Rebecca Daniels
Associate Professor of Speech and Theatre

Rebecca Daniels has been a member of the faculty at St. Lawrence since 1992, having earned her B.A. at Stanford University, her M.F.A. at the University of Portland and her Ph.D. at the University of Oregon. She directs one major theatre production each year and teaches in the First-Year Program.

Daniels has been speech and theatre department chair and served on several committees, including the Professional Standards Committee and the Hewlett Pluralism and Unity Project, a multiyear initiative to promote diversity on campus. While on sabbatical in 1998-1999, Daniels wrote a two-act play on the life of American composer Amy Beach. The Famous Mrs. Beach premiered at St. Lawrence in April 2002 under her direction and featured students from a variety of majors. She has directed plays such as Romeo and Juliet, Cloud 9 and Getting Out. This spring she is directing Fortinbras, a play by Lee Blessing that explains what happens in Hamlet after everyone dies. She is also the author of Women Stage Directors Speak: Exploring the Effects of Gender on Their Work, a book based on dissertation research that was expanded with the help of faculty grants from St. Lawrence.

Daniels says that premiering The Famous Mrs. Beach last spring is one of her greatest experiences at St. Lawrence. “It was extraordinary to produce a totally original script into a full production,” she says. “I was really impressed that the student actors were able to give such depth to complicated characters and play those characters outside of their own age range.”