CHRIS SIMMONS
Nordonia Drama Advisor Director, Fall Musical, Winter Play and Spring Musical Advisor, International Thespian Troupe 2802 Chris Simmons (he/him) is a graduate of Nordonia High School, Class of 2004. He has since earned bachelor's degrees in Education and Theatre Arts at The University of Akron. In 2013, he completed his Master's of Arts in Education. Chris has been involved with Nordonia Drama in some capacity since he graduated high school. Originally a production assistant and backstage coordinator, he moved up to the role of Assistant Director for 2011's Beauty and the Beast and then assumed the role of Director of Drama for the 2013-2014 school year. He has directed the fall play since 2012 and made his Nordonia spring musical directorial debut in 2014 with The Wedding Singer. 2024 will mark his twentieth musical with Nordonia Drama as a member of the production staff, his twenty-fourth consecutive musical overall. During his time at Nordonia, Chris is honored to have been a three-time recipient of the Nordonia Schools Foundation Superintendent's Award, as well as the recipient of a Dazzle Award from Playhouse Square. In addition to Drama at Nordonia, Chris is still active throughout northeast Ohio as an actor, director, and properties designer. Some of his favorite roles have included: Guys and Dolls (Nicely Nicely Johnson), Aida (Zoser), the northeast Ohio premiere of The Gospel According to Tammy Faye (Jerry Falwell), Godspell, A Christmas Carol (Ebenezer Scrooge), The Taming of the Shrew (Tranio), A Midsummer Night's Dream (Bottom), and Big River, for which he earned an American College Theatre Festival Irene Ryan nomination for his portrayal of The King. His directorial credits include: Puffs, The Wizard of Oz, Oklahoma!, Little Shop of Horrors, Once Upon a Mattress, Elton John and Tim Rice's Aida, Disney's The Little Mermaid, The Importance of Being Earnest, The Crucible, Almost, Maine, Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella, Much Ado About Nothing, Willy Wonka, and Les Misérables. Chris is active as a director, actor and properties designer at several area theatres including: Rubber City Theatre and Buckeye Community Theatre. He has also been involved with Rubber City Theatre, based out of Akron, since their inception in 2013, having served on their Board of Directors from 2015 until 2023. |