معرفی
Tamara Underiner is an Associate Professor at Arizona State University (ASU) in the School of Music, Dance and Theatre, where she serves as founding director of the Ph.D. program in Theatre and Performance of the Americas. She is also a Senior Global Futures Scholar in the Global Futures Scientists and Scholars group and co-directs the NEA-sponsored Caregiving Research Lab with Dr. David W. Coon, focusing on arts-based interventions in caregiving contexts.
- Education: Ph.D. in Drama (University of Washington, 1997), M.A. in Theatre (ASU, 1993), B.A. in Communication Arts (University of Dayton, 1980)
Her research spans two primary domains: (1) theatre as communal expression and (2) arts-humanities-design integration for health promotion. She co-founded Creative Health Collaborations (2015) and CENAS (2012), both exploring intersections between performance, wellness, and social equity. Her work emphasizes participatory arts in healthcare, intercultural collaborations, and decolonial storytelling.
Recent publications and grants reflect her leadership in arts-based health interventions, including the 2018 edited volume Theatre, Performance and Theories of Change, 2017 NEA-funded study on caregiving contexts, and 2014 pilot projects combining theatre and nutrition education. She has received recognition such as ASU's Faculty Exemplar (2003) and NSF grants for STEM-integrated arts projects.
- Scientific Awards: ASU Faculty Exemplar (2003)
As a scholar-artist, she leads the Creative Health Collaborations group, the CENAS initiative, and the AZ Wellbeing Commons, all fostering interdisciplinary approaches to health equity. Her directorship of the Theatre and Performance of the Americas doctoral program supports research on performance as a tool for exploring hemispheric cultural histories.