Academic interests
American and British Theatre, English Literature, Theatre History, Literature & Politics, Adaptation, Performance Studies, Brecht, Rancière, Benjamin, Archive Studies
PhD Project
Theatre of Citation: Documentary Theatre & the Political Spectator
My project analyzes the evolution of documentary theatre in the US from the 1930s to today in the context of changing ideas about political engagement and spectatorship. For this project, I define “documentary theatre” as theatrical works that incorporate “found texts,” documents not originally intended for theatrical performance. This form of theatre undermines hierarchical structures, both within the theatre and in society at large, by creating new models of information-exchange that do not priviIege a single authorial voice. Amidst a crisis of political legitimacy, documentary theatre offers alternative forms of community engagement and political discourse.
Beginning with an exploration of key “Living Newspapers” during the Great Depression, the project traces the re-emergence of the form amidst the political and economic crises of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. It argues that the works of Emily Mann, Anna Deavere Smith and Moisés Kaufman in the 1990s and early 2000s embody tensions resulting from the rise of identity politics and the rejection of grand narratives. It then considers more recent plays, such as Satter’s Is This a Room (2017), whose forms reflect a renewed distrust of traditional media and the American political and judicial systems. Throughout, the project considers ways in which these texts respond to shifting ideas of agency, adaptation and activism, as they construct new models of the performer and spectator as political actors.
Background
Originally from California, I worked as a theatre history and literature teacher, dramaturg and performer in New York City, prior to coming to Oslo. I have a BA in English & Theater Studies from Yale University and an MA in Shakespeare Studies from King's College, London.
Courses Taught
- Spring 2023: ENG2501 British Politics