Mitchell Thomas

Mitchell Thomas is an assistant professor and Chair of the Westmont College Theatre Arts Department. He recently appeared in The Memory of Water with the Ensemble Theatre Company and the American premiere of the Finnish play Queen C at the Lit Moon World Theater Festival. Mitchell played the title role in the award-winning Lit Moon/Westmont College co-production of Richard II for its Santa Barbara run as well as the international tour in Poland, for which he received an “Indie” award for performance. Recent directing projects have focused on the generation of new plays, working directly with playwrights. He served as the curator and producer of The Car Play Project, which featured sixteen original plays written, acted, and directed by Westmont students. He also directed, acted, and produced the world premiere of The Earthquake Predictor Rides the Bus for the Santa Barbara Off Axis Festival. He also commissioned and directed the world premiere of Rogue by the renowned experimental playwright Erik Ehn, which was subsequently invited to play at the 2006 Lit Moon World Shakespeare Festival. Before coming to Westmont, Mitchell was performing in Seattle and Los Angeles, and has appeared at the South Coast Repertory Theatre, A Noise Within, the Pasadena Playhouse, Circle X, Blank Theatre Company, the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Idaho Repertory Theatre, Interplayers, and PCPA Theaterfest. He is also a member of AEA (Actors Equity Association) and SAG (Screen Actors Guild), the professional performing unions for Theatre and Film/TV. Mitchell has taught acting workshops in Poland and the United States, and has extensive experience in the Alexander Technique, Suzuki Training, Linklater and Fitzmaurice Voice work, Clowning, Stage Combat, Viewpoints, Skinner Releasing, Low Flying Trapeze, Improvisation, and many of the more traditional acting techniques. Mitchell received his MFA from the University of Washington Professional Actor Training Program in Seattle, WA.