Wednesday, January 13, 2010

Welcome to Nicole Hodges Persley

Welcome to my blog. Please bookmark or subscribe to my site to receive updates about my work, public speaking engagements, and upcoming events.

I am an Assistant Professor of Theatre at the University of Kansas. I completed my Ph.D. in American Studies and Ethnicity at The University of Southern California in 2009. My book project, Sampling Blackness: Performing African Americanness in Hip-hop Theater and Performance is the first study to examine the artistic practices of non-African American artists in theater, conceptual art and dance.

My research and teaching interests include African American Theater and Performance, Hip-Hop Studies, solo performance, popular culture, Performance Studies, and Improvisation Studies and Cultural Studies. I am currently teaching courses in Acting, Hip-hop in Popular Culture and African American Theater. I have received numerous fellowships and awards including a James Irvine Foundation Fellowship and an a Mellon Foundation undergraduate teaching award.

As an actress and director, I have professional credits in theatre, film and television. As a solo performer, I have performed at The UCLA Hammer Museum, The World Stage, UC Riverside Hip-hop Theater Festival, Harvard University, CUNY and The University of Kansas.