Theatre Artist: Director, Producer, Actor, Teacher and more
Kristin Clippard has administered, taught, acted, assisted or directed with over three dozen theaters, entertainment companies, non-profit organizations, universities, and schools across the country. She holds a BFA in Acting from Wright State University and an MFA in Directing from the University of Iowa. She has trained in various theater disciplines with Shakespeare & Company, Orlando Shakespeare Theater, the former National Conservatory Theatre, and SITI Company.
Selected directing credits include Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson and The Roommate by Jen Silverman for American Stage, Alabaster by Audrey Cefaly for Capital Stage, The Luckiest People by Meridith Friedman for Orlando Shakespeare Theater, God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza for Incline Theater, Loyalty and Betrayal (a community collaboration based on Julius Caesar) for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival Festival’s Midnight Shakespeare program , Landless by Andrew Saito for the Iowa New Play Festival, and Champagne Gods by Emily Dendingerfor Clifton Players. Favorite classic play projects include Twelfth Night for Theater at Monmouth, The Merry Wives of Windsor for Richmond Shakespeare Festival, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Annapolis Shakespeare Company, The Taming of the Shrew with Arclight Rep, Measure for Measure and Pericles for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s Midnight Shakespeare program. Kristin has assisted numerous directors, such as Aaron Posner at the Folger Theater, and directed many staged readings of new work.
She has served on selection committees for new play competitions such as the Playwrights Foundation in San Francisco, PlayFest at Orlando Shakespeare Theater, the American Shakespeare Center, the 21st Century Voices New Play Festival at American Stage and the Playwrights Center in Minneapolis. She enjoys developing new works with writers and is a playwright herself. As an actor, she toured her original one-person show, Wild Child, across the country and has performed with companies in Ohio, California and Florida.
Kristin has taught theatre to all ages for Valencia College, Anne Arundel Community College, University of Iowa, University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music Preparatory Department, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Orlando Shakespeare Theater, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati Opera, Victoria Theatre Association, California Shakespeare Theatre, TheatreWorks, Marin Theatre Company, Word for Word and the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center, Peninsula Youth Theatre and more.
As an administrator and producer, Kristin has served in various capacities. Formerly, she worked as the Education Associate for the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival and as the Education Director for the Annapolis Shakespeare Company. As an associate member of the international Shakespeare Theater Association, Kristin actively volunteered to co-chair the planning committee of the worldwide, 400 year celebration of Shakespeare’s life in 2016. Most recently, Kristin was the Associate Artistic Director at American Stage throughout the theater’s pivot from live to digital programming during the pandemic. She is a member or associate of the Theatre Communications Group, The National New Play Network and The Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.
When not making theater, you can find her scuba diving reefs and wrecks or paddle boarding with her golden retriever.
Selected directing credits include Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson and The Roommate by Jen Silverman for American Stage, Alabaster by Audrey Cefaly for Capital Stage, The Luckiest People by Meridith Friedman for Orlando Shakespeare Theater, God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza for Incline Theater, Loyalty and Betrayal (a community collaboration based on Julius Caesar) for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival Festival’s Midnight Shakespeare program , Landless by Andrew Saito for the Iowa New Play Festival, and Champagne Gods by Emily Dendingerfor Clifton Players. Favorite classic play projects include Twelfth Night for Theater at Monmouth, The Merry Wives of Windsor for Richmond Shakespeare Festival, and A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Annapolis Shakespeare Company, The Taming of the Shrew with Arclight Rep, Measure for Measure and Pericles for San Francisco Shakespeare Festival’s Midnight Shakespeare program. Kristin has assisted numerous directors, such as Aaron Posner at the Folger Theater, and directed many staged readings of new work.
She has served on selection committees for new play competitions such as the Playwrights Foundation in San Francisco, PlayFest at Orlando Shakespeare Theater, the American Shakespeare Center, the 21st Century Voices New Play Festival at American Stage and the Playwrights Center in Minneapolis. She enjoys developing new works with writers and is a playwright herself. As an actor, she toured her original one-person show, Wild Child, across the country and has performed with companies in Ohio, California and Florida.
Kristin has taught theatre to all ages for Valencia College, Anne Arundel Community College, University of Iowa, University of Cincinnati’s College Conservatory of Music Preparatory Department, Utah Shakespeare Festival, Orlando Shakespeare Theater, Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Cincinnati Opera, Victoria Theatre Association, California Shakespeare Theatre, TheatreWorks, Marin Theatre Company, Word for Word and the Alameda County Juvenile Justice Center, Peninsula Youth Theatre and more.
As an administrator and producer, Kristin has served in various capacities. Formerly, she worked as the Education Associate for the San Francisco Shakespeare Festival and as the Education Director for the Annapolis Shakespeare Company. As an associate member of the international Shakespeare Theater Association, Kristin actively volunteered to co-chair the planning committee of the worldwide, 400 year celebration of Shakespeare’s life in 2016. Most recently, Kristin was the Associate Artistic Director at American Stage throughout the theater’s pivot from live to digital programming during the pandemic. She is a member or associate of the Theatre Communications Group, The National New Play Network and The Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.
When not making theater, you can find her scuba diving reefs and wrecks or paddle boarding with her golden retriever.
Photo by Mikki Schaffner Photography
New and Upcoming
Regional Premiere at Urbanite Theatre in Sarasota, FL. When Bella Baird, an isolated creative writing professor at Yale, begins to mentor a brilliant but enigmatic student named Christopher, the two form an unexpectedly intense bond. As their lives and the stories they tell about themselves become intertwined in unpredictable ways, Bella makes a surprising request of Christopher that neither knows if he can fulfill. Brimming with suspense, Rapp’s riveting play explores the limits of what one person can ask of another.
The reviews are in!
“It is all beautifully and naturalistically staged by Kristin Clippard in a way that never feels forced. The stories unfold as if they’re happening now. The connection between the two actors is remarkable…That is typical of the kinds of productions Urbanite Theatre stages. ‘The Sound Inside’ ranks among the company’s best, keeping you focused on the story and characters and leaving plenty to discuss on the way home.”
- Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
"Director Kristin Clippard never loses balance on Rapp’s wobbly meta-fictional tightrope. She keeps you guessing about what’ll happen next. You never doubt what’s happening now. Clippard directs with crystal clarity. With Rapp’s mind games to work with, that’s a high-wire act."
- Marty Fugate, Your Observer
The reviews are in!
“It is all beautifully and naturalistically staged by Kristin Clippard in a way that never feels forced. The stories unfold as if they’re happening now. The connection between the two actors is remarkable…That is typical of the kinds of productions Urbanite Theatre stages. ‘The Sound Inside’ ranks among the company’s best, keeping you focused on the story and characters and leaving plenty to discuss on the way home.”
- Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
"Director Kristin Clippard never loses balance on Rapp’s wobbly meta-fictional tightrope. She keeps you guessing about what’ll happen next. You never doubt what’s happening now. Clippard directs with crystal clarity. With Rapp’s mind games to work with, that’s a high-wire act."
- Marty Fugate, Your Observer
How does a writer approach the division in our society and address uncomfortable issues in an accessible way? With humor, of course! Karen Zacarías expertly crafted this hilarious script that premiered in 2016 but still holds much relevancy today. What starts out as a hopeful, new neighborly friendship turns into a full blown backyard battle. The Del Valles and the Butleys come into conflict over their shared fence and where it should stand. Laughter accompanies every turn as the two couples navigate realizations about identity, culture, class and privilege. Through personal sensitivities, flared tempers, misunderstandings and prejudice, they somehow find peace and acceptance. I am excited to choreograph the many comedic opportunities (hello gardening tools and chain saws!) that await the actors. The joy that radiates from the rehearsal room will surely reverberate and the audience is guaranteed a good time in the intimate Hippodrome theater space. The show opens March 10. If you are near Gainesville, FL, stop on over! More information at: https://thehipp.org/native-gardens/
I am honored to be directing The Agitators by Mat Smart at freeFall Theatre in St Petersburg, FL in 2023. This extraordinary play follows the lifelong friendship of Frederick Douglass and Susan B Anthony. Across opinions and personal comfort, these two titans of American history sustain their relationship because love runs deeper than any political divide. Despite a difference in strategy in attacking the abolition of slavery and soon after, suffrage for women, they manage to move forward together. This project has involved a great amount of research (thank you, India Nicole Burton) and perspective on what these things mean to us today in our current fight for equality. Not enough has changed in the last 150 years, but this enduring partnership can inspire us to further change. Their friendship has inspired me most deeply, but their passion for the cause has made a lasting impression. I am grateful to Eric Davis for this opportunity, and to Lawrence James and Jennifer Christa Palmer for their incredible work in embodying these characters. What a journey! We open on January 28 and run through February 27. I hope you can be there. Visit https://freefalltheatre.com/ for more information.
