About Me

Zhi Qu （Pronunciation: Chih-Ch’v） is an active stage director, actor, and interdisciplinary artist who was made in Beijing, China, and is currently based in New York City. Working across both English and Chinese, his artistic practices span theatre, musical theatre, opera, dance, classical concert, and large-scale galas, with a particular interest in cross-cultural storytelling and experimental expressions on stage. He also has over 15 years of stage experience as a performer and two years of professional directing experience. 

Being both a director and a performer allows him to approach storytelling from multiple vantage points—combining structural vision with emotional intuition. As a director, he is drawn to the layering of voice, picturing, and movement. He perceives theatre as a space where abstract thinking and emotional clarity can coexist, where language can be deconstructed and reassembled through gesture, rhythm, and silence. His work often explores dualities—tradition and avant-garde, intimacy and alienation, East and West…and he strives to create stage experiences that are resonant, intuitional, and alive. These particularities make him a unique voice in New York’s Chinese and bilingual theatre scenes. 

Zhi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Philosophy from the University of California, Santa Barbara, where he also trained in classical voice and opera performance under renowned soprano Dr. Isabel Bayrakdarian in the UCSB Music Department. He later came to New York and earned a Master’s degree in Performing Arts Administration from NYU Steinhardt with coursework across NYU Stern & Wagner in Financial Accounting, arts law, marketing, fundraising, and general management, with one year of professional directing training from the Education Theater Program as well.

When Zhi’s not in rehearsal, you’ll probably find him flipping through crates of old vinyls, brewing double-shot espresso, or experimenting with new recipes over a glass of wine. He enjoys good gelato in any season, keeps his camera within arm’s reach, and surrounds himself with incense, houseplants, and hand-written notes. He believes in long dinners, quiet mornings and midnights, and the kind of life moment that lingers long after it ends.