Katherine Fritz | Costume Designer and Educator
email katherineafritz@gmail.com
lives and works in Philadelphia, PA.
Dedicated theatre artist, educator, writer, and leader with a focus on costume design and theatre arts education. Katherine has designed over 100 productions in the Philadelphia and East Coast region. A warm and welcoming curator of inclusive learning environments. Encourages skills of collaboration, playfulness, curiosity, rigor, flexibility, and generosity in students.
Teaching Work
Temple University Part-Time Faculty, Adjunct 2021 (Present)
Courses taught: Intro to Design | History of Fashion (Graduate + Undergraduate)
University of the Arts Adjunct Assistant Professor 2017-Present
Courses taught: Costume Design | Costume Technology | Business of Theatre
Montgomery County Community College Part-Time Faculty, Adjunct 2016-Present
Courses taught: Theatre Production Workshop 1, 2, and 3 | Intro to Theatre | Theatre Appreciation (Gateway to College)
West Chester University Part-Time Faculty, Adjunct 2024
Sabbatical replacement hire. Costume Design Practicum (Mentor of student costume designers)
Current Related Work
Independence Foundation Administrator 2018 -Present
Provides administrative services for Independence Foundation, a not-for-profit charitable philanthropic organization. Leadership role in COVID-19 food crisis initiative “Step Up to the Plate,” a coalition between nonprofits, charitable organizations, restaurant and catering partners, and the City of Philadelphia.
Pennsylvania Theatre Institute at West Chester University Co-Founding Managing Director 2018 - Present
Co-founding managing director of West Chester University’s summer performing arts programs for students ages 8-18. Work includes strategic planning; program direction; website design; budgeting and production management; marketing and recruiting; hiring, training and supervision of all teaching artist staff and student apprentices; coordinating communications between camp personnel and university administration; and facilitating a thriving community arts program dedicated to using theatre tools to shape young people into curious, compassionate artists and humans.
Freelance Costume Designer
Member, USA 829.
Costume Design, Theatre, Selected
(For a full listing of all professional productions, click here)
2023 One Man, Two Guv’nors Delaware Theatre Company Bud Martin
2022 Brighton Beach Memoirs Delaware Theatre Company Bud Martin
2022 This Bitter Earth InterAct Theatre Company Tyrone L. Robinson
2021 Tommy and Me Delaware Theatre Company Joe Canuso
2020 Outside Mullingar Delaware Theatre Company Bud Martin
2019 Eureka Day InterAct Theatre Company Seth Rozin
2019 Heartland InterAct Theatre Company Evren Odcikin
2019 The Few Theatre Horizon Matthew Decker
2019 An Oak Tree Theatre Exile Joe Canuso
2018 Sanctions Delaware Theatre Company Bud Martin
2018 A People Orbiter Three Rebecca Wright
2018 Sensitive Guys InterAct Theatre Company Evren Odcikin
2017 Ideation Theatre Exile Joe Canuso
2017 Destiny Estimate MJ Kaufman/PEW Arts + Heritage Iris McCloughan
2017 The Ice Princess Pennsylvania Shakespeare Fest. Pirronne Yousefzadeh
2017 The White Devil Philadelphia Artists’ Collective Damon Bonetti
2017 Dare to Be Black Delaware Theatre Company Bud Martin
2017 Gumshoe New Paradise & Free Library of Phila. Whit McLaughlin
2017 Lost Girls Theatre Exile Joe Canuso
2016 All’s Well That Ends Well Philadelphia Artists’ Collective Dan Hodge
2016 Pericles Delaware Shakespeare Festival David Stradley
2016 Mauritius Act II Playhouse David Bradley
2016 Rizzo Philadelphia Theatre Company Joe Canuso
2016 Stupid Fucking Bird Arden Theatre Company Aaron Posner
2016 He Who Gets Slapped Philadelphia Artists’ Collective Damon Bonetti
2015 Underground Railroad Game Lightning Rod Special/FringeArts Sarah Sanford
2015 Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Theatre Exile Joe Canuso
2015 The Fair Maid of the West Philadelphia Artists’ Collective Charlotte Northeast
2015 Metamorphosis Quintessence Theatre Group Rebecca Wright
2015 The Dangerous House of… InterAct Theatre Company Pirronne Yousefzadeh
2014 Sex with Strangers Signature Theatre Aaron Posner
2014 We Are Proud to Present… InterAct Theatre Company Pirronne Yousefzadeh
2014 Annapurna Theatre Exile Joe Canuso
2012 BANG Charlotte Ford/LiveArts Emmanuelle Delpech
2012 Freud’s Last Session Arden Theatre Company Ian Merrill Peakes
* Barrymore Nomination, Outstanding Costume Design
Costume Design, Academic Theatre, Selected
2023 A Midsummer Night’s Dream Brind School, UArts Krista Apple
2022 r+j (essentialized) Bryn Mawr College Catharine Slusar
2019 A Midsummer Night’s Dream Penn. Theatre Institute @ WCU Charlie DelMarcelle
2018 Godspell Drexel University Nick Anselmo
2017 The Devil’s Auction Drexel University Adrienne Mackey
2017 The Diary of Anne Frank Drexel University Bill Fennelly
Dance
2013 to dust Kun-Yang Lin Dancers Olive Prince
2012-2014 FreshDance Drexel Dance Ensemble Miriam Giguere
Assistant Costume Design
2018 Basic Witches Arden Cabaret Series Jillian Keys
2017 A Period of Animate Existence* Pig Iron Theatre Company Loren Shaw
*workshop production
Additional assistant credits available upon request.
Wardrobe/Dresser (2010-2012) Walnut Street Theatre, Arden Theatre, National Constitution Center, New Paradise Laboratories
Related Professional Experience (Selected)
McCarter Theatre Center Teaching Artist 2015 – 2020 (Paused during pandemic)
Regular guest teaching artist for various McCarter Theatre Center residencies. Projects include residencies and workshops at Trenton Central High School and other historically underserved school districts; workshops at community low-income housing centers and facilities for youth; summer and after-school programming housed at McCarter’s facilities in Princeton.
Delaware Theatre Company Teaching Artist 2013 – 2017
Served as Stagecraft Instructor for five years at Delaware Theatre Company’s Summer on Stage program. Built + implemented new curriculum annually, focused on the intersection between theatrical design, collaborative STEAM challenges, and traditional summer camp fun.
Guest Speaker 2013 – Present
Frequent guest speaker/sub in college and high school theatre arts classrooms whenever I am asked! Guest in classrooms at West Chester University, Temple University, Arcadia University, Drexel University, St. Joseph’s College, among others. Virtual pandemic opportunities included a six-week costume residency at Kamiak High School.
Philadelphia Artists’ Collective Resident Designer 2011- 2017
Served as Artistic Associate and Resident Designer for six years, encompassing Resident Costume Design, Marketing and Graphics design, and social media management, with show-by-show experience as production manager, props designer, scenic designer, and dramaturg. On the team that grew company from annual budget of crowdfunded $5,000 project-based goal to 501(c)3 producing organization with a 2-3 show season and annual operating budget of $70,000.
Awards and Honors
2017 SPACE on Ryder Farm, Creative Resident
2017 Finalist, F.Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist
2015 Finalist, F. Otto Haas Award for an Emerging Theatre Artist
2014 Swim Pony Cross-Pollination Residency
2014 Barrymore Award Nomination, “Outstanding Costume Design,” Annapurna, Theatre Exile
2010 BroadwayWorld.com Nominee, “Best Set Design,” Changes of Heart, Philadelphia Artists’ Collective
2008 Robert Edmond Jones Award for Excellence In Design and Technology
Community Service and Engagement
2019 - Present Philadelphia Social Insight Award Committee (Formerly Virginia Brown Martin Award Committee)
2016 - 2019 Barrymore Oversight Committee
Publication History (Selected)
2018 American Theatre Magazine “Plays About Guns, With Varying Aims.”
2016 American Theatre Magazine “A Fierce Kind of Love for People With All Abilities”
2016 Washington Post “Fifteen Things You Can Do When the World Feels Like a Terrible Place”
2013 The New York Times “My First Theatre Crush”
2014 The Huffington Post “Here Is What You Do When You Are Grieving”
2014 The Huffington Post “These Are The People In Your Neighborhood”
2015 MTV Style “Black Lives Matter Activists Reveal How They Took Over Forever 21 Window”
2015 MTV Style “Why It Might Be Time to Put Fashion Police to Bed”
Notable Achievements In Writing
2013 – 2017: I Am Begging My Mother Not To Read This Blog
2014 – 2016: Ladypockets
Viewed over 4.5 million times, with over 24,000 subscribers. Content republished, with permission, at Huffington Post, Yahoo.com, Hello Giggles, Upworthy, Bustle, My Daily Life UK, MTV Style, Refinery 29, El Pais, The Good Man Project, The Wild Magazine, Bill and Dave’s Cocktail Hour. Ladypockets discussed in New York Times, “Hillary Rodham Clinton and the Power of Style,” June 2014. Seven-time Wordpress “Freshly Pressed” contributor.
2014 “Race Ya”
Blog post used as classroom curriculum at Harvard University. Media appearance: TouchVision TV (Felonius Munk, Beth Elderkin) .
2014 “An Illustrated Guide to Feminism”
Republished: Huffington Post, Upworthy, Hello Giggles. Retweeted: United Nations Council on Women, National Institute for Reproductive Health, Planned Parenthood of Greater Philadelphia.
Public Speaking/Media
2016 Press Publish Wordpress.org Keynote speaker, Wordpress Blogging Conference
2014 “On the Media” Celeste Headlee, NPR “Race Ya,” and white people’s response to systemic racism
2016 “Articulate with Jim Cotter” Jim Cotter, WHYY Episode 319, “21st Century Artists”
2016 “The Kathleen Dunn Show” Wisconsin Public Radio “15 Things You Can Do To Make the World Better”
2016 Sensible Nonsense Kelly Writer’s House Public reading of children’s literature essay
2016 Panel: Writing Funny Drexel University Panel discussion with Jen Childs and R. Eric Thomas
2015 “Woman of the Week” 95.7 BENFM Named “Woman of the Week” with Marilyn Russell
Notable Achievements In Activism
2017 Launched “Buy Pat Toomey’s Vote” on GoFundMe, a satirical campaign to point out the ethical conflicts of the Betsy DeVos family foundation’s numerous contributions towards Republican elected officials. Raised $72,000 for Camp Sojourner Leadership Camp for Girls, the Fund for the School District of Philadelphia, Children’s Literacy Initiative, and the Pennsylvania Arts Education Network. Media: CBS Philadelphia, NBC Philadelphia, Rachel Maddow MSNBC, Philadelphia Magazine, New York Magazine.
Education
B.A. in English and Theatre, College of the Holy Cross. 3.7 GPA (cum laude)