“It starts from listening” – An Introduction to CTC’s New Artistic Director, Rick Dildine

Headshot of CTC’s New Artistic Director, Rick Dildine.
Rick Dildine. Photo by Wesley Law

When Rick Dildine first interviewed at the Children’s Theatre Company, he couldn’t shake off a very particular thought: “I think I found my people.”

I had the chance to catch up with Dildine just over a month after he began his role as the theater’s Artistic Director, and he said that that initial gut feeling has been validated.

“That [feeling has] rung true in the first month,” he affirms. “I think I found my people.”

Our conversation covered his first month and a half at the Children’s Theatre, his goals for his work with CTC, and how he is adjusting to life as a Minnesotan.

Unsurprisingly, Dildine has a rich background in the arts. He has worked at several colleges and theaters. His most recent work was in two back-to-back roles as an Artistic Director for two separate Shakespeare festivals. The first of these roles was at the Shakespeare Festival in St. Louis, where he stayed for nearly ten years. The second was at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival, where he worked for just over five years.

In both roles, he was recognized as a vital member not only of the organization he was serving but also of the communities those organizations were part of — both arts and otherwise. His work at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival made great strides in diversifying its audience and artists through many methods, including reaching young BIPOC artists with partnerships built with public schools and colleges.

Moving to CTC is exciting for Dildine. “I’m at a place in my life where the most important thing I can be doing as an artist is making something for young people — it is the most noble task an artist can undertake,” Dildine says, then pauses. “CTC has an incredible reputation … its commitment to creating for young people and their community, its rigorous thoughtful work that speaks to young people and their communities.”

Dildine views his role as CTC’s Artistic Director first and foremost as one grounded heavily in understanding the context in which the theater already exists. In his first month, he has focused on listening to people involved in and passionate about this theater. This priority is even visible in the way he conceptualized the redesign of his office.

“I think space dictates motion. I wanted to create a space that people want to come to,” he explains, moving out of the way so his webcam can focus on the cluster of chairs just behind his desk, awash in natural light. “It’s lovely — it’s more of a sitting space now because I wanted artists and our staff to want to come here and brainstorm ideas.”

As far as any changes he might make or visions that he has as Artistic Director, Dildine says, “It’s too early for me to say anything specific.” He smiles thoughtfully before he continues. “Visioning is going to take a little while … The most important job of an artistic director is to listen to the community and then as elegantly as possible put together a slate of shows that respond to that community. It starts from listening.”

Dildine has enjoyed digging in on that process at CTC. “One of the unique things about CTC is that we have a lot of long-serving folks,” Dildine says. “That speaks to the culture of this place: the impact of its mission. It’s been so rewarding to walk the halls and hear from folks who have been here for twenty to thirty years.”

These conversations often include an easy icebreaker that deftly gets to the heart of the organization: What are the three things that every CTC show has?

“It has been wonderful to hear people’s anecdotes and stories,” he says with a smile. “Art, magic — a theatrical element that can’t be captured on screen. [Everyone here has] great passion around creating stories that are inclusive of this community we service.”

The groundwork left by previous Artistic Director Peter Brosius does not go unappreciated. “What I think Peter B was so brilliant at was using this building to create community,” muses Dildine. “I want to keep the theater a place where real conversations happen that center young people. I’m particularly interested in programming outside of our core … so I’m thinking about under five and teens.”

Dildine continues: “There is some exciting work happening for those groups … Theater for the very young is inventive and rewarding and it’s important to be with young people in their teenage years. For me, those were some pretty tumultuous years.”

There are already works in process that align with this goal. For example, “Drawing Lessons”, which will run at CTC from October 8 through November 10, is an innovative, visually stunning story about a Korean American girl and visual artist who is grappling with her identity. This play is targeted at upper elementary-aged students all the way through high school.

“This is the first play to have a full-scale production from a large commission program that we are a part of called Generation Now,” Dildine says. “Theater for multi-generational audiences can be euro-centric and Generation Now seeks to grow the canon of work for young people — specifically BIPOC audiences.”

Dildine, his husband, and their tuxedo cat (Abraham Lincoln) have enjoyed acclimating to the Twin Cities so far.

“My husband and I got a place in the North Loop,” Dildine says. “The city is phenomenal. The people are lovely. There is so much to do here.”

When we chatted, Dildine listed off several favorite dining establishments (Bellecour Bakery and Billy Sushi topped the list) and mentioned his delight upon realizing that Stonewall Sports is in the Twin Cities.

“I was so excited to know that there is a Stonewall league here,” he says. “I’m looking forward to meeting [the] LGTBQ community.”

Of course, Dildine and his husband (who works in the museum business) have also been dipping into the local arts scene. The pair was especially impressed by the Keith Haring exhibit that recently closed at the Walker.

“I hope queer people get to go see that. It’s such an important part of our history,” Dildine says.

The passion that Dildine has for building and plugging into already existing communities was palpable throughout my conversation with him and is clearly a core part of his personality — not just his professional identity. He is enthusiastic about the new chapter he and his husband are starting here in the Twin Cities, both as artistic professionals and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

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