Scenes From American Life

Chris Childs

(2010) Chris Childs (these days, Christopher) acted, designed, and/or directed shows with the Players between 1970 and 1987. He transited from amateur to professional theatre during that period, for which he greatly credits the influence of many of the Players he worked with – including Bill and Belle McDonald, David and Louise Hannegan, and Paul Barstow – who had professional training and/or experience themselves; in 1974, he premiered in Concord the original one-man show Clear Sky, Pure Light: an Evening with Henry David Thoreau (also published as a book in 1979 by Penmaen Press) which he later expanded, toured nationwide, and still occasionally performs as a benefit for worthy causes. He also acted in scores of plays around New England, in California, and in Minnesota, as well as in various films and TV productions including several made for PBS' American Playhouse; he served as a member of the Theater Advisory Panel to the Mass. Council on the Arts and Humanities from 1977-80, and was the Panel's first non-staff Chair in 1981.

Christopher moved from acting to activism in the 1980s, becoming the award-winning national lecturer for the U.S. branch of Greenpeace between 1988 and 1996; a published author (The Spirit's Terrain; Beacon Press, 1998), he can be found through his website at <http://www.worldgarden.net> . A solar homeowner, renewable energy activist, and freelance speaker, he

Christopher Childs and Elizabeth Dickinson on their 20th wedding anniversary, April, 2007

now lives in St. Paul, MN. In 1987, he married another past Players performer, Elizabeth Dickinson (A Little Night Music, 1984); both remember their days at 51 Walden Street with deep warmth and appreciation.

Contrary to information that was long posted in this space, Christopher never did "appear in your livingroom as the Maharishi Yaha Yogurt for Hood Dairy products." He did indeed record the 1974 pilot radio commercial for Hood, which was so well-received by management that the company decided to have the Maharishi make personal appearances. However, the idea of a six-foot-two WASP guru clad in a Gandhiesque dhoti proved unacceptable to Hood's creative team, and the role was recast.