Future Research
My future research continues to live at the intersection of performance, Black feminist thought, and cultural memory. As a scholar-artist, I am invested in work that does not separate theory from practice, or scholarship from community. These upcoming projects build on my existing interests while opening up new pathways—through adaptation, digital archives, and collaborative authorship with students.
Black Horror & AI | Chapter Publication
Horries is a developing concept I created that explores the intersections of horror, Black culture, and live performance—coined from the blend of "horror" and "stories." This project extends the A.I. work I began with the “Black Horror in Performance” course that I revised during my fellowship with the CAT + FD office in Summer 2024. The topic also incorporates the themes of the production Beauty Shop of Horrors, which premiered at Xavier and later traveled to the Petit Jean Performance Festival.
The future vision for horries includes a research-based publication that theorizes horror as a method of cultural critique and survival for Black communities despite the overwhelming use of AI. I offer this as a tool for incorporating this genre into performance-based pedagogy.
I will submit to the Active Learning in Higher Education, of Sage Journals.
"Watching God: A Womanist Ritual in Three Acts" | Adaptation (Stage Play)
This full-length theatrical adaptation reimagines Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God through that centers womanist ritual, voice, and community memory. My version will explore the romantic life of Janie Crawford using movement, soundscapes, call-and-response, and ensemble storytelling to highlight the themes of loss and liberation.
This project is both a creative adaptation and a scholarly intervention to bring Hurston’s narrative to life through a performance that honors her anthropological and aesthetic commitments. Currently projected to go up Fall 2027. Will also develop a publication about the process of adaptation and will nominate the production for the Marion Kleinau Theatre Award.
Collaborative Essay Publication
In Fall 2025, students in my "Performing the Archive: Zora Neale Hurston" course engaged deeply with the HistoryMakers Digital Archive to create original performance and media projects grounded in Black oral histories. The founder of the organization, Ms. Richardson, was very impressed with the student projects so this inspired the idea for co-authored publication.
This collaborative effort will feature reflection, project documentation, and pedagogical strategies that emerged from 3-5 students in the course. The aim is to highlight how students, when given access to Black archives and creative resources, become curators of cultural memory and co-producers of knowledge. This project affirms my belief in collaborative scholarship and the power of student-led inquiry to deepen public understanding of Black life and legacy.
I plan to submit this to a teaching journal or Black studies journal by Spring 2027. This will give me an opportunity to teach this version of the class with another set of students in Fall 2026 and identify the strongest writers for publication.