“Palmer’s expertise as a director is everywhere evident…” - Carol Wells, The Oregonian

My Approach To Directing

“Suit the action to the word, the word to the action, with this special observance, that you o'erstep not the modesty of nature: for any thing so o'erdone is from the purpose of playing, whose end, both at the first and now, was and is, to hold as 'twere the mirror up to nature: to show virtue her feature, scorn her own image, and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure…” - Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 2

It is my belief that theatrical texts are living documents that, when respected and embraced as such, have incredible power to emotionally move and intellectually engage theatre artists and audiences. Good theatre can help us understand our past, look closely at our present, and influence our future. Great theatre must do more; it must hold the mirror up to nature (represent the diverse lives and experiences of our community), show virtue her feature (celebrate and promote those values that support peace and understanding), scorn her image (denounce hatred and divisiveness) and the very age and body of the time his form and pressure (engage, fearlessly, with social, political, spiritual and economic realities of the day).

Historically, I have been most drawn to the classics and, of those, most often Shakespeare and his contemporaries. I have an enormous intellectual curiosity about Shakespeare’s work and the work of his lesser known (but in some cases more accomplished) Elizabethan colleagues and more recently find myself drawn to post-Elizabethan adaptations of Shakespeare that, oftentimes, eclipsed the Bard’s original work. These texts still speak to me, and to the challenges of our times. My experiences living and working in the United Kingdom and New Zealand also developed in me a fascination for new and emerging work from those countries which has, in turn, translated into a powerful interest in new American writing. Of particular interest to me are what I consider to be “rhetorical” playwrights; those who play with the conventions of language and narrative in new and compelling ways.

My passion is to work with actors, designers and professional theatre practitioners to crack open and examine, anew, the most influential plays, authors and stories of our collective histories (both classical and contemporaries).

Directorially, my training is grounded in the work of Max Reinhardt and Constantin Stanislavsky, but, practically speaking, my directing style is most aligned with the philosophy of Peter Brook.

Brook (although a complicated thinker and practitioner) has, at his core, three basic directorial principles.

• First, theatre is about storytelling and the director’s job is to facilitate, promote and encourage excellence in storytelling by supporting actors and providing insight, new skills and different ways of engaging actors in their craft.

• Second, simplicity is key. Brook often refers to the maxim of the infamous French chef, Escoffier; faites simple (keep it simple). Anything that is on stage must be in service to the story and the storytelling; everything else is excess. For Brook, this does not mean empty stages; rather it means a joyful, joyous representation of feeling, mood, and tone reflected in staging, costumes, lighting, and set…all of which is in service to the story.

• Third, and without question the most important for Brook and for me, is a deep and abiding respect for the audience. One must never think of a theatre audience as passive; theatre audiences are listeners, participants, critics, analysts, and influencers. As Brook says, “the relationship between the actor and the audience is the only theatre reality.”

Brook describes himself not as a guru, not as a commander, and not as the final arbiter of taste or truth. Rather, Brook talks about himself as a searcher, an explorer and as a traveler.

There is no doctrine in theatre, no dogma; there is only a search for the best way to tell a great story in a way that moves, inspires, and engages your audience.

Directing History

  • Apples In Winter, Jennifer Fawcett, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2023)

  • The Last White Man, Bill Cain, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (10/22)

  • The Niceties, Eleanor Burgess, Company Of Fools, Idaho (02/2020)

  • Miss Bennett, Christmas At Pemberley, Lauren Gunderson, Company of Fools, Idaho (12/19)

  • Crimes Of The Heart, Beth Henley, Company of Fools, Idaho (6/19)

  • Bell, Book, and Candle, John Van Druten, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/18)

  • Deathtrap, Ira Levin, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (10/18)

  • Blithe Spirit, Noel Coward, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (5/18)

  • Charles Dickens Writes A Christmas Carol, Palmer/Dickens, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/17)

  • Farndale Avenue…Murder At Checkmate Manor, McGillvray/Zerling, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (10/17)

  • Spinning Into Butter, Rebecca Gilman, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (08/17)

  • Romeo&Juliet (Layla&Majnun), William Shakespeare and Nizami Ganjavi, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (07/17)

  • The Graduate, Buck Henry, Terry Johnson, Charles Webb, and Calder Willingham (08/12016)

  • The Drowning Girls, Beth Graham, Daniela Vlaskalic, and Charlie Tomlinson (10/16)

  • Parfumerie, Miklos Laszlo (12/16)

  • Coriolanus, Or The Roman Matron, Thomas Sheridan, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (07/2016)

  • Moby Dick, Rehearsed, adapted by Orson Welles, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2016)

  • A KBNB Kristmas Karol, original adaptation, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2015)

  • Richard III, original adaptation, Bag&Bagagge Productions, Oregon (07/2015)

  • Our Country’s Good, Timberlake Wertenbaker, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (05/2015)

  • The Six Gentlepersons Of Verona, original adaptation, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2015)

  • A Miracle on 43rd Street, original adaptation, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2014)

  • The Crucible, Arthur Miller, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (09/2014)

  • Private Lives, Noel Coward, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (05/2014)

  • It’s A (Somewhat) Wonderful Life, original adaptation, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2013)

  • The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, adapted by Simon Levy, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (09/2013)

  • Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare (original adaptation, all female cast), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (08/2013)

  • Rough Crossing, Tom Stoppard. Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (05/2013)

  • The Merry Wives of Windsor, or the Amorous Adventures Of the Comical Knight Sir John Falstaff¸ William Shakespeare and John Dennis (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2013)

  • Kabuki-Titus, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (07/2012)

  • Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (09/2012)

  • The Farndale Avenue Town Women’s Guild Dramatic Society’s Production of A Christmas Carol by David McGillivray and Walter Zerling, Jr., Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2012)

  • A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2011)

  • Crimes of the Heart, Beth Henley, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon  (10/2011)

  • The Tempest, or the Enchanted Isle, John Dryden and William Davenant (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (06/2011)

  • Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (06/2010)

  • The Taming of the Shrew/The Woman’s Prize, William Shakespeare and John Fletcher (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2010)

  • A Christmas Carol, Charles Dickens (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2009)

  • Death of A Salesman, Arthur Miller, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (10/2009)

  • The Importance of Being Earnest, Oscar Wilde, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (05/2009)

  • The Comedy of Errors, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (03/2009)

  • The Eight, Reindeer Monologues, Jeff Goode, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (12/2008)

  • Steel Magnolias, Robert Harling, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon (10/2008)

  • A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), OSU Theatre, Corvallis, Oregon (06/2008)

  • Much Ado About Nothing, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), OSU Theatre, Corvallis, Oregon   (08/2007)

  • Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare, OSU Theatre, Corvallis, Oregon (8/2006)

  • The Silent Woman, Ben Jonson, OSU Theatre, Corvallis, Oregon (4/2006)

  • Just One More Dance, Adrian Osmond, Holocaust Memorial Week, Corvallis, Oregon (03/2006)

  • Private Lives, Noel Coward, Salem Repertory Theatre, Salem, Oregon (02/2006)

  • Blithe Spirit, Noel Coward, The Majestic Theatre, Corvallis, Oregon (10/2005)

  • Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged, Reduced Shakespeare Company, Bag&Baggage Productions, Oregon tour (09/2005)

  • Lear, (based on King Lear) William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (06/2005)

  • Complete Works of Shakespeare Abridged, Reduced Shakespeare Company, Salem Repertory Theatre, Oregon (05/2005)

  • Infinite Variety, Shakespeare Showcase, Oregon State University, Scotland (04/2005)

  • Richard III, William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (06/2004)

  • Infinite Variety, Shakespeare showcase, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (06/2004)

  • Infinite Variety, Shakespeare showcase, New Zealand National Drama School (03/2004)

  • Henry V, William Shakespeare (original adaptation), Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (06/2003)

  • Antony and Cleopatra, William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (06/2003)

  • Kabuki-Titus (based on Titus Andronicus), Perth International Festival Theatre, Scotland (05/2003)

  • Lear (based on King Lear), William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (11/2002)

  • Kabuki-Titus (based on Titus Andronicus), Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (07/2002)

  • The Tempest, William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (07/2002)

  • As You Like It, William Shakespeare, Glasgow Repertory Company, Scotland (07/2002)