Tim Butterfield

Tim Butterfield holds a B.A. in Theater from Brooklyn College, an M.F.A. in Directing from the New School for Drama and works regularly as a director, writer, and fight director. He has worked Off-Broadway, Off-off Broadway and regionally. Over the years, Tim has specialized in directing, fight direction, creating devised work and script consulting. 

Tim began his career in theater at the age of nine in productions throughout the valley. He worked in every major theater in Arizona in capacities both in front of and behind the curtain before pursuing degrees in the field. Tim was a co-founder and Producing Director of Nearly Naked Theater and Artistic Director for both Theaterscape and Is What it Is Theater. He worked as a designer (lighting, sound, costume and scenic) for The Actor’s Group, Arizona Theater Company, Theater Works and many others. Tim also worked as a carpenter for Actor’s Theater of Phoenix, The Shakespeare Theater, Nearly Naked Theater, Is What it Is Theater and Theater Works. Drawing on his training from the Utah Shakespearean Festival, Tim has also amassed a sizable list of Fight Direction credits in the valley.

Wanting to further his studies and hone his craft, Tim studied at Scottsdale Community College before moving to New York. While in New York he earned a B.A. in Theater from Brooklyn College and an M.F.A. in Directing from the New School for Drama. At the New School, he was fortunate enough to work with such respected and accomplished artists as Joe Mantello , Eric Bogosian, Diane Paulus, John Robin-Baitz, Jennifer Tipton, Baz Lurhman, Chay Yew, K. Jenny Jones, J. Ed Araiza, Trip Cullman, Morgan Jenness, Doug Hughes, and Sarah Benson.

 Tim continued his varied pursuits in the theater in New York. He served as Artistic Director for Wide Eyed Productions and Literary Manager for Rising Sun Performance Company. Tim worked Off and Off-off Broadway as both Director and Fight Director. He broke into film with his direction of many projects, including two short films and a parody video for Funny Or Die. Tim worked to celebrate the work of other artists by partnering with the New York Innovative Theater Foundation, where he directed the NYIT awards show for the past several years.

While in New York, Tim taught classes, workshops and has lectured for various educational and private institutions. Some subjects he has taught are Stage Combat, Playwriting, Dramaturgy, Acting, Meyerhold & Biomechanics, and Creating Devised Work. His method of providing feedback for artists, especially young playwrights, was sought out to lead talk-back and development sessions for many writers and NY theaters.