Title: Assistant Professor of Theatre and Performance Studies, New College of Florida
Age: 38
Education: B.S., psychology and theatre performance, University of Evansville; MFA, theatre pedagogy, Virginia Commonwealth University; and Ph.D., theatre and performance studies, University of Pittsburgh
Career mentors: Andrea Kidd, Miami-Dade Public Schools emeritus; Graciela Binaghi, Argentine mime artist; John David Lutz, University of Evansville emeritus; Christia Ward, University of Evansville emeritus; Tawnya Pettiford-Wates, Virginia Commonwealth University; Janet Rodgers, Virginia Commonwealth University emeritus; Rick Sordelet, Broadway fight director; J. David Brimmer, Broadway fight director; Lisa Jackson-Schebetta, Skidmore College; and Michelle Granshaw, University of Pittsburgh
Words of wisdom/advice for new faculty members: “The road is long. Slow down. Find places to replenish the batteries whenever possible. Just because you can (or know how to) doesn’t mean you should.”
When Dr. Diego Villada came to New College of Florida in Sarasota as assistant professor of theater and performance studies, he made a conscious decision not to teach acting with the standard 20th century texts written by white men. Instead, he sought out literature from different perspectives.
“There are specific skills that need to be taught, to be trained, but we don’t need to do that with the same plays, the same books. That comes directly from me being a Latinx artist,” said Villada. “Theater doesn’t belong to any particular culture — it belongs to the human impulse to tell stories.”
