James Webb

I am an artist, scholar and educator, whose work for the last two decades has been devoted to creating and facilitating theatre experiences for adults and youth; conducting research that uses theatre to investigate sociological questions; and teaching theatre in college classrooms, summer camps, and professional workshops.

Prior to my work at Davidson, I wrote and directed several original full-length plays, including The Contract (Lorraine Hansberry Playwriting Award), Mississippi Crossroad (Eugene O’Neill Semi-finalist), and Sibling Rivalry. My plays were developed and produced at the Ensemble Studio Theatre/LA, National Black Theatre, Essential Theatre, Portland’s Confrontational Theatre, African Continuum Theater Company, and Queen City New Play Festival. I also worked with the Irene C. Edmonds Youth Theatre in Tallahassee, Florida as a summer artist-in-residence for the ten years, writing and directing original children’s plays, including Wrestling with Angels, The House of Jean-René, Rising Star, and STEAM. 

My scholarly research has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including ArtsPraxis, Continuum, and William Mitchell Law Review. In July 2022, my article, “Collaborative Playbuilding and the Act of Crystallization,” was published in Applied Theatre Research. In the article, I discuss how I used theatre to investigate why some African Americans leave the Black Church and choose not to return.

As a theatre professor, I specialize in teaching acting (using Konstantin Stanislavski and Uta Hagen techniques), movement (using Laban), playwriting, and Black contemporary theatre. In Fall 2023, I’ll be directing my first play at Davidson College in the Barber Theatre called Blood at the Root by Dominique Morisseau.