Faculty Profile for Dr. Kevin James Byrne

profile photo for Dr. Kevin James Byrne
Dr. Kevin James Byrne
Assoc Professor of Instruction — Department of Theatre & Dance
THEA 101
phone: (512) 245-2147

Biography Section

Biography and Education

Dr. Byrne has a PhD in Theatre Studies from the City Univeristy of New York, Graduate Center, a MA in Theatre from Northwestern University, and BAs in Theatre and English from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Teaching Interests


Fine Arts, Popular Culture, Theatre History, Theatre Theory, African American Drama

Research Interests

Contemporary US Performance, Representations of Race in Popular Culture.

Selected Scholarly/Creative Work

  • Byrne, K. J. (n.d.). Spiders, Clowns, Zulus: Black Comedy Baseball Teams of the Mid-Twentieth Century. In The Oxford Handbook of African American Humor Studies. Oxford University Press.
  • Byrne, K. J. (n.d.). Performance Review: “Fat Ham and White Girl in Danger.” Theatre Journal.
  • Byrne, K. J. (2022). Jukebox Musicals: An Interpretive History. London, UK: Routledge/Taylor & Francis.
  • Dramaturg, Scenarios. June 2021 - September 2021.
    Performances:
    • Sans Souci Festival of Dance Cinema. University of Colorado, Boulder, Boulder, Colorado.

Selected Grants

  • Byrne, Kevin James. Travel Request 2023-2024, Texas State University, $500. (Submitted: 2023, Funded: 2023). Grant.

Selected Service Activities

Board Member
aTypical Community
November 2023-Present
Reviewer / Referee
Black Theatre Review
August 2022-Present
Editorial Review Board Member
Journal of American Drama and Theatre
August 2015-Present
Member
Common Experience Committee
September 2021-April 2023
Participant
Annual Get Out the Vote Drive
September 2022-October 2022