine Arts (Music Theatre) at the Victorian College of the Arts (VCA).

During his time at the VCA, he has been a proud recipient of the Nancye Hayes Scholarship award and has had multiple performance opportunities. His performance credits include Kyle in ‘Legally Blonde’ (dir Jason Langley), Mark in ‘A Little Touch Of Chaos’ stage show and cast recording (dir Roger Hodgman), Jim Farrell in ‘Titanic’ (dir. Tyran Parke), Ensemble in ‘The Drowsy Chaperone’ (dir. Alistair Smith) and Soloist at the Australian Music Theatre Festival.

Other credits include Mr Platypus and Larry Lorikeet in ‘Dot and The Kangaroo Jr’ cast recording (composed by Daniel Mertzlufft and Kate Leonard), Vocal Soloist in ‘Post Cards from Around the World’ (dir. Shane Wilson),and Kurt in The London Palladium ‘The Sound Of Music’  (dir. Johnny Bowles).

If he isn’t busy rehearsing in a studio, you’ll find him at the nearest piano writing. Cooper is at the start of his composing journey, having presented his original work at the Australian Musical Theatre Festival and multiple ‘Home Grown Musicals Australia’ events. He was a finalist for the Home Grown Emerging Writer Award in 2025.