Stephanie Vella

Education

Ph.D., Theatre and Performance, The Graduate Center, CUNY New York United States

M.A., Theatre History and Criticism, Brooklyn College, CUNY Brooklyn United States

B.A., Liberal Arts, Bennington College Bennington United States

Books

Vella, S. (2028). Primitivism and Performance: Modernist Displacement as Aesthetic and Methodology. In Progress.

Journal Articles

Vella, S. (2026). Antonin Artaud’s Oceanic Cruelties: Eroding Anthropological Certainty in two Performances from 1933-1934. Theatre Journal, 78(2). 123-141.

Vella, S. (2022). Performance, Colonialism, and Survivals: Aby Warburg and the Matachines Dance in the US Southwestern Territories . TDR: The Drama Review , 66(1). 80-101.

Book Chapters

Vella, S., & Wickstrom, M. (2013). The New Manifesto of Occupy Wall Street. Manifesto Now! Instructions for Performance, Philosophy, Politics (pp. 37-50). Chicago, IL. Intellect, The University of Chicago Press.

Presentations

Vella, S., Caplan, D. L., & Kastleman, R. (2026, November 26). Taking Stock of Materialist Methods, Old and New. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Minneapolis, MN

Vella, S. (2026, June 26). Richard Schechner’s Bacchaes: Speculative History and Performance Studies. International Federation for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Cologne, Germany

Vella, S. (2026, November 26). Primitives and Other Suspicious Origin Stories. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Denver, CO

Vella, S. (2026, September 26). Primitivism, Embodiment, Performance: Performance Research Methods in Colonial Modernity. Columbia University Seminar in Drama, Theatre, and Performance.

Vella, S., Caplan, D. L., Schulman, M., & Kastleman, R. (2026, November 26). Generating Scholarly Genealogies. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Denver, CO

Vella, S. (2026, November 26). Richard Schechner's Potential Bacchaes: Speculating on Unrealized Histories of Performance Studies. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Seattle, WA

Vella, S., Caplan, D. L., Schulman, M., & Kastleman, R. (2026, November 26). Speculative Historiographies in Times of Change. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Seattle, WA: American Society for Theatre Research.

Vella, S. (2026, April 26). Oceanic Cruelties, or Antonin Artaud Stages the Erosion of Empire. Works-In-Progress Talk. Baruch College: Department of English.

Vella, S. (2026, July 26). Oceanic Cruelties and Primitivist Temporalities: Antonin Artaud Erodes the Boundaries of Empire. International Federation for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Manila, The Philippines: International Federation for Theatre Research.

Vella, S. (2026, October 26). Oceanic Feeling, Maritime Modernism, and Anti-Imperialism in the Aesthetics of Antonin Artaud. Modernist Studies Association Annual Conference. Brooklyn, NY

Vella, S. (2026, November 26). Primitivism, Colonialism, and Disability: Antonin Artaud’s Methodologies for Performance Research. American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. Providence, RI

Vella, S. (2026, November 26). Rehearsing Ecological Catastrophe in the Pastoral Mode at the Supermarket . American Society for Theatre Research Annual Conference. New Orleans, LA

Reviews

Vella, S. (2026,May 26). Walking, Decay, Endurance: Two Year-Long Works by Yuji Agematsu. PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art.

Vella, S. (2026,May 26). Reconsidering Archives and Performance. PAJ: A Journal of Performance and Art.

Vella, S. (2026,January 26). Review of The Avant-Garde: Race, Religion, War by Mike Sell. Theatre Survey.

Vella, S. (1970,January 1). Review of Jews and the Making of Modern German Theatre, edited by Freddie Rokem and Jeanette Malkin. New England Theatre Journal.

College

University

Professional