Christian Parker
Christian Parker is a director, dramaturg, and former Chair of the graduate Theatre Program (2012-19) at Columbia University, where he also heads the Dramaturgy concentration. Current projects include dramaturgy for the wold premiere of Kate Arrington’s Another Marriage for Steppenwolf Theatre, and a collaboration on a new commission for Dan O’Brien by the Lucille Lortel Foundation. Recent projects include David Hare’s Skylight at Gulfshore Playhouse, workshops and readings of frequent collaborator Kirk Lynn’s “completed version” of Thornton Wilder’s play The Emporium, The First Line of Dante’s Inferno at Rattlestick and his My Heart is a Library, Yours is a Museum for New Harmony Project, and Lynn Rosen’s The Imperialists for Theatre Works/Silicon Valley. Other recent productions include Laura Eason’s Sex with Strangers for City Theatre Company in Pittsburgh and Leslie Ayvazian’s Out of the City for the Merrimack Repertory Theatre in Massachusetts. He served as dramaturg on The Tempest for Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Play On! program, and for the world premiere of the musical Found by Hunter Bell, Lee Overtree and Eli Bolin at the Atlantic Theater Company. From 2001-2014 he was the Associate Artistic Director of Atlantic Theater Company, where he directed plays by Tina Howe, Ken Weitzman, Jeff Whitty, Leslie Ayvazian, Kevin Heelan, Kate Moira Ryan, and Rolin Jones. Prior to his tenure at the Atlantic, he spent several seasons as the Literary Manager at Manhattan Theatre Club. Christian has produced, directed or dramaturged over fifty premieres of new American and British plays on, off and off-off Broadway, including works by David Lindsay-Abaire, David Auburn, Cusi Cram, Keith Reddin, and Dael Orlandersmith, among others. He speaks Russian and was part of the national artistic advisory board for the CITD New Russian Plays initiative. In his first foray into the dance world, he completed a residency through the Joyce Theatre with Gallim Dance on their piece Sit. Kneel. Stand. He has worked with Sundance Theatre Institute (Utah and Morocco), Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Lark Play Development Center, The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center, New York Theatre Workshop, Rising Phoenix Rep, The 24 Hour Plays, SPACE on Ryder Farm, Bread Loaf, Kenyon Playwrights Conference, where he was Resident Director, New Dramatists and Perry-Mansfield. He served on the Tony Awards Nominating Committee from 2014-2017. Recent publications include critical articles for Contemporary Theatre Review (UK) on Sam Shepard and Simon Stephens. Through Columbia University, he is the recipient of the 2023-24 Michael T. Sovern Affiliated Fellowship at the American Academy in Rome, where he will be in residence in the winter/spring of 2024. He holds a BA from Middlebury College and an MFA from Columbia. Member, SDC.
This February, La MaMa Experimental Theater Club will present the world premiere of The First Line of Dante’s Inferno, a new play by Kirk Lynn, directed and co-produced by Professor of Professional Practice and Dramaturgy Concentration Head Christian Parker '98. Theatre alum Mary Alex Daniels '24 co-produces alongside Parker, and Theatre students Sam Grocock and Emily Griffiths will stage manage.
This Is Who We Are is a series featuring Columbia University School of the Arts’ professors, covering careers, pedagogy, and art-making. Here, we talk with Professor Christian Parker about dramaturgy and the enduring power of theatre.
Dramaturgy Concentration Head and Professor of Professional Practice Christian Parker ’98 is currently the dramaturg on, Another Marriage, running at the renowned Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago through July 30, 2023.
We talked about dramaturgy, specifically how it moves in traditional text-based theatre and in the nonverbal dance world, with Professor of Professional Practice and Dramaturgy Concentration Head, Christian Parker ’98.