Artistic Director Dave DeChristopher '75
Dave DeChristopher, a 1975 graduate of Washington and Lee University, has been named the new artistic director at the Toledo Repertoire Theatre in Toledo, Ohio.
Following graduation, Dave, a Toledo native, spent several years in his hometown teaching, performing and directing at a number of establishments, including the Children’s Theatre Workshop, Jim Rudes’ Commodore Perry Dinner Theatre and the Toledo Repertoire Theatre. He also was an original member of Friar Tuck’s cabaret company.
In 1980, he moved to New York City and began his career in professional theater. He was a member and artistic director of the Greenwood Theatre Company and an actor for the company of the Castillo Theatre, as well as a member of the Jewish Repertory Theatre for Young Audiences. He also starred in the acclaimed musical “Fiorello!”
After 24 years in New York, Dave returned to Toledo, where he was a director at the Toledo Repertoire Theatre and an instructor at the University of Toledo. He now teaches theatre and creative writing at Notre Dame Academy.
One of his main goals as the new artistic director is community outreach. He noted in an interview with The (Toledo) Blade, “I have a pretty strong background in theater education from all my years in New York; we want all the education programs to have a legitimate education component, to really give kids something, especially with all the arts cuts in schools.”
In addition to acting and directing, Dave has published nine plays and wrote “The Force,” a collection of spy novels.
–by Wesley Sigmon ’16
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