Terry Dean


Member, Commission on Accreditation
Elected March 2016; term ends March 2019

Terry Dean is Professor of Theatre and Director of the James Madison University School of Theatre and Dance. Prior to arriving at JMU, he was Director of the Theatre and Dance Program at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA. Professor Dean has taught a variety of courses in directing, theatre history, dramatic literature, and acting. As a director and acting instructor, he specializes in the Meisner technique.

In addition to his teaching and administrative work, Professor Dean remains active as a director. His experience facilitating and directing devised theatre and collaborating on new works includes a number of community-based performances, performance art with Judy Chicago, and a musical adaptation of the medieval drama Everyman featuring the music of the Indigo Girls. He has also written and directed for the camera, including a video on roommate relationships for Reslife.net.

Professor Dean served two terms (2010-2014) as Secretary of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE) and is a past Chair of ATHE’s Theatre History Focus Group. His publications include a chapter in Play & Performance: How Institutions Structure Ludic Performance (Routledge Press 2015), entries in the Dictionary of Modern American Philosophers, 1860-1960, a chapter in The Oxford Critical and Cultural History of Modernist Magazines (co-written with Dorothy Chansky), and book reviews for both Theatre Journal and Theatre Topics. He is also a past Book Review editor for Theatre Topics. Professor Dean’s research specializations include U.S. theatre and drama, community-based performance, gender studies, cognitive science, performance theory, and aesthetics. He has presented multiple papers, chaired panels, and participated in seminars at ASTR, ATHE, MATC, and the Comparative Drama Conference.

Professor Dean received his Ph.D. in theatre history, theory, and literature from Indiana University. He earned a Master of Arts degree in philosophy from Temple University, and his Bachelor’s degree from Bradley University.

 

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Posted April 2016