Professor of English and Theatre

About

  • Find Me On:

    linkedin

  • Office Hours:

    T/Th 2-3 p.m.

  • Role:

    Faculty

  • Position:

    • Professor of English and Theatre
    • Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs

  • Concentration:

    • Contemporary Literature, Dramatic Literature and Theory

  • Department:

    • CLA Dean's Office, English, and Theatre

  • Education:

    • Ph.D.- University of Maryland, College Park

  • Curriculum Vitae:

Biography

Ryan Claycomb teaches courses in modern drama, critical theory, theatre history, dramaturgy and contemporary literature for both English and Theatre. His research responds to questions surrounding performances of the real--real people, real places, and real events--and the political, ethical, and formal issues that arise.  His book In the Lurch: Verbatim Theater and the Crisis of Democratic Deliberation was published by University of Michigan Press in early 2023.

As Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs in the CLA Dean's office, he focuses on improving and sustaining equity in faculty recruitment, onboarding, academic freedom, tenure and promotion, faculty development, and compensation.  He also contributes to processes for space and facilities, college and department governance documentation, strategic planning and implementation. At CSU and previous institutions, he has also developed significant experience in inclusive pedagogy, undergraduate academic affairs, student success initiatives, honors education, and interdisciplinary humanities research and engagement.

Publications

Books  

In The Lurch: Verbatim Theater and the Crisis of Democratic Deliberation.  Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2023.

Lives in Play: Autobiography and Biography on the Feminist Stage.  Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press. 2012. x + 261 pp. Reviewed in Biography, Modern Drama, TDR, Text and Presentation, Theatre Journal, Theatre Research International, Theatre Survey.

Writing Against the Curriculum: Anti-Disciplinarity in the Writing and Cultural Studies Classroom.  Co-edited with Randi Gray Kristensen. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2009. 244 pp. Reviewed in Composition Studies.

Selected Articles

“Exceptional Embodiment in Anna Deavere Smith’s Let Me Down Easy” in Critical Perspectives on Contemporary Playwriting by Women: The Early Twenty-First Century. Eds. Penny Farfan and Lesley Ferris.  Ann Arbor, Mich:University of Michigan Press, 2021. 109-117.

“Annawadi on South Bank: Global Neoliberalism and Spatial Contingency in Behind the Beautiful Forevers” Modern Drama. 60.4 (Winter 2017) 407-427.

“Here’s How You Produce This Play: Towards a Narratology of Dramatic Texts.”  Narrative.  21.2 (May 2013).  159-179.

“Voices of the Other:  Documentary and Oral History Performance in Post-9/11 British Theatre” in Political and Protest Theatre after 9/11: Patriotic Dissent.  Ed. Jenny Spencer. New York: Routledge, 2011.  93-107.