About
Professor David Shirley is the Executive Dean of the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) at Edith Cowan University. With a background in actor training from the Arts Educational Schools and RADA, he has extensive experience in performance, direction, and playwrighting. His notable work includes the biographical play A Life in Pieces (2018), staged at the International Anthony Burgess Foundation. Shirley holds fellowships from the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and the Royal Society for the Encouragement of the Arts (FRSA). He previously led the Manchester School of Theatre and Rose Bruford College's School of Theatre.
Research interests focus on performer training methodologies, including studies of Stanislavsky, Meisner, and contemporary directors like Katie Mitchell. He chairs the Conference of Drama Schools Research Forum and edits Theatre, Dance and Performance Training. Shirley actively promotes research in the performing arts sector and advises the Stanislavsky Research Centre at Leeds University.
