OUR ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

CRAIG JOSEPH

A native of Ohio, Craig was bitten by the theater bug at an early age, and could be found producing short plays with the neighborhood kids. Through annual backyard productions of The Wizard of Oz, he received his earliest exposure to acting, directing, and creating a whole new world through design.

After receiving a fantastic arts education in Plain Local Schools, Craig pursued his Bachelors in English and Theology at Wake Forest University, and then went on to receive a Masters in Theatre from Northwestern University. A 13-year sojourn in Chicago and Minneapolis garnered him professional directing and dramaturgical credits with Writers Theatre, White Horse Theatre, Rogue Theatre, and TimeLine Theatre, among others. Contemporaneously, he acted occasionally and wrote several plays and a screenplay. In addition to his theatrical involvement, Craig held a variety of “big boy” jobs in church and educational contexts as a youth pastor, associate pastor, arts educator, and college professor.

A surprise move back home to Ohio in 2009 propelled Craig in some new directions. He founded and was the curator of Translations Art Gallery, and served as the Creative Director for two different branding and identity agencies. He was also pleasantly surprised to discover the vibrancy of the Northeast Ohio theatre scene, and continued to tell stories on the stage, garnering directing credits with the Players Guild, Weathervane Playhouse, the Canton and Akron symphonies, Playwrights Local, Aurora Theatre, ResonanceWorks, and Clague Playhouse. Additionally, Craig has rediscovered a love of acting; now in his forties, he finally has enough life experience to play the roles he’s been cast in since he was 18.

The culmination of this theatrical renaissance in Craig’s life occurred in 2012, when he founded Seat of the Pants Productions as a way to stage plays that weren’t getting produced elsewhere and to experiment with techniques and processes that required a bit more time and energy. Little did he know that his “passion project” would resonate with artists and audiences alike and grow into something bigger - what you see before you today.

In addition to his time with Seat of the Pants, Craig is currently the Literary Director at Cleveland Play House, and is a certified teacher of the Chekhov Technique through the Great Lakes Michael Chekhov Consortium.

He’s endlessly grateful to his friends, family, and the viewing public for their support of the arts.