Monthly Archives: August 2014

Cincinnati Shakespeare’s Producing Artistic Director Brian Isaac Phillips named one of Business Courier’s Forty Under 40 Winners

The Business Courier has announced this year’s class of Forty Under 40 winners!

Brian Isaac Phillips.

CINCINNATI,— August 6, 2014— Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is proud to announce the nomination of their Producing Artistic Director, Brian Isaac Phillips as a member of the Business Courier’s Forty Under 40 class. The program recognizes Greater Cincinnati’s next generation of young leaders and innovators — people who have already made a mark professionally and in the community.  The Forty Under 40 winners, along with this year’s Second Act honorees, will be recognized at a luncheon Sept. 30 at Music Hall, 1241 Elm St. downtown Cincinnati.

Producing Artistic Director, Brian Isaac Phillips, has been with the company for sixteen seasons.  He also just celebrated his 11th season of artistic leadership of Cincinnati Shakespeare Company.  He was named Producing Artistic Director in 2010 after being Artistic Director since 2003. Prior to these responsibilities, he served with the organization as Associate Artistic Director for one season, as well as four seasons as a member of the acting company. He is a proud member of Actor’s Equity Association and the Stage Director’s and Choreographer’s Society. Mr. Phillips, originally from Pittsburgh, is a graduate of Morehead State University and has been a resident of Cincinnati for sixteen years. In that time he has worked for Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, Ensemble Theatre Cincinnati, Cincinnati Opera, Cincinnati Ballet, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, The Children’s Theatre, Know Theatre of Cincinnati, New Stage Collective, as well as over 100 productions with CSC. He also has worked regionally at theatres in North Carolina, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Kentucky and Northern Ohio. Most recent credits include The Two Noble Kinsmen, Henry IV pts. 1 and 2, Hamlet, The 39 Steps, Measure for Measure, Richard II, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Grapes of Wrath, Henry VIII: All is True, Macbeth, A Man for All Seasons, Bedroom Farce, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, The Handmaid’s Tale (world premiere), The Life and Death of King John, Dracula, Blithe Spirit, Krapp’s Last Tape,  Amadeus, Timon of Athens, The Seagull, Long Day’s Journey Into Night, King Lear, and Cymbeline. He upcoming credits includeThe Great Gatsby, The Birds, Waiting for Godot and Henry V, all appearing on CSC’s stage this season.

Outside of CSC, Mr. Phillips has recently been seen onstage in Collapse at Know Theatre, Porgy and Bess at Cincinnati Opera, as well as The Seafarer and Dead Man’s Cell Phone at Ensemble Theatre. Mr. Phillips will also appear in the film Miles Ahead featuring Don Cheadle and Ewan McGregor which will be released in 2015.  He staged Know Theatre’s recent productions of When the Rain Stops Falling and Angels in America: Millennium Approaches, directed the Xavier University/CSC collaboration of The Crucible and served as dramaturg on Cincinnati Ballet’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

In addition to this 2014 nomination, he was named a finalist for the 2013 class of Forty Under 40 and a finalist for the Ohio Governors’ Arts Awards. On May 3, 2013, Mr. Phillips was recognized by Mayor Mark Mallory and the City of Cincinnati for his decade of achievement and service at CSC.  Mr. Phillips is honored that CSC was named as a finalist the past three years for Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce’s Non Profit of the Year Award and was named Best of 2013 by the Cincinnati Enquirer. He is thrilled to have led CSC to becoming one of the first five theatres in the United States to have produced Shakespeare’s complete 38 play canon and to have personally completed the canon as well. The completion of the canon and CSC’s 20th Anniversary milestone were recognized by Mayor John Cranley and the City of Cincinnati on April 23, 2014 when that day was proclaimed Cincinnati Shakespeare Company Day.

Brian lives in Cincinnati with his wife, Corinne Mohlenhoff and their two children, Holden & Annabel.

For additional information or for interviews, contact Jeanna Vella, Director of Education and Communications as jeanna.vella@cincyshakes.com or 513.381.2273 ext. 3202.

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About Cincinnati Shakespeare Company:

Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is a professional theatre company dedicated to bringing Shakespeare and the classics to life for audiences of all ages.  Located in the heart of downtown Cincinnati, CSC produces a dozen mainstage productions each season.  The repertoire is made up of the works of William Shakespeare, literary adaptations and contemporary classics. CSC performs on a Small Professional Theatre contract with Actors’ Equity Association. Cincinnati Shakespeare is a member of the Theater Communications Group and the Shakespeare Theater Association.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s Education and Outreach Programs reached nearly 30,000 young people and underserved community members last season by taking Shakespeare into schools, parks, community centers and by hosting educational matinees of mainstage productions at its home on Race Street.  Last season, CSC was proud to become one of the first five theaters in the United States to “Complete the Canon” by producing all 38 plays by William Shakespeare. CSC is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization and all donations are tax deductible.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is proud to be Cincinnati’s stage for the classics!

About the 2014-2015 Season:

This season is generously sponsored by The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company receives operating support from The Ohio Arts Council, the Shubert Foundation and is supported, in part, by the generosity of thousands of individuals and businesses that give annually to ArtsWave.  Cincinnati Shakespeare Company’s production of “Henry V” is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.  The season design sponsor is Mark & Sue Ann Painter.  The Ohio Arts Council helped fund this program/organization with state tax dollars to encourage economic growth, educational excellence and cultural enrichment for all Ohioans. Production dates and information on the season are available online atwww.cincyshakes.com.