Dramaturg:
Karen O’Brien is an assistant professor in UNC’s Department of Dramatic Art and a resident dramaturg with PlayMakers Repertory Company (Mary’s Wedding). She teaches dramatic literature, directing, and a first-year interdisciplinary seminar in ecology and performance in which she leads students through the process of devising performance that promotes socio-ecological sustainability. Karen is also a scholar in Irish drama and performance with research that intersects in the environmental humanities. Her international publications have been sought after for translation and reprint. As a director, she recently staged R.C. Sherriff’s Journey’s End at Deep Dish Theater Company. Karen received an M.F.A. in Directing from the College-Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati and a Ph.D. in Drama and Theatre from the Joint Doctoral Program at the University of California, Irvine and San Diego.