About Me

  I received my Master's in Theatre from the University of Central Missouri  (UCM) in 2014 and my Ph.D. in Theatre Studies from the University of Missouri in 2018. I also earned an MBA from UCM in 2012. I am now an Instructor of Theatre at UCM. I teach playwriting, screen writing, acting, directing, theatre history and general theatre education classes. My plays have been produced in Washington D.C., Alexandria, VA, Seattle, Minneapolis, Des Moines, Columbia, MO and various other locations around the nation. I am the 2017 recipient of the National Planet Earth Playwriting Award for my play Nah-Zhee and was a semi-finalist for the Eugene O'Neill National Playwrights Conference for my play Sliding into Home. I am the Vice-Chair for the Region V KCACTF National Playwriting Program. I am also an active actor and director. Most recently, I directed August: Osage County for UCM and also played Rothko in a student-directed production of Red. My scholarly interests include playwriting methods, techniques and pedagogy, theatre history and theatre for social change. My dissertation combined all these interests, which resulted in an extensive study of how playwriting techniques and dramatic works can be used to understand and treat addiction. Currently, I am continuing that research by writing and directing a play that will be presented at addiction recovery centers, prisons and any other communities seeking additional alternative and creative methods in their battle against addiction.