Circle X Theatre Co. Announces Kate Jopson As New Artistic Director

Circle X Theatre Co. announced today that Kate Jopson will become the new Artistic Director of the critically acclaimed theatre company effective May 1, 2018. She previously served as Associate Artistic Director. After serving as its Artistic Director for the past 14 years, Tim Wright will remain with the company as a board member and collaborator and to assist in the transition. Under Tim's leadership, the company has produced 27 mainstage productions, including several world premieres from playwrights such as Jim Leonard, Tom Jacobson and Sheila Callaghan and co-productions with Echo Theater Company, The Theatre at Boston Court and ACT Seattle. The company has been recognized with numerous awards during his tenure, including the 2005 LADCC award for production of the year for The Brothers Karamazov by Anthony Clarvoe and most recently the 2015 Ovation award for production of the year for Trevorby Nick Jones. The company has also co-founded and has been responsible for the management of Atwater Village Theatre which has hosted hundreds of performances since opening in 2008 and is currently home to Circle X, EST/LA, Echo Theatre Company, Open Fist, IAMA, Playwrights Arena and Moving Arts among others.

Comments Kate Jopson, "I am honored to be stepping into the artistic leadership of such an esteemed company. Tim built Circle X into a wonderfully irreverent, brave and artistically rigorous theatre and I hope to continue his legacy by never settling for 'good enough.' He taught me that only the stories that make your gut twist or your blood warm are worth telling. Our founders named us after the markings given to immigrants seen as 'mentally unfit' to enter this country. Thus, it is our mandate to tell stories about and with those who are misunderstood, silenced or outcast. Along with my brilliant Managing Director Camille Schenkkan and my soulful Associate Artistic Director Jen Kays, I will guide Circle X to continually challenge assumptions about our world and theatre itself."

Tim Wright adds, "After almost 18 years as a company member and almost 15 years as Artistic Director, it is time for me to step down. I couldn't be happier that Kate has been named the new Artistic Director. She has a deep respect of the company's history and a passion for new works that will serve it well. I'm excited to see where she and Camille and Kays take the organization, and they'll always have my support. It's bittersweet for me to say goodbye after so many years, but knowing that the company we've built together is in such good hands makes it a little easier. After almost 20 years of commitment to the company, I'm looking forward to pursuing my own acting work and to spending more time with my wife and son."

Comments Bob Clendenin, President of the Board of Directors for Circle X, "For 15 years, Tim Wright has been an extraordinary force in the growth and success of Circle X Theatre Co. His managerial excellence and artistic vision have been exemplary and we will be forever indebted to him. As sad as we are to be losing Tim, we are thrilled to be able to hand the reins to an artist of the caliber of Kate Jopson. She is the perfect fit for our artistic vision and we look forward to a long and fruitful relationship."

ABOUT KATE JOPSON

Kate Jopson is the incoming Artistic Director (formerly Associate Artistic Director) of Circle X Theatre. She specializes in experienced-based productions, staging work in historic houses, beaches, barns, and basements among others. In theatres, she uses the unique location or architecture to enhance the production. Directing Credits Include: Candide (Santa Cruz Shakespeare); Fefu & Her Friends (Circle X Theatre/J.U.S.T Toys Productions, LA); 1984 (Greenway Court Theatre, LA); An Accident (Griot Theatre, LA), Twelfth Night(Coeurage Theatre Co. LA); Second Skin (The West/The Flagship Ensemble); A Willow Grows Aslant (La Jolla Playhouse-Without Walls Fest.); A Midsummer Night's Dream, A Doll House, Casagemas, Elizabeth I, Cry Old Kingdom (UCSD); Jesus, She Said (Marin Fringe Festival: Critic's Choice, Best Director). Formerly, Experience Director for Heidi Duckler Dance Theatre and Associate Artistic Director of Woman's Will in the Bay Area. Additionally, she has produced a short documentary with Stick Figure Productions and has a short film and web opera being released in 2018. B.A UC Berkeley; M.F.A in Directing from UC San Diego. www.katejopson.com.

ABOUT "AN UNDIVIDED HEART"

Next up for Circle X will be An Undivided Heart which is a co-production with Echo Theater Company and will feature both Bob Clendenin and Tim Wright. It runs March 16 through April 22 at the Atwater Village Theatre, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m.; Sundays at 4 p.m.; and Mondays at 8 p.m. Two preview performances are set for Wednesday, March 14 and Thursday, March 15, both at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $34 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and $20 on Mondays. Preview performances are Pay-What-You-Want. Atwater Village Theatre is located at 3269 Casitas Ave in Los Angeles, CA 90039. On-site parking is free. For reservations and information, go to http://www.echotheatercompany.com.