R. Darren Gobert specializes in comparative modern and contemporary Western drama, dramatic and performance theory, and the philosophy of theatre. As a theatre practitioner, he has written stage adaptations and directed plays by Albee, Beckett, Chekhov, and others. From 2015 to 2020, he was the editor of Modern Drama.

Research Interests

R. Darren Gobert specializes in comparative modern and contemporary Western drama, dramatic and performance theory, and the philosophy of theatre. As a theatre practitioner, he has written stage adaptations and directed plays by Albee, Beckett, Chekhov, and others. From 2015 to 2020, he was the editor of Modern Drama.

His first book, The Mind-Body Stage: Passion and Interaction in the Cartesian Theater (Stanford UP), was published in 2013; his second, The Theatre of Caryl Churchill (Bloomsbury), in 2014. His current project is a cultural history of catharsis. In support of it, he currently holds a SSHRC Insight Grant (2017-2020).

Among Prof. Gobert's honours are the Ann Saddlemyer Prize and the Barnard Hewitt Award for The Mind-Body Stage, the Dean's Award for Outstanding Teaching (2008), and the President's University-Wide Teaching Award (2016). He was awarded the John Charles Polanyi Prize for Literature in 2007.

On leave from York, he is currently William and Sue Gross Professor of Theater Studies and of English at Duke University.

Degrees

Ph.D., English and Comparative Literature, Columbia
M.Phil, English and Comparative Literature, Columbia
M.A., English and Comparative Literature, Columbia
M.A., English, McGill
B.A., French and English, Ottawa

Appointments

Faculty of Graduate Studies

Professional Leadership

Editor, Modern Drama, 2015 - 2020
MLA Drama and Performance Forum Executive Committee, 2018 - 2022
Programming Committee, American Society for Theatre Research, 2019 conference (Arlington)

Research Interests