Born and raised in San José, California, Ty graduated from Bellarmine College Prep in 1988 and enlisted in the Navy, Two years later Ty accepted an appointment to the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, where he majored in English, toured with the Men’s Glee Club, and served as Masquerader’s President.  Ty graduated with merit in 1994 and worked for five years as a Public Affairs Officer in Washington, D.C., first as a marketing specialist at the Navy's Office of Information at the Pentagon, then as Print Media Coordinator for the Navy's flagship publication All Hands magazine.  After resigning from active duty in 1999, Ty studied acting at Penn State University, where he graduated with an M.F.A. in Theatre Arts in August 2002.  While at PSU, Ty directed a production of The Winter's Tale and certified as an actor/combatant with the Society of American Fight Directors.  Ty co-founded Knighthorse Theatre with his wife, Amy, and is the company's Artistic Director.  For more than two decades, Ty and Amy have sought to bring innovative, imaginative and inspiring live performance to secondary schools, high schools, colleges and universities across the country and around the world.  Ty retired from the Navy in 2022 and is currently a contractor at the Naval War College in Newport, RI.  Ty and Amy live in Scituate and have two children: Declan Thomas and Bridget Katherine.