 | Joseph Roach |
Joseph Roach, the Charles C. and Dorathea S. Dilley Professor of Theater, has won a Distinguished Achievement Award from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation that will enable him to create a research program in "World Performance" at Yale.
The Mellon Distinguished Achievement Awards honor scholars who have made significant contributions to the humanities. The awards include a three-year, $1.5 million grant supporting programs to enhance humanistic scholarship and teaching at the institutions with which the recipients are affiliated.
"Joe Roach's award will allow him to use his many gifts, and Yale's resources, to create a 'World Performance' program that advances the University's international objectives in the 21st century," said President Richard C. Levin. "We feel lucky that we have someone of his scholarship, imagination and energy to enhance the humanities at Yale."
Roach, who is also professor of English and of African American studies, specializes in the history and theory of theater and dramatic literature. He has been a major force in developing the field of performance studies and, with this award, plans to expand research in cultural performances of all kinds -- from traditional theater to rites of passage -- comparing traditions worldwide. He hopes "to energize Yale's programs in the arts and humanities in synergistic relationship with our many expanding programs in international and area studies," he wrote in his Mellon grant proposal.
In announcing the award, the Mellon Foundation praised Roach, saying, "His important and richly suggestive contributions, which treat acting, dancing and all manner of public spectacle and entertainment, are distinguished by their rigor and conceptual boldness. Indeed, he has significantly influenced how academics define 'performance,' well beyond conventional notions of theater. Drawing on a wide range of theatrical and non-theatrical source materials, Roach's works bring great theoretical sophistication to bear on an intellectual terrain he has defined with remarkable breadth. ... Further, Roach has allied research, theory and teaching with practice in the dozens of plays and operas he has staged throughout his career to date."
Roach joined the Yale faculty in 1997. His books and articles include "Cities of the Dead: Circum-Atlantic Performance," which won the James Russell Lowell Prize from the Modern Language Association and the Calloway Prize from New York University; "The Player's Passion: Studies in the Science of Acting," which won the Barnard Hewitt Award in Theatre History; and essays in Theatre Journal, The Drama Review, Theatre History Studies and other publications. He has served as director of Graduate Studies in English and Chair of the Theater Studies Advisory Committee at Yale.
T H I S
Joseph Roach wins Mellon Award
for studies on world performance
W E E K ' SS T O R I E S
Noted critic and artist Robert Storr named next dean of School of Art
Two faculty receive prestigious prizes
Joseph Roach wins Mellon Award for studies on world performance
Joseph Schlessinger gets David Prize for work on cancer treatmentBrothers' gift to renovate site of their former athletic glory
Yale licenses ovarian cancer test technology to LabCorp
Gallery acquires rare painting by Yale-educated artist
Yale donates important set of books to the British Parliament
ENDOWED PROFESSORSHIPS
Richard Casten is named D. Allan Bromley Professor
Peter Swenson is new Charlotte Marion Saden ProfessorWilliam Clyde DeVane Medals are awarded to two scientists
Ignorance of world news could imperil the nation, says journalist
Event explored 'Youth and the Future of U.S.-Islamic Relations'
Doll exhibition marks Japanese celebration of 'Girls Day'
Museum hosting talk on Connecticut day trips, annual 'Fiesta Latina'
Chinese Christian art is featured in Institute of Sacred Music exhibit
Study suggests people may learn best on an empty stomach
VaxInnate officials to speak in next event of seminar serie
Volunteers sought for Ob/Gyn's Kronos Early Estrogen Prevention Study
Competition aims to educate campuses nationwide about recycling
Yale Books in Brief
Bulletin Home|Visiting on Campus|Calendar of Events|In the News
Bulletin Board|Classified Ads|Search Archives|Deadlines
Bulletin Staff|Public Affairs|News Releases|
E-Mail Us|Yale Home