Steven Breese
Chair of Dept. of Theater & Dance

Links:	Click for Teaching Philosophy	Click for Multi-Cultural Statement
	Click for Thoughts on Education	Click for Undergraduate Reading List (developed for BFA Prgram / TCU)

Teaching Biography: I am a teacher and theatre professional. Fifty-one years old, I have been working as professional actor/director for more than twenty-fiveyears. My MFA is from California Institute of the Arts (1981) under the direction of Robert Benedetti. My BA/Speech & Theatre Arts is from Baldwin-Wallace College (Cleveland, OH). In 1192 I merged my professional acting/directing/writing career with the educational arena. This career marriage has proved both stimulating and challenging. I find working with students rejuvenating and they express to me the inspiration they glean from my work as an acting teacher, director and mentor.

I am currently the Chair of the Department of Theater & Dance Christopher Newport University - a position I have held for 7 years. In addtion to overseeing all organizational and academic affairs of the Theater Program (160 majors), I direct at least one mainstage production and one studio production each academic year. My teaching responsibilities include all levels of acting & directing, voice and playwriting.

From 1992-1998 I served as Head of the Acting Program at Texas Christian University. My responsibilities at TCU included overseeing the acting program (100 performance majors), teaching at least seven classes and directing two main-stage productions each academic year, serving on the Departmental Advisory Committee, and academic advising/career mentoring for twenty-five (25) undergraduate students. I was in charge of departmental recruiting which required presenting workshops/symposiums at various theatrical conventions (S.E.T.C., S.W.T.A., etc.), as well as auditioning all prospective acting students. As a member of the University faculty I was elected to The Undergraduate Council (curriculum review), Student Evaluation Committee and served as a member of the Graduate Faculty.

Additional teaching engagements include: Semester at Sea (Sponsored by The University of Pittsburgh and Institute for Shipboard Education), University of California/Santa Barbara (summer sessions), University of North Dakota, Baldwin-Wallace College and Ohio Wesleyan University.

Click to view/print Teaching Resume (PDF).

I am an energized individual with an insatiable theatrical appetite. My work and teaching are the most crucial parts of my life and I take great pride in maintaining their integrity. I find collaboration with other theatre artists - as well as artists from complimentary disciplines - stimulating and reaffirming. (This is just not lip-service, as my colleagues in the departments of Music, Dance and Television/Film will emphatically confirm.) I strongly believe in brainstorming and collective thinking as the best means to any creative end. I am an optimist; as Boomers of America continue to age, I see the theatre poised for resurgence--a renaissance, of sorts. I firmly believe that live theatre experiences will soon (again) play an integral part in the lives of Mr. and Mrs. Mainstream.

It is clear the theatre is changing - and must continue to change in order to grow. Part of this change includes non-traditional race/gender casting. This positive, necessary progress over the past three decades has only recently begun to enlighten audiences, remove traditional racial/gender boundaries and revitalize repertory in constant need of new ideas/approaches. I applaud and embrace this growth in casting, in production and (of course) in the classroom.

I have a lifetime commitment to continuing my professional growth as an actor/theatre artist. I seek opportunities in educational programs that encourage professional growth from the faculty. We, as artists and mentors, should challenge ourselves in the professional arena - continually testing our skills and affirming our talents. Competition is a fact in the theatrical market place; engaging in the competitive professional atmosphere keeps the artist's muscles toned, skills sharp and perspective clear.

I have spent most of my professional life in the artistic mainstream. The commercial theatre has treated me extremely well, affording me a more luxurious lifestyle than most professional actors. Guiding young artists toward a viable career in the commercial theatre is one of our responsibilities as mentors and educators. However, in addition to traditional approaches, I believe educational theatre offers unique opportunities for creative risk. We should take risks in the classroom as well as production - production with its own concerns, its own focus, its own goals apart from commercial pressures. I welcome the opportunity to direct new material as well as explore traditional material with renewed ideas. I have interest in developing new work through the workshop environment. New play development is one of the great pleasures of being a theatre artist. The university setting can offer tremendous opportunity for this creative exploration.