Shariffa Chelimo Ali is an international creative leader committed to working with an open heart at the intersection of the performing arts and humanitarianism. 

Originally from Kenya and raised South Africa, Shariffa has been a New York resident since 2013, working primarily as a director, community organizer and administrator at The Public Theater and The New Group, among others. 

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She has lectured and directed at NYU, Brooklyn College, Yale University and Princeton University, where her productions include Eclipsed, Detroit ’67, Intimate Apparel and We Are Proud to Present and an original new musical We Were Everywhere. Shariffa also served as assistant director to her mentor Cynthia Nixon for Rasheeda Speaking, Steve (The New Group) and Motherstruck! (Culture Project). Shariffa’s debut Virtual Reality short ATOMU is part of the official selection at the Sundance Festival 2020. 

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Other theaters: Off-Broadway: Mies Julie (Classic Stage Company).Regional: School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play (Pittsburgh Public Theatre), others. Honors: New Frontier Fellow at Sundance Institute Lab and the Royal National Theater (UK); POV/PBS Spark Grant.

 Education: BA with honors, Theatre and Performance, University of Cape Town. South Africa.