HARRY TURPIN

About Harry Turpin

Harry Turpin is a theatre director, producer, choreographer, performer, writer, teaching artist, and coach with more than two decades of experience creating and championing theatrical work. His career has taken him from national tours and professional stages to community theatres, classrooms, rehearsal halls, and boardrooms, but his passion has remained the same: bringing people together through storytelling.

At the heart of Harry’s work is a belief that theatre should be both artistically ambitious and deeply human. He is known for creating collaborative rehearsal rooms where performers are encouraged to take risks, ask questions, and discover authentic connections to the material. His approach centers on curiosity, empathy, and truth, with a particular commitment to inclusive casting practices and expanding opportunities for artists from historically marginalized communities. Harry believes that the strongest productions emerge when artists are empowered to bring their full selves into the room and when audiences are invited to see themselves reflected onstage.

As a director, Harry has built a diverse body of work spanning classic musicals, contemporary theatre, new works, and theatre for young audiences. His production of Little Shop of Horrors received the Gregory Award for Outstanding Director (People’s Choice) and Outstanding Production of a Musical. His work on The Who’s Tommy earned BroadwayWorld Awards for Best Director and Best Choreographer, while productions such as Sweet Charity, Fly By Night, and Guys and Dolls received additional directing and choreography recognition. Other directing credits include Anything Goes, White Christmas, Beehive, Once on This Island, The Pajama Game, All Shook Up, Beauty and the Beast, Hello, Dolly!, Legally Blonde, The Music Man, City of Angels, Grease, West Side Story, The Gifts of the Magi, and multiple productions of Bye Bye Birdie. His work for young audiences includes Elephant & Piggie: We Are in a Play!, Waiting for Alice, Flat Stanley, Really Rosie, and The Wizard of Oz.

Harry’s work extends beyond directing. As a performer, he appeared in the 30th Anniversary National Tour and Special Broadway Engagement of Annie and has portrayed a wide range of roles including Bobby in Company, Frank-N-Furter in The Rocky Horror Show, Judge Turpin in Sweeney Todd, Paul in A Chorus Line, Bert in Mary Poppins, Seymour in Little Shop of Horrors, and Lun Tha in The King and I. His experience as an actor continues to inform his work as a director, giving him a deep appreciation for the vulnerability, courage, and discipline required of performers.

As a writer and songwriter, Harry’s work has been featured on Jennifer Paz’s album Awakening and Katie Tomlinson’s Original Passion. His songs appeared in the original musical Bedlam at the Burgerhaus, written with longtime collaborator Stacie Hart. Together they also created the original musical Come On, Get Tappy! and the web special The 1st Annual Plumpkin Family COVID Christmas Special.

A passionate mentor and educator, Harry has coached performers at every stage of their artistic journey, from first-time auditionees to seasoned professionals. His coaching focuses on helping actors connect personally to their material, uncover the story beneath the text, and communicate with honesty and specificity. He is particularly passionate about helping performers find confidence in their own voice rather than imitating what they think a director wants to see.

In 2015, Harry co-founded Reboot Theatre Company and served as President of the Board for more than a decade, helping guide the organization through a period of significant artistic and organizational growth. During that time, he also hosted Reboot rePresents, a web series that explored accessibility, representation, equity, and the future of theatre. The series became an important platform for conversation and connection within the Seattle theatre community during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Whether directing a large-scale musical, developing new work, coaching an actor, or collaborating with fellow artists, Harry is driven by a simple belief: great theatre begins with people. He strives to create spaces where artists can do their best work, where audiences can see themselves reflected in the stories being told, and where the act of gathering together in a theatre can foster empathy, connection, and understanding.

Harry is also the proud father of his son, Taylor, whose creativity, humor, and perspective continue to inspire him every day.