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Christopher Guse Headshot

Christopher J. Guse

  • Professor, Theatre Production
  • Co-Chair, Department of Theatre

Education

  • BFA, Theatre Production, UW-Milwaukee, 1992
  • Certificate of Completion, Theatre Production, Professional Theatre Training Program, 1992

Biography

Christopher Guse is a Professor of Theatre and Co-Chair of the Department of Theatre at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee’s Peck School of the Arts. A member of the UWM faculty since 1997, Guse has helped shape the department’s approach to theatre production through his expertise as a designer, technical director, and educator. His teaching and leadership emphasize collaboration, technical precision, and the integration of emerging technologies into live performance.

As Co-Chair and an Area Head of the Theatre Production, Guse coordinates the Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre Production, mentoring students in sound design and stage technology, guiding their work on an ambitious schedule of public productions each academic year. He is deeply involved in aligning the program’s curriculum with professional standards, ensuring that graduates enter the field with both artistic and technical proficiency.

Since 2015, Guse has led several initiatives to modernize theatre facilities and enhance production resources. In 2023, he helped secure a $295,000 competitive award from the Chancellor’s Office to renovate the second-floor Art Gallery into a flexible performance and exhibit space, expanding opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration across the arts.

Within the Peck School of the Arts, Guse serves on the Administrative Council, the Academic Policy and Budget Committee, and the Black and Gold Committee, helping to guide policy, strategic planning, and fiscal oversight. He has also contributed to several university-wide efforts over the years, including service on the Vice Chancellor’s Video Task Force and the Information Technology Policy Committee.

Alongside his academic efforts, Guse’s creative activity and research is focused on theatrical sound, video and blended media design. Known for immersive sound-scaping, innovative media designs and the engineering of creative content delivery systems, his work has been recognized with a Milwaukee Business Journal’s Eureka Award, multiple nominations from the Wisconsin Area Music Industry Awards, and Footlights Performing Arts Awards.

Guse maintains an active professional creative career in theatrical design. His sound, video and media design work has been featured in productions with Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, Renaissance Theaterworks, Skylight Music Theatre, and Kohl’s Wild Theater, among others. Recent credits include Hamlet (Optimist Theatre, 2024), And Welcome Home Again (Feast of Crispian, 2021), and Ben Butler (Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2019).

Curriculum Vitae, CV (PDF)

Recent & Selected Works

Staged ship‑deck scene showcasing Chris Guse’s theatrical design and production work.
HMS Pinafore – Scenic and Sound Designer: Chris Guse, photo by Sara Stathas
Control desk setup for a theatre production designed by Chris Guse.
My control desk during rehearsals of Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time – Media Designer: Chris Guse
Digital screens and staging elements designed by Chris Guse during a live theatrical performance.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night Time – Media Designer: Chris Guse, photo by Sara Stathas
Tech booth view of stage setup during a theatrical production Chris Guse designed.
My control desk during rehearsals of Macbeth – Media Designer: Chris Guse
Actors perform on a circular stage in a dynamic scene inspired by Chris Guse’s theatrical stage design.
Into the Woods – Sound Designer: Chris Guse, photo by Mark Frohna
Arduino Based MIDI Door Controller for Scapino! Sound Design: Ella Baird, Faculty: Chris Guse
Animation for The Monarch at Kohl’s Wild Theatre – Chris Guse: Media Design, Modeling and Animation

Awards

  • Milwaukee Business Journal Eureka Award (Trash or Tunes), Milwaukee Business Journal - 2015

Plays & Musicals

  • Sound Designer – Shakespeare, William. Hamlet Dir. Michael Stebbins – Optimist Theatre Company (Shakespeare in the Park), 2024
  • Sound & Video Designer – Devised work. And Welcome Home Again Dir. Bill Watson – Feast of Crispian, 2021
  • Sound & Video Designer – Cleage, Pearl. Neat (Streaming Remount) Dir. Suzan Fete – Renaissance Theatreworks, 2021
  • Sound & Video Designer – Devised work. And Come Safely Home (National Veteran’s Theatre Festival Version) Dir. Bill Watson – Feast of Crispian, 2019
  • Sound Designer – St. Germain, Richard. Ben Butler Dir. Michael Cotey – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2019
  • Sound & Video Designer – McClellen, Dave. The Monarch Dir. Dave McClellen – Kohl’s Wild Theatre, 2018
  • Sound Designer – O’Reilly, Christian. Chapatti Dir. Michele Lopez-Rios – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2018
  • Sound Designer/Audio Engineer – Devised work based on Shakespeare, William’s play Othello. Othello Deployed Dir. Bill Watson – Feast of Crispian, 2017
  • Sound Designer – D’Amour, Samuel. The Few Dir. C. Michael Wright – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2017
  • Sound Designer – Tesori, Jeanine, and Crawley, Brian. Violet Dir. Sheri Pannell – Skylight Music Theatre, 2016
  • Assistant Scenic Designer – Barrie, J.M. Peter Pan (Michael Pink’s adaptation) Scenic Des. R.H. Graham – Ballets de France (European Touring Version), 2015
  • Scenic & Sound & Video Designer – McClellen, Dave. Trash or Tunes Dir. Dave McClellen – Kohl’s Wild Theatre, 2015
  • Sound & Video Designer – McNally, Terrence. Master Class Dir. Mary MacDonald-Kerr – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2014
  • Sound Designer – Hooper, Ron. October Before I Was Born Dir. C. Michael Wright – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2014
  • Sound Designer – Ludwig, Ken. Lend Me a Tenor Dir. C. Michael Wright – Milwaukee Chamber Theatre, 2014