kt shorb

kt shorb is an Assistant Professor of Theater and Dance at Macalester College and serves as Vice President for the Consortium of Asian American Theaters & Artists, the only national service organization for theatre artists of the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora.

Education:

• BM in Music Composition from Oberlin Conservatory
• MA in Media Studies from the University of Texas at Austin
• PhD in Performance as Public Practice (Theatre/Performance Studies) from the University of Texas at Austin

Research Interests: kt's scholarship critically examines intersections of critical race studies, queer studies, and performance through creative practice-as-research. Their work investigates how queer people of color theatre artists create heroic moments that defy conventional physics, while also contributing performance criticism to American Theatre magazine. Additional expertise includes ensemble-devised theatre, opera direction, and intimacy direction developed through training with SITI Company and Theatrical Intimacy in Education.

Scientific Awards:

• 2015 invited fellow at the Peer Leadership Exchange for the National Institute for Directing and Ensemble Creation
• 2019 Directing Fellow at Wolf Trap Opera

Advising and Grants: With a pedagogy rooted in Paolo Freire's philosophy and Theatre of the Oppressed training under Julian Boal and Bárbara Santos, kt fosters peer learning to explore connections between social structures and personal expression. They have held faculty positions at Southwestern University, UT-Austin, St. Edward's University, and Allegheny College, though specific grant details are not documented in source materials.

Labs and Teams: As Founder and Producing Artistic Director of Generic Ensemble Company (GenEnCo) in Austin, Texas, kt leads collaborative projects foregrounding marginal bodies through productions like 'black girl love: an adaptation project' and 'The Mikado: Reclaimed'. GenEnCo has earned multiple B. Iden Payne and Austin Critics’ Choice nominations under their direction, and they currently collaborate with Katherine Wilkinson on the performance piece 'Inappropriate' exploring queer time travel.