Research

America Under the Influence explores the impact of drinking culture on themed and theatrical environments at significant flash points throughout U.S. History. See below for a list of other publications and projects!

Alcohol has a loaded relationship with performance.

Books

  • America Under the Influence: The Politics of Drinking and Immersive Performance (Routledge Advances in Theatre & Performance Studies). Release date (hardback): September 4, 2023.

  • Commercial Performance co authored with Sean Bartley (Northwestern State University), Jaswinder Blackwell-Pal (Queen Mary, University of London), Michael Shane Boyle (Queen Mary, University of London), Eero Laine (University at Buffalo State University of New York), Louise Owen (Royal Central School of Speech and Drama), Alessandro Simari (University of Ottawa), Martin Young (Birkbeck, University of London). (Book proposal in peer review with Northwestern UP.)

Book Chapters

  • “Immersive Imbibing,” invited chapter in the “Concessions” section of Theatre Things: Material Theories and Histories, edited by Eero Laine and Andrew Friedman (forthcoming, University of Michigan Press)

  • “Artificial Intelligence, Embodied Performance, and Collective Creation: Inspirations, Intersections, Collaborations,” invited chapter in Sentient Books: AI’s Impact on Creation, edited by Sandra Souca and Susana Antunes (Quod Manet Press, 2025)

  • “The Immersivity of American Tiki Bars,” invited chapter in Enveloping Worlds, edited by Scott Magelssen and Elizabeth Bradley Hunter (University of Michigan Press, 2025)

Articles

Reviews

Journalism

Conferences

I’m an active member in ASTR, PSi, ATHE, and LMDA. Notable collaborations include:

  • ATHE 2021: Panel organizer and participant, “Building University “Cultures of Dramaturgy” panel with the paper “A Case Study in Building an (Equitable and Responsive) Culture of University Dramaturgy” for the Dramaturgy Focus Group (DRFG)’s meeting at the annual Association for Theatre in Higher Education (LMDA/ATHE)  in Austin, TX  (August 5-8).

  • ASTR 2020: Participant, “Polynesian” Pop: Intoxication and Immersive Escapism in New York Tiki,” a paper in the “Enveloping Worlds” session at the virtual meeting of ASTR (November 7).

  • PSi 2019: Invited Paper Presentation, “‘Fortune Favors the Bold’: The Elasticizing of Actor/Audience Contracts in a Contemporary Gig Economy,” on the “Economy of Artistic Labour: Neoliberalism and Precarity” Panel, Performance Studies International (PSi) conference, July 4, 2019 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada (July 4).

  • 2019: Invited Art Installation, “An Instagram Experiment in #Fashion and #Pedagogy,” at the Doctoral Theatre Students Association (DTSA) Performing Pedagogy, Performance Pedagogy Conference at the CUNY Graduate Center (May 13).