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| Christopher J Simpson | |
| Artistic Director & President of the Board | |
| Christopher J Simpson is the Artistic Director of the CTC. A founding member, he has also served as President of the Board since 2006. Chris graduated from Princeton University in May 2009 with a degree in Comparative Literature and Certificates in Theater and African Studies. His work has focused on language, literature, and the arts, and his coursework has emphasized Swahili, Spanish, and Theater. He has been employed by the Princeton University Program and Theater and Dance as an electrician, carpenter, and technician since the spring of 2007, and has worked professionally on the Berlind stage of the McCarter Theater, also in Princeton. He served two years as a Residential Adviser, and is a leading member of the Rock Climbing group and a staff member at the University climbing wall. Chris' most notable achievement at Princeton was his senior thesis, a project that included the translation of the seminal East African play "Amezidi", and the direction of its first-ever English-language production. It is the culmination of his four years of study in Theater and Swahili language and literature, as well as a full year spent away from the university doing independent work. Of this leave, taken between his junior and senior years, three months were spent in Kenya working with a group of theater artists performing for social betterment and health education in urban slums. The rest of this time was spent working on the translation of "Amezidi" and on other theatrical projects. Outside of theater, Chris' primary interests are Swahili literature and African sociopolitical development, sustainable development and food practices in the United States, and rock climbing and mountaineering.A lifelong resident of South Kingstown, Chris graduated in 2004 from South Kingstown High School, where he was an active member of the Drama Club, Orchestra, Band, Chorus, Jazz Choir, Student Council, Renaissance Team, and Honors Society. He also participated in the teen theater group Standing Ovation and was a founding member of the a cappella group SoundCheck. CTC Credits: Rumors - August 2010 - Director Waiting for Godot - July 2010 - Pozzo The Glass Menagerie - April 2010 - Set Design, Lighting Design The Real Inspector Hound - March/April 2010 - Director The Last Five Years - February/March 2010 - Production Manager 5th annual 24-Hour Play Festival - January 2010 - Director, Winner: Best Overall The Gift of the Magi - December 2009 - Director Metamorphoses - November 2009 - Director Arsenic & Old Lace - October 2009 - Director Noises Off! - Summer 2009 - Director The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) - Summer 2009 - Director 4th 24 Hour Play Festival - January 2009 - Director, Winner: Best Overall Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind - August 2008 - Director, Ensemble Color Theory - March 2008 - Director, Ensemble 3rd 24 Hour Play Festival - January 2008 - Producer Set & Drift - August 2007 - Director The Matchmaker - July 2007 - Director Scenes on the Green - June 2007 - Director 2nd 24 Hour Play Festival - January 2007 - Director, Winner: Best Overall You Can't Take It With You - August 2006 - Director 1st 24 Hour Play Festival - July 2006 - Producer Proof - July 2006 - Director Rumors- August 2005 - Director Other Notable Theater Credits: God’s Ear, Princeton University – May 2009 - Director Good Winks Here, Princeton University Program in Theater and Dance – April 2009 – Co-Creator, Lighting Designer, Actor, Puppeteer. Flammentangel Kabarett, Princeton University Program in Theater and Dance - December 2008 - Lighting Design Amezidi, Princeton University Program in Theater and Dance - October 2008 - Translator, Director Hamlet, Princeton Shakespeare Company - April 2008 - Director Amezidi, Nakuru Players' Theater - October 2007 - Director The Thousand Stringed Instrument, World Premiere, Princeton University Program in Theater and Dance - May 2006 - "Hans" |
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