Christopher R. K. Hildebrand
Title: Founding Member
Position: Resident Artist (Dramaturgy / Director), Literary Manager
Contact: childebrand@xrtc.org
Professional Experience: Christopher R. Hildebrand is a professional writer, director, dramaturg and performance scholar. A native of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, Mr. Hildebrand is a founding contributor of the XRTC and currently serves as literary manager for the theatre and conservatory. He is also the founding Artistic Director of Superior Soup Theatre in Western Massachusetts, a grassroots performance project, and has worked as a director or dramaturg with some of the world’s greatest theatre artists.
As a teacher, Mr. Hildebrand has assistant taught at Harvard University and has spent time as a Visiting Artist and Instructor at Bard College at Simon’s Rock in Great Barrington, MA. Currently, Christopher is at work on a book concerning universal performance semiotics. He lives in Conestoga, PA with his wife Jilla, and their canine child Jakob.
Education: He received his BA in Theatre Performance from Simon’s Rock College in 2004 and went on to do graduate work in dramaturgy at Harvard University and the Moscow Art Theatre School’s Institute for Advanced Theatre Training. In 2003 Mr. Hildebrand held a directing fellowship with New York Stage and Film where he worked with Max Mayer, Gregory Mosher, Jill Clayburgh and William Hunt. From 2005 to 2006 he was a graduate dramaturg for the Tony - award winning American Repertory Theatre in Caimbridge, MA for whose publication he was a contributor. While at the ART, he worked under the tutelage of Robert Woodruff, Dr. Anatoly Smeliansky, Stephen Greenblatt, Gadi Roll, Gideon Lester, and Scott Zigler. Trained as a physical theatre artist, Mr. Hildebrand has studied under several master Lecoq instructors including Jane Nichols, Karen Beaumont and Philippe Gaulier. He has also trained with Shakespeare and Company in Lenox, MA in classical acting.
XRT Production Credits: Dramaturg (Waiting For Godot), Dramaturg (A Streetcar Named Desire)
What the XRT means to me: The XRT is a long awaited vision of how we can be better. It is the home of imagination and play, of disciple and rigor, and of family. In this place, a group of young and vibrant artists have committed to presenting and sharing their knowledge with the city of Los Angeles and the world. To me, it is a home to create work, take risks, and fly.
Why I do what I do: For years, as I have developed as an artist and scholar, I have watched the decline of American Performance. I wish to test the limits to work with the proverbial test pilots of our theatrical generation. Here at the XRT have gathered together a group of these barrier breakers, each eager to push the limits of their craft.
Did you know? Chris is an ordained minister in the state of California and has officiated several weddings. This fact is even stranger considering his being a Tibetan Buddhist. But this is to be expected from a guy born and raised in Amish country.
