About
Kevin Landis
Kevin Landis is professor and director of the Theatre and Dance Program in the Department of Visual and Performing Arts at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. His research interests and publications are varied. He has studied contemporary avant-garde theatre groups, Eastern European actor training methods, Native American melodrama, Nordic art, American drag, performance analyses of evangelical church services, and theatrical intersections in restaurant food preparation. He has published on several of those topics and co-authored the book Cultural Performance: New Perspectives on Performance Studies.
Dr. Landis’s most recent book, One Public: New York’s Public Theater in the Era of Oskar Eustis, chronicles the famed institution through the words and stories of some of America’s most renowned artists and producers. Of the book, P. Carl, Distinguished Artist in Residence at Emerson college writes, “Landis' passion for theater pops off every page making this book essential reading for anyone who believes in the power of live stories to enrich our culture and our nation.”
Landis is an MFA trained actor and member of the Actor's Equity Association. He specializes in physical theatre training derived from his work with Grotowski's lead actress, Rena Mirecka. Landis uses an eclectic training method that includes Michael Chekhov Technique, Suzuki and LeCoq clown and mask work. The training focuses on the actor's understanding of his/her body as the integral component for vocal expression and performative creativity.
Curriculum Vitae
Kevin Landis, MFA, Ph.D., AEA
EDUCATION
Tufts University, Medford, MA
Ph.D.: Drama (September 2005-May 2009)
Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
MFA: Acting (September 2002-May 2005)
Brown University, Providence, RI
MA: Theatre Theory (September 1999-May 2001)
Colby College, Waterville, ME
BA: Performing Arts and History (February 1996-May 1998)
TEACHING
University of Colorado Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, CO
Associate Professor and Director of Theatre and Dance (2009-present)
Tufts University, Medford, MA
Lecturer (2006-2009)
Brandeis University, Waltham, MA
Teaching Assistant (2004-2005)
Yeshiva University, New York, NY
Visiting Lecturer, (2001-2002)
REFEREED BOOKS, ARTICLES, GALLERIES, PERFORMANCES
Landis, Kevin, One Public: New York’s Public Theater in the Era of Oskar Eustis, London: Bloomsbury/Methuen (2022)
Landis, Kevin and Suzanne Macaulay, Cultural Performance: Ethnographic Approaches to Performance Studies, London: Palgrave (2017)
Landis, Kevin “Culinary Pataphysics: Food, Theatre and the Historical Avant-Garde,” Gastronomica: The Journal of Food and Culture, Vol. 14, No. 2, Summer 2014, 46-55
Wild Honey (Theatreworks, Colorodo Springs, 2017)
Director
The Tempest (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2016)
Actor
Psycho Beach Party (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2014)
Director
Love’s Labour’s Lost (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2012)
Principle Actor (King of Navarre)
Landis, Kevin and Suzanne Macaulay, “New Perspectives in Cultural Performance,” The Visual and Performing Arts: An International Anthology, Vol. II, Edited by Stephen Andrew Arbury. Athens, Greece: AITNER, 2012
Seven Veils Arts Festival (The University of Colorado Colorado Springs, 2012)
Director and Producer
Church (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2011)
Principle Actor (Reverend José)
The Merry Wives of Windsor (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2010)
Director
City Dionysia Arts Festival (The University of Colorado Colorado Springs, 2010)
Director and Producer
Prologue Lecture Series (The University of Colorado Colorado Springs, ongoing)
Producer
Principle director for UCCS/Theatreworks student productions (Bacchae, Inspector General, Salome, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Woyzeck, The Shadow, Cabaret, Peer Gynt, The Art of Dining, Hair)
NON REFEREED PUBLICATIONS, ARTICLES, GALLERIES, PERFORMANCES
Landis, Kevin and Ciara Murphy, “A Mobile Movement,” American Theatre, March 2017
Landis, Kevin, “In Conversation: Tina Packer and Jon Jory Discuss the State of Theatre,” American Theatre, September 2014
The Chekhov Letters (Theatreworks, Colorado Springs, 2011)
Principle Actor (Anton Chekhov)
Landis, Kevin, “Dreaming in Place,” American Theatre, July/August 2009
Landis, Kevin, “Julian Eltinge’s Manly Transformations,” Gay and Lesbian Review Worldwide, Vol. 14, No. 5, September/October 2007, 16-18
PUBLISHED REVIEWS
Landis, Kevin, “The Garden of Intimacy and Desire (Review), “ Theatre Journal, Vol. 61, No. 3, October 2009, 485-489
Landis, Kevin, “Mama-Dada: Gertrude Stein’s Avant-Garde Theatre (Review),” Theatre Journal, Vol. 61, No. 2, May 2009, 347-348
SELECTED PRESENTATIONS AT MEETINGS AND SEMINARS PRESENTED
Hamilton: The Stage, The Man, The Movement. The Future of Inclusive Storytelling
Invited Discussant, UCCS Downtown, August 2020
The Urban Public: Central Park and Urban Oasis and Tactics of Nation-Building - International Federation for Theatre Research, Shanghai, China (2019)
A Body in Places: The Movement Performance of Eiko Otake - International Federation for Theatre Research, Belgrade, Serbia (2018)
I Just Like Pearls: Julian Eltinge’s Gender Stratification - International Federation for Theatre Research, Warwick, England (2014)
Routing Religion in America’s Heartland - International Federation for Theatre Research, Barcelona, Spain (2013)
Stop Bloody Acting! And Other Lessons from Devised Performance - Alliance for Colorado Theatre Educators. Keynote Address. Denver, Colorado (2012)
Molecular Theatre - International Federation for Theatre Research, Osaka, Japan (2011)
New Perspectives on Cultural Performance (With Dr. Suzanne MacAulay) - Athens, Greece (2010)
The Double Edge Between Training and Carnival - American Society for Theatre Research, San Juan, Puerto Rico (2009)
Placeness, Living Culture and the Double Edge Theatre - American Society for Theatre Research, Boston (2008)
Farming Culture and the Double Edge Theatre - Mid-America Theatre Conference, Kansas City (2008)
Sleight of Hand, Sleight of Dress: The Magic Drag of Julian Eltinge - Popular Culture Association/American Cultural Association and Tufts University Graduate Symposium, Boston (2007)
The Semiotics of The NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams - Mid-America Theatre Conference, Chicago (2006)
Dropping In with Tina Packer: Shakespeare and Co. and Classical Training - Association for Theatre in Higher Education, Chicago (2006)
Globalized Television Semiotics - International Federation for Theatre Research, Helsinki Finland (2006)
SELECTED GRANTS AND SCHOLARSHIPS ACCEPTED
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, Manual Cinema (December 2017)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$2,500 - Diversity and Excellence, Race and the American Theatre (December 2017)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, The Cabaret Project (December 2016)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$2,500 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, Larry Keigwin Residency (December 2015)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$3,000 - Diversity and Excellence Grant, Exploring the African Diaspora through Traditional and Contemporary Guinean Dance and Music (December 2012)
Co-author of grant
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson (December 2012)
Author of grant and director of play
$5,000 - Roser Foundation for the Arts, Representation, Interrogation and Identity: Leeny Sack Residency (January 2012)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, The Seven Veils Art Festival (December 2011)
Author of grant and director of play
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, The Inspector General technical theatre (December 2010)
Author of grant and director of play
$10,000 - Roser Foundation for the Arts, The Double Edge Theatre Residency (January 2010)
Author of grant and producer of residency
$3,000 - President’s Fund for the Humanities, City Dionysia (December 2009)
Author of grant and producer of festival
COURSES TAUGHT Inclusive of all institutions
Rebuilding the American Theatre
Advanced Acting: Devised Performance and 600 Highwaymen
Advanced Acting: Devised Performance and Eiko Otake
The World of the Play: Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson and the American Musical
Nationalism, Romanticism and Melodrama
The World of the Play: Japanese Aesthetics Through Salome
The Nordic Legacy
The World of the Play: The Inspector General and Nikolai Gogol
Introduction to Theatre History
Advanced Acting: Movement and Clown
Advanced Acting: Devised Performance
The World of the Play: The Bacchae and Greek Tragedy
Manifestos of the Avant-Garde
History of Physical Theatre: Neutral Mask, Plastiques and Clown
Improvisation
Public Speaking
Beginning Acting
RECOGNITIONS
UCCS Making a Difference Award (2020)
UCCS Daniels Fund Ethics Fellow (2019-2020) - Awarded to faculty for commitment related to applied business, professional and organizational ethics
UCCS LAS Research Award (2017)
Best Faculty Award, National Association of College and University Residence Halls (October 2016)
UCCS LAS Tenure Track Teacher of the Year (2013)
True West Theatre Special Achievement Award for Prologue Lecture Series (2012)
Tufts University Award for Outstanding Contribution to Undergraduate Education (2009)
Award for Sleight of Hand, Sleight of Dress Graduate Colloquium - Tufts University (2007)
Full academic scholarship at Tufts University, Brandeis University and Brown University
PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
Member of the Actor’s Equity Association
Member of ATHE, IFTR, ASTR and PCA/ACA theatre research organizations
SERVICE AND ADMINISTRATION
Director of Theatre and Dance at UCCS
Producer of Prologue Lecture Series at UCCS
UCCS Curriculum and Records Committee Chair
Design Committee for VAPA Building Project
UCCS Faculty Assembly
UCCS Writing Across the Curriculum Committee
Theatreworks Advisory Board - Ex-officio member
Various search committees
University of Colorado Faculty Pride Committee