Tim Rhoze found his passion and voice in the theater

It may come as a surprise to some that Tim Rhoze, artistic director of Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre, began his career in the business world.

Although he had experience in theater since childhood, as a young man his career turned to business.

“I did an apprenticeship and apprenticeship in a tool shop and I died [steel] Stamping and they trained me to be a prototype engineer, which is a really fancy name for a salesperson with engineering backgrounds,” said Rhoze. The company made parts for Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors, and hired Rhoze for a suit-and-tie job.

“I went into the headquarters of these companies and worked with their design team. That became my daily routine, getting up and going Monday through Friday,” Rhoze said. “It was very good pay for me back then. It wasn’t something I was passionate about, I just stumbled into this area by accident.”

Rhoze’s father was in the theater

Rhoze’s father was a part-time theater artist and full-time postal worker who worked the midnight shift in Detroit, Michigan.

“From an early age – 7, 8, 9 – I was in this world with my father, who would go to rehearsals and sometimes even take me with him. So I was always aware of that, but not in the sense of a career,” says Rhoze. “That was something you could do. You can go bowling on the weekends, but you don’t become a professional bowler.”

As a teenager, he took part in some acting workshops at the Detroit Repertory Theater.

“At the time I was in a lot of trouble … at school, on the streets, with law enforcement. But there are two things I’ve gotten good at. One was boxing and then theater. I would always look forward to that Saturday morning workshop…I really started digging into this whole theater thing.”