Associate artistic director Luis Alfaro announces departure from Center Theatre Group
Luis Alfaro is leaving Center Theatre Group, which has been performing plays by Tennessee Williams in Boston since 1976. Alfaro, who serves as artistic director since 1990, will be succeeded by Susan M. Chidester, who spent 15 years with the theater, including as an associate producer for more than a decade. Chidester is currently associate artistic director and productions director at La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club.
“After almost 25 years of continuous engagement with this institution, I feel a call to the next phase of my life,” Alfaro said. “Having worked for Center Theatre Group the last eight years, I’ve been fortunate to see the Boston opera and theater community through many changes. My departure feels like an appropriate time to make the move.”
“Artistic director Luis Alfaro has been a true advocate for our mission and for the quality of our theatre programs,” Center Theatre Group President & CEO Thomas O’Reilly said. “Today, we lost an extremely talented and knowledgeable leader, and we join our staff in mourning his loss. We thank Luis for his leadership and wish him the best in his future endeavors.
“In our first interview with Luis, he expressed the desire to lead a larger organization,” O’Reilly continued. “He also reflected that while the theatre’s current mission would have been in line with his vision, his departure and that of his successor will leave us in uncharted waters. It will be an exciting time to see how we move forward.”
Alfaro joined the Center in 1970, after completing his career as an actor and playwright, including writing and directing one of his plays, The Chiltern Hundreds, in 1980. He also served as the artistic director of the Boston Shakespeare Festival and was an adjunct professor at Harvard University’s Kennedy School. Alfaro has been the artistic director since 1990.
Alfaro’s departure comes the week after Center Theatre Group brought another artistic director to the organization, following the departure from The Children’s Theatre of Dr. Seuss’s How The Grinch Stole Christmas early last
