Chris Thorpe is a writer and performer from Manchester, where he has an ongoing association with the Royal Exchange Theatre – work for them includes There Has Possibly Been An Incident and The Mysteries. Other theatre work includes Victory Condition and The Milk of Human Kindness for the Royal Court, Chorus for the Gate Theatre and Hannah, Beowulf and one of Aesop’s Fables for the Unicorn. He also has ongoing collaborations with Rachel Chavkin produced by China Plate (Confrmation/Status), Lucy Ellinson (TORYCORE), Portugal’s malavoadora (Overdrama/House-Garden/Dead End/Your Best Guess) and Hannah Jane Walker (The Oh Fuck Moment/I Wish I Was Lonely) Chris was a founder member of Unlimited Theatre, is an Associate of Live Art/Theatre company Third Angel and has worked frequently with Forest Fringe. Chris also collaborates with Rachel Bagshaw, writing the award-winning The Shape of the Pain, recently adapted for BBC as Where I Go (When I Can't Be Where I Am). He has also worked as a translator, most frequently with Serbian playwright Ugljesa Sajtinac and Belarus Free Theatre. His short film for the Royal Court and the Financial Times about the climate crisis, What Do You Want Me To Say? was released in September 2019.
Current work includes the Methuen Climate Commission for the Royal Court, Dying for mala voadora and the National Theatre of Portugal, Tell Me, for HOME Manchester, co-written with Yusra Warsama, a new piece for Nationaltheater Mannheim in collaboration with Javaad Alipoor, Hold Out Your Hand, a play for young performers produced by Scottish company Wonder Fools and the Traverse Theatre, and A Family Business, his next collaboration with Rachel Chavkin. He also works closely with the National Student Drama Festival.
