Critic Chris Curcio has been writing about the theater and performing arts since 1968 and he has been attending live theater since he was 9-years- old beginning in the San Francisco/Bay Area. Since he has attended approximately 100 annual live theater and performing arts events for over 55 years, he has seen between 5,000 and 6,000 live performing arts events.

His reviews and articles have appeared in Arizona Foothills magazine, The Arizona Republic, In Theater magazine, Variety, The San Jose Mercury News, and on the Phoenix NPR classical music station, KBAQ 89.5 FM. He contributes occasional theater reviews and articles to various local and national publications. He is one of two members of the American Theatre Critics Association from Arizona. His local and national theater reviews and articles are posted on his web site, Curtain Up Phoenix (www.curtainupphoenix.com). He was the critic for musical theater recordings on the Broadway’s Biggest Hits web site for several years.

Curcio holds a master’s degree in Arts Administration in the Public Sector from U.C.L.A., where he completed an internship at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. He has a second master’s degree in Public Administration also focused on Arts in the Public Sector from Arizona State University in Tempe. His bachelor’s degree is in Speech and Drama with a Theater Emphasis from California State University, Hayward, where he also holds a Journalism minor.

He attends theater productions throughout the year around the world and he makes at least one annual visit to New York City to see the latest on and off Broadway shows. He has a collection of musical theater recordings that includes over 8,000 records and CDs representing over 2,500 different shows. He regularly reads national theater journals and subscribes to the Sunday New York Times to read the latest on Broadway productions.