Home > Faculty & Staff : Sonja Kuftinec

Sonja Kuftinec

612-626-9238

Theatre Arts and Dance Room 550G

Curriculum Vitae

Department Affiliations

Theatre, Facilitation, and Nation Formation in the Balkans and Middle East. Kuftinec, Sonja, Palgrave Macmillan, Author, 2009.
Staging America: Cornerstone and Community-Based Theater. Kuftinec, Sonja, Southern Illinois University Press, 2003.
Violent Reformations: Image Theater with Youth in Conflict Regions: Kuftinec, Sonja, eds Jisha Menon and Patrick Anderson, Palgrave Macmillan, Violence Performed, 223-43, 2009.
“Gay Muslims and Salty Meat Pies: The Limits of Performing Community,” : Kuftinec, Sonja, eds Avi Oz and Susan Haedicke, Rodopi Press, Political Performances, 2009.
[How] Does Activist Performance Work?” : Kuftinec, Sonja, Community Arts Network, 2008. Link
“Prose and Cons: Prison Theater in Ma’asiyahu, Israel,”: Kuftinec, Sonja, Chen Alon, Research in Drama Education , 12:3 275-291, 2007.
“Methodologies of Performance Research in the Balkans and Jerusalem/Al Quds”. Kuftinec, Sonja, Assaph, 2007.
'Go Have Your Life!' Self and Community in Peter Schumann's Bread and Puppet Theater. Kuftinec, Sonja, Editors James Harding and Cindy Rosenthal, 2003.
Bridging Balkan Rapis. Kuftinec, Sonja, Author, 2002. Link
Critical Relations in Community-Based Performance: The Artist and Writer in Conversation: Kuftinec, Sonja, Report for Animating Democracy Initiative, , 2002. Link
A Cornerstone for Rethinking Community Theater. Kuftinec, Sonja, 1996.

Theatre, Facilitation and Nation Formation:Reimagining Theater in the Balkans and Middle East: Book contracted with Palgrave Press, 2005 - 2009
Space & Place: research group sponsored by Institute for Global Studies and Institute for Advanced Studies, Sept. 1998 - June 2009
The Falls: Critical study of Cornerstone Theater's collaboration with the Guthrie and six neighborhood communities., April 2005 - September 2006
Image Theater and the Conflict Transformation: Working with S. Asian, Balkan, and Middle East youth affiliated with Seeds of Peace to facilitate dialogue through theater, research leave through Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, February 2004 - August 2004
Arts and Reconciliation in Israel/Palestine: scholarly symposium with visitors from Middle East accompanied by original production developed with University of Minnesota students and installations guided by Art Professor Diane Katsiaficas, Sept. 2002 - February 2003
Critical Arts Literacy: Network of K-12 teachers, teaching artists, and theater students investigating arts and education, November 2005 - ongoing
Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed: coordinating national conference, June 2006 - June 2007
Staging America: Cornerstone and Community-Based Theater: Book exploring relationship between theater, community and American identity with focus on community-based Cornerstone Theater (Honorable mention for 2003 Barnard Hewitt Award), June 2000 - Spring 2003

"We Come From . . . ": original performance with students at BYU, Oct. 29, 2007 - Nov. 2, 2007
Excerpts from Long Bridge Over Deep Waters : staged reading, Dec. 1, 2006 - Dec. 5, 2006
International Image Theater: workshop, Feb. 2004 - Jun. 2004
There is a Field: Original performance exploring the middle east with University students: Sept. 2002 - February 2003
Between the Lines: Alleys of Balkan Identity: invited to create original performance developed with youth from seven Balkan countries, performed at the House of World Cultures in Berlin, Germany, Sept. 25, 2001 - Oct. 17, 2001
Mesta/Places: invited workshop and original performance in Belgrade, Serbia, August 15, 2000 - August 20, 2000

Co-organizer American Society for Theatre Research Conference, 2009: Nov. 2008 - Nov. 2009
Guest Editor Text and Performance Quarterly, Fall 2009: Jun. 2007 - Jun. 2009
Chair Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed international conference 2007: Jun. 2006 - Jun. 2007
Performance Review Editor Theater Journal: select and edit theater reviews for major academic journal , September 2004 - December 2007
Member, Center for Austrian Studies Board, College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota: 2003 - 2004
Member, Center for Advanced Feminist Studies Advisory Board, College of Liberal Arts, University of Minnesota: 2001 - 2003
Member, Performance Studies International
Member, Association of Theater in Higher Education
Member, American Society of Theatre Research
Faculty Writing Consultant: work with writing center to consult with faculty about writing intensive courses , Sept. 2003 - May 2005
Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Theatre Arts and Dance, University of Minnesota: Sept. 2004

There is a Field: Invited lecture for Hillel Center, January 2003
Neighborhood Bridges Board Member: Work with elementary students on developing critical literacy, June 2006 - June 2009
Syllabus Workshop Leader, Penumbra Theater: led workshop on creating syllabae for Penumbra Institute teachers, May 2003
New Play Respondent, Jungle Theater: respondent to new plays by Native American artists, April 2002
Consultant: provided background information on Balkans for cast of Small Tragedy, a play about Bosnia premiering at the Playwright's Center, May 2003
Civic Conversations: guest on BAT cable channel, April 2003 - May 2003

Scholar of the College, July 2009 - July 2012
Barnard Hewitt Award (honorable mention), 2003
Institute for Advanced Study Research grant for project on Sovereignty and Statehood , Jun. 2008 - Jun. 2009
Scholarly Events Fund towards Pedagogy and Theatre of the Oppressed Conference, Oct. 2008 - June 2009
Fulton Lecturer at Brigham Young University, Oct. 2007 - Nov. 2007
American Society of Theatre Research award for study in Israel/Palestine, June 2004 - June 2005
Seeds of Peace honorarium for facilitation work with Middle East Youth, July 2002
Grant in Aid Award for completion of Staging America, May 2001 - March 2002
Centennial Teaching Award, Stanford University, 1995
Finalist Morse Alumni Undergraduate Education Award, 2006 - 2006

Th 1101V - Honors Section: Introduction to the Theatre
Th 1101W - Introduction to the Theatre
Th 8115 - 19th Century Theater
Th 8116 - History and Theory of Western Theatre: 20th Century From 1945 to the Present
Th 8114 - Medieval and Renaissance Theater
Th 5950 - Collaborative Performance
Th 5117 - Performance and Social Change
TH 5950 - Critical Literacy, Storytelling, and Creative Drama