Christopher Acebo Appointed to TCG Board of Directors

	Photo: Jenny Graham

Christopher Acebo, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival's associate artistic director for 10 seasons, has been appointed to the board of directors of the Theatre Communication Group (TCG).

"The tectonic theme in my life as an artist, advocate, administrator, and teacher is that art functions to create community," Acebo says. "Although we may not all be artists, our need to express ourselves is deeply human, and I look forward to working with TCG on national levels to advance the role of the arts in our lives through community building, advocacy, and participating in the continuing growth of our field. I want to help draw a blueprint that places the artist and the community in the center of the conversation as an integral and inclusive voice of re-imaging our theatre into the future."

"OSF is honored that one of our most thoughtful artists and leaders, Christopher Acebo, has been invited to join the TCG Board of Directors," OSF executive director Cynthia Rider says. "I know that TCG and the entire theater field will benefit from having Christopher in this leadership role, and OSF will gain immeasurably from his interaction with the talented and dedicated team at TCG, both staff and Board."

Joining Acebo as new TCG board appointees are: Adrian Budhu, managing director, The Theater Offensive, Boston, MA; Meghan Pressman, managing director, Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company, Washington, DC; Nikkole Salter, actress, playwright, educator, and arts advocate, Bloomfield, NJ; and Harold Wolpert, managing director, Roundabout Theatre Company, New York, NY. Members of TCG's board serve three two-year terms.

"It's a joy to witness the creative energy and strategic thinking that TCG's trustees bring to their board service," says Teresa Eyring, executive director of TCG. "This latest class of board members features seasoned theatre leaders and the voice of artists, amplifying our capacity to serve our ever-evolving field."

Acebo, also a scenic and costume designer, has designed several world premieres including the 2014 Tony Award-winning best play All The Way by Robert Schenkkan (OSF/ART/Broadway), Head Over Heels by Jeff Whitty and the Go-Go's, Fingersmith by Alexa Junge, The Great Society, The Clean House, Cloudlands, The Further Adventures of Hedda Gabler, My Wandering Boy, Hold Please, The Beard of Avon, Electricidad (Garland Award-Best Costumes), Equivocation (OSF/Seattle Rep/Arena Stage), Throne of Blood (OSF/BAM Next Wave Festival), Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner, The Tenth Muse, Living Out, and Peace, Water & Power, Bordertown, Palestine New Mexico, Zorro in Hell and Chavez Ravine by Culture Clash, among others.

For seven years he was an ensemble member of the Cornerstone Theater Company and has designed at many major regional theaters, among them Goodman, Guthrie, Lincoln Center, CTG, ART, Yale Rep, Seattle Rep, South Coast Rep, Denver Center, Portland Center Stage, Artist Rep, La Jolla Playhouse, and Berkeley Rep. He has served on panels for Theatre Communications Group, The National Endowment for the Arts and for The Playwrights Center in Minneapolis, and is on the Steering Committee for Latino/a Theatre Commons. He produces the Latina/o Play Project at OSF. In 2013, Christopher was appointed by governor John Kitzhaber to serve on the Oregon Arts Commission. He is a recipient of an NEA/TCG fellowship and received his MFA from the University of California, San Diego.