Jaye Austin May 2026

At the University of California, Irvine, she directed significant works including The Colored Museum , The Trial of Dedan Kimathi , and The Liquid Plain .

Her scholarly interventions often focus on what she terms "drama-as-theory," exploring how the structure of dramatic writing itself acts as a critical medium for understanding societal antagonisms. Notable Artistic and Scholarly Contributions jaye austin

Williams’ expertise extends into diverse areas of social and physical practice. She has served on selection panels for the and the Young Playwrights Festival . Additionally, she is a practitioner of Aikido , having developed modified movement workshops specifically for elders and people with disabilities. At the University of California, Irvine, she directed

Her writings include essays like "Radical Black Drama-as-Theory: The Black Feminist Dramatic on the Protracted Event-Horizon" (published in Theory & Event ) and critical reviews of theatrical interventions in white supremacy. She has served on selection panels for the

Dr. Jaye Austin Williams: The Intersection of Performance and Critical Black Studies

Dr. Jaye Austin Williams is an acclaimed artist, scholar, and professor whose work meticulously examines the "persistently challenging predicament of Black life" through the dual lenses of dramatic performance and critical theory. Currently an and Performance Studies Specialist in the Department of Critical Black Studies at Bucknell University , she has spent her career investigating how Black playwrights theorize anti-Blackness. Bridging the Gap Between Industry and Theory

In 2022, she presented "Antiblackness and the Limits of Performance," where she analyzed dramatic texts to discuss the "structured animus" of anti-Blackness. Beyond the Stage