Today we’d like to introduce you to Timothy Davis.
Hi Timothy, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I’ve always loved telling stories. First as an actor in the theater. That has since expanded to directing, producing, and filmmaking. In 2016 I founded New City Players with a group of friends, a professional nonprofit theatre company in Fort Lauderdale. We started out wanting to make theatre with our friends. We’ve grown into a community whose mission is to gather, wrestle with hard questions, and help all of us feel a little more connected.
Ten seasons later, NCP has produced 30+ productions, won some awards, and built a mission-driven company that is focused on using the power of live theatre to create a vibrant public square — rooted in the belief that live performance is one of the last true civic rituals we have.
Alongside the theatre work, I run Stone Circle Media, a film and video production company, and I’ve kept one foot in the acting world — most recently with a role on Apple TV+’s “Bad Monkey” alongside commercial work. My feature film directorial debut, “Thank You, Places!”, screened at the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival in 2024.
The through-line of everything I do is pretty simple: tell stories that bring us together and make us feel something.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Never smooth. Always exciting. Of course there are financial and producing challenges all along the way, but the biggest challenge has only been overcome through experience and that is the company finding, claiming, and settling into our identity. It’s an ongoing process, but I feel it’s taken me these 10 years to finally start articulating what started as an instinct.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I wear a lot of hats: theatre producer and artistic director, actor, director, filmmaker, and documentary producer — but they all serve the same purpose: tell stories to create genuine human connection.
At New City Players, I’m honing in on the opportunity theatre has to fill a robust civic function in a local community. We produce plays that don’t tell audiences what to think but create the conditions for real dialogue. We’re developing a post-show program called *The Space* which will be structured conversations adapted from research on human connection, because we believe the discussion after the curtain comes down is just as important as the play itself. That civic intentionality is what sets NCP apart in the South Florida theatre landscape.
On the film side, I’ve produced and directed narrative and documentary work that has screened at Tribeca, the Miami Film Festival, FLIFF, and several others. On the client side I specialize in mission-driven stories for nonprofits, entrepreneurs, and community builders and strive to bring the same editorial care to a brand documentary that I’d bring to a festival film.
As an actor, I’ve worked in commercial, stage, and television — most recently *Bad Monkey* on Apple TV+ — and I won the Carbonell Award for Best Actor in 2020, which is the highest theatrical honor in South Florida.
What I’m most proud of isn’t any single production or credit though. It’s that New City Players is still here, still growing, and still producing work that matters to this community. And most of all, that I get to do it alongside people I respect and love. Building something sustainable and artistically uncompromising in a mid-size market without a major funding infrastructure? That’s the hardest thing I’ve done, and the thing I’m proudest of.
What sets me apart is probably the range across mediums and communities. In the business room, I’m the artist. In the artistic room, I can be the business guy. I play several roles, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
At New City Players our ensemble virtues are hungry, humble, and smart. If anyone starting out cultivates these virtues they’ll go a long way.
Hungry: strive to create something meaningful and beautiful. Don’t settle for mediocrity. Be responsive and communicative with your collaborators. Be someone people can rely on.
Humble: none of us has all the answers. Humility is about knowing your limits, admitting when you’re wrong, being open to learning, trusting the expertise of others, and having confidence in your own expertise.
Smart: this is emotional smarts, not intelligence. Practice self-awareness. Become really aware that you are not aware of everything. Know what context you’re in and act accordingly. Be considerate of others feelings and thoughts.
The journey of building a meaningful artistic career, particularly in the early years, is rocky, full of doubt, and “failures” and imposter syndrome…but if you are consistent in the same direction over a long period of time, you will succeed.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://newcityplayers.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newcityplayers
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/newcityplayers/?fref=ts
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/new-city-players/?viewAsMember=true
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCefgiOMkWUkRUHLw7b9Xh4w
Image Credits
Photos by:
Ryan Arnst
Kevin Ondarza
