Bart Pitchford is an Assistant Professor of Theatre History and Directing at the University of Montevallo. He recently graduated with his PhD in Performance as Public Practice from the University of Texas at Austin. Bart’s dissertation, Hela L’ Wein: Performing Nationalisms, Citizenship, and Belonging in Displaced Syrian Communities examines the intersection of performance and citizenship identity formation with displaced Syrians in Jordan. His scholarly work currently focuses on tracing the paths of Syrian diasporic theatre artists.
Bart also serves as the artistic director of Canopy Theatre in Austin, TX where he produced a monodrama starring Syrian actor Nawar Bulbul and directed the NEH funded project Warrior Chorus ATX, which was created nationally by Aquila Theatre Company, New York, NY.
Additionally, Bart writes and speaks extensively about the intersection of theatre, war, and the military with contributions to American Theatre Magazine and the anthology Performance in Militarized Cultures (2017).
Bart received his MA in Theatrical Sound Design and his BA in Theatre at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, LA. He served as the Technical Director, Theatrical Facilities Manager, and Theatre Appreciation Instructor at Northwest Missouri State University; Sound Designer at Young Abe Lincoln Theatre in Indiana; and Technical Director of Foothills Theatre in Nevada City, CA. Bart also spent six years as an enlisted soldier in the U.S. Army as a Psychological Operations Sergeant.
