Tyrone Phillips

Director, The Royale

Tyrone Phillips is the founding artistic director of Chicago’s Definition Theatre, a culturally diverse ensemble company dedicated to producing and archiving creative projects in underrepresented communities, and currently leading a capital campaign for Definition’s new theater, community center, and entrepreneur incubator in Woodlawn. Recipient of the 2022 Alumni Award for Diversity and Inclusion, he is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and has studied abroad at Shakespeare’s Globe. As a first generation Jamaican-American, Tyrone is passionate about equity and accessibility in the fine arts industry and has completed advanced anti-racism training to lead change. Select theater credits: Definition Theatre, Chicago Shakespeare, Goodman, Steppenwolf, Writers, Old Globe, Berkeley Rep, Milwaukee Rep, and Stage 42 (off-broadway). Select film/television credits include Trevor the Musical (Disney +), The Red Line (CBS), Boss (Starz), Chicago Justice (NBC), Divergent, Gimmick, Intersection, America v 2.1 (Definition), "Don't Settle" (DiGiorno's commercial), “Mario-Kart Happy Meal” (McDonald’s commercial). Tyrone is currently adjunct faculty at DePaul University and the University of Illinois - Chicago while also serving on the Board of Directors for the League of Chicago Theaters. Most recently he received the Arts Midwest Inaugural Peter Capell Award for Midwestern Creativity and Entrepreneurship and is a proud member of NAACP, SAG-AFTRA, and SDC.