Baron Kelly
Actor | Director | Scholar
Historian & Theatre Practitioner
Dr. Baron Kelly, Marilynn R. Baxter Professor of Theatre and Drama and Vilas Distinguished Achievement Professor, is a four-time Fulbright Scholar, practitioner, and acting technique pedagogist whose work encompasses Ibsen, Shakespeare, and the transnational and global dimensions of black performance.
Black performance has always transcended borders of many kinds, yet theatre historians have not always recognized the global dimensions of this performance history. Dr. Kelly's work places emphasis on historical and sociopolitical analysis.
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critical
Reviews
“Baron Kelly, the newish director of the African American Theatre Program at the University of Louisville, is almost too good to be true. He’s got an impressive academic career, and a list of professional credits as long as your arm. But what makes him most interesting to this arts writer is his attempt to reach out from academia and interact with the community. .”
— Allie Fireel, Louisville Eccentric Observer
“The entire Fences production was a finely coordinated fusion of excellent work by the company of actors, designers and crew, thanks to the astute and carefully crafted direction of Professor Baron Kelly.”
— Associate Professor Herman Daniel Farrel III, College of Fine Arts, University of Kentucky
“Master Harold and the Boys is the work of a master storyteller and builder of character. This is a play that demands great performances. And that is exactly what Director Baron Kelly elicits from this marvelous cast. ”
— Marty Rosen & Alex Roma, Louisville Eccentric Observer
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