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Amanda J. Nelson

Amanda J. Nelson, Associate Professor, Theatre and Primary Advisor, MFA in Theatre in Arts Leadership

Amanda J. Nelson, Associate Professor, Theatre and Primary Advisor, MFA in Theatre in Arts Leadership
Amanda J. Nelson, Associate Professor, Theatre and Primary Advisor, MFA in Theatre in Arts Leadership

School of Performing Arts 
344 Henderson Hall
195 Alumni Mall, Blacksburg, VA 24061
amandajnelson@vt.edu

Women and the Vote

As a multi-hyphenate, Amanda Nelson’s work is centered in collaborative multidisciplinary practices in the classroom, the rehearsal hall, and in her research and creative scholarship.

As a teacher and mentor, Nelson is committed to connecting the classroom to the professional field and in bringing the professional field to her classroom. Guest speakers, case studies, and field projects (pro bono consulting) are at the core of her experiential classes. She joined the faculty at Virginia Tech in 2013 to create and establish a new M.F.A. program in Arts Leadership. The program is a full member of the Association of Arts Administration Educators (AAAE). Before coming to Virginia Tech, she worked 11 years for the world-renowned Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in New York where she oversaw membership programs, government relations, corporate sponsorships, and foundation support. 

As an arts advocate, she serves as an advisor to and consultant for arts organizations. Nelson facilitates planning processes and guides organizations through both internal and external campaigns to build awareness and garner support. She is a board member of Mill Mountain Theatre in Roanoke, Virginia and The Lyric Theatre in Blacksburg, Virginia. She has also served on the board of Virginia's Blue Ridge Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP).

As an arts researcher, Nelson examines current trends in arts management and theatre pedagogy. Her historical interests encompass a range of socio-political topics in 19th and 20th century American and British theatre, including the role of women actor-managers and producers.

As a producer and director, her theatrical projects are far-ranging in scope and scale as well as in modes and modalities. Her recent creative projects explore the intersection of theatre and technology through the development of multidisciplinary performance projects that mix traditional theatre texts with new media, including spatial audio, video projections, and augmented reality. Often Neo-Victorian in approach and style, her collaborative new media projects include Shakespeare’s Garden: An Immersive Sound Stroll Through His Sonnets, Soliloquies, and Scenes, and Poe's Shadows: An Immersive Theatrical Installation.

Nelson currently serves as the Graduate Program Director for the MFA in Theatre and the Primary Advisor for the M.F.A. in Theatre in Arts Leadership program. She is a Senior Fellow for the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology (ICAT) and a Faculty Affiliate of the Women’s and Gender Studies program.

  • Arts Leadership
  • Arts and Technology
  • Women and Theatre
  • Arts Advocacy
  • Theatre History
  • PhD in Drama, Tufts University, 2000
  • MA in Drama, San Francisco State University, 1995
  • BA in Drama, University of California at Irvine, 1991
  • Association of Arts Administration Educators (AAAE)
  • Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP)
  • 2019 The Albert Lee Sturm Award for Faculty Excellence in the Creative Arts, Virginia Tech. Awarded along with colleagues N. Staley, C. Nichols, and M. Dee.
  • 2019 International Design Award (IDA), Silver in Print/Signs, Exhibits, and POP Displays Category for “Shakespeare’s Garden” multidisciplinary project. Awarded along with colleagues M. Dee, N. Staley, and C. Nichols.
  • 2019 Western Virginia ADDY Gold Awards, Events and Illustration categories for “Poe’s Shadows,” multidisciplinary project. Awarded along with colleagues M. Dee, N. Staley, T. Upthegrove, and A. Reed.

Journal Articles

  • Nelson, Amanda J. and Masters, Richard. 2021. “Voices from the Past: Reviving a Rarely Heard Musical on a College Campus.” Studies in Musical Theatre, 5 (2): 89–100. 
  • Nelson, Amanda J. and Molly Hood. 2021. "Performing History: A New Model for the College Theatre Classroom." The International Journal of Arts Education 16 (1): 1-14. 
  • Nelson, Amanda and Natasha Staley, 2020. “Playing the Bard in the Immersive Realm: An Examination of Audience Agency,” The International Journal of New Media, Technology, and the Arts, Volume 15, Issue 1, pages 11-19.
  • Nelson, Amanda and  Richard Masters, 2018. “Rethinking the College Summer Intensive: A New Model for Collaboration,” Stage Directors and Choreographers Society Journal (SDC), Volume 6, Number 3, pages 44-49. SDC serves more than 1500 stage directors and choreographers.
  • Nelson, Amanda, 2018. “Collaborating, Collecting, and Analyzing Data: A Case Study in Experiential Learning in the Arts Management Classroom,” American Journal of Arts Management (online journal) ISSN: 2333-3537.
  • Nelson, Amanda, 2016. “Meeting the Needs of the On-Demand Generation: Bringing Twenty-First Century Technology into the College Arts Classroom,” The International Journal of Arts Education, The Arts in Society, Common Ground Publishing, Volume 11, Issue 3, pages 15-24.

Book Chapters

  • “Is a Resident Company for You? Advice to the Actor from an Artistic Director,” in Acting for the Stage, Editors Anna Weinstein and Chris Qualls, Focal Press - Taylor and Francis Group, pages 39-47. The book is part of a new series focused on career development for both undergraduate and graduate students. February 2017.

Theatre Reviews For The Roanoke Times (selected)

  • September 27, 2019 “MMT's ‘The Glass Menagerie’ resonates with conflict and mystical setting.”
  • March 31, 2019 “Theatre Review: Mill Mountain Theatre Rocks Out to ‘Mama Mia.’”
  • February 18, 2019 “Community Theatre Review: Showtimers Nimbly Navigates Fast-Pace Parody.”
  • September 29, 2018 “Theatre Review: ‘The Laramie Project’ is an Appeal for Hope Over Hate.”
  • June 22, 2018 “Theatre Review: Cast Embraces Intimacy of ‘Spring Awakening.’”
  • April 30, 2018 “Theatre Review: Mill Mountain Theatre’s ‘Chorus Line’ is Standout Production.”
  • December 5, 2017 “Community Theatre Review: ‘Rumors’ Abound in Showtimers’ Latest Production.”
  • October 6, 2017 “Theatre Review: Mill Mountain Theatre’s ‘Little Shop’ Offers Diet of Guilty Pleasures.”
  • May 5, 2017 “Theatre Review: Roanoke Children’s Theatre Brings Beloved Children’s Book Characters to the Stage.”
  • May 2, 2017 “Play Review: ‘Moonlight and Magnolias’ Mixes Classic Hollywood, the Old South, and Historic Unease.”
  • April 5, 2017 “Community Theatre Review: Off the Rails’ ‘Arcadia’ Not to Be Missed.”
  • February 21, 2017 “Community Theatre Review: ‘The Last Five Years’ at Showtimers Begins, Ends with Goodbye.”

 

  • January 10, 2022 “A Circuit of Touchpoints: Tools and Practices from the American System of Fundraising,” invited speaker, international webinar. Hosted by the King Baudouin Foundation United States, the leading resource in the U.S. to facilitate philanthropic giving to Europe and Africa, and in partnership with the Reinwardt Arts Academy, Amsterdam.
  • November 17, 2021 “Leveling Up Your Membership Program: Learning from the American Model,” invited keynote, international webinar. Hosted by the French Association of Fundraisers (FAA) 2021 Conference.
  • June 28, 2021 "Strengthening Long-Term Relationships: Membership Program Strategies for Retention & Growth," invited speaker, international webinar. Hosted by the King Baudouin Foundation United States, the leading resource in the U.S. to facilitate philanthropic giving to Europe and Africa, and in partnership with  fundraising association partners Deutsche Fundraising Verband, Fundraising Verband Austria, and the Swiss Fundraising Organization.
  • Invited Featured Speaker, “Building a Donor Base through Membership,” King Baudouin Foundation’s The Art & Science of the American Fundraising Model: A Study Visit to New York for Senior Executives from European Universities and Cultural Institutions, New York, New York (Annually 2007-2019). Other featured speakers have included Reynold Levy, Lincoln Center; Naomi Levine former Executive Director and Chair of NYU School of Professional Studies' Center for Philanthropy and Fundraising; and Adam Weinberg, Whitney Museum of American Art. Named for the late king of Belgium, the Foundation’s United States arm provides a range of programs in philanthropy.
  • Invited Speaker, Association of Arts Administration Educators’ (AAAE) Webinar with Dr. Bob Harlow, author of “Taking Out the Guesswork,” for the Wallace Foundation (April 14, 2017). AAAE represents higher education arts administration programs around the world and serves as a convener, a resource, and an advocate for arts administration education. The Wallace Foundation is a national philanthropy with 1.5 billion dollars in assets. “Taking Out the Guesswork” was part of the Wallace Foundation’s Building Audiences for the Arts initiative.

Theatre Productions (Virginia Tech)

  • December 5, 2022 Theatrical Director, "Unseen, Unbodièd, Unknown: The William Blake Cycle" (World Premiere by composer Tiffany Skidmore), The Cube, Virginia Tech.
  •  September 29-October 4, 2022 Director, "This Random World" by Steven Dietz, Virginia Tech.
  • July 16 -18, 2022 Director, "Our Town" by Thornton Wilder, Blacksburg Summer Arts Festival, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  • April 12, 2019 Stage Director “Songs and Scenes from The Sap of Life,” Recital Salon, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  • April 5-7, 2019 Producer “Shakespeare’s Garden Exhibit,” ACCelerate Festival, Smithsonian, Washington, D.C. Attendance: 61,369.
  • October 31-November 4, 2018 Producer and Co-Director “Poe’s Shadows: An Immersive Theatrical Installation,” the Cube, Moss Arts Center, Virginia Tech. Sponsored by the School of  Performing Arts, the School of Visual Arts, the Center for Humanities, the English Department, the Moss Arts Center, and the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology. This immersive theatrical installation attracted 942 visitors.
  • Summer 2018 Stage Director Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick’s "Fiorello!," produced in conjunction with the Summer Arts Festival and the School of Performing Arts at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  • Summer 2018 Collaborator for the development of a virtual reality version of “Shakespeare’s Garden: An Immersive Sound Stroll Through His Sonnets, Soliloquies, and Scenes,” produced in conjunction with the Athenaeum (Digital Humanities services) and Immersive Environments in University Libraries at Virginia Tech.
  • March 22-24, 2018 Creator, Producer, and Co-Director “Shakespeare’s Garden: An Immersive Sound Stroll Through His Sonnets, Soliloquies, and Scenes,” sponsored by School of Performing Arts, the Humanities at Virginia Tech, Voice and Speech Trainers Association (VASTA), the School of Visual Arts, the Moss Arts Center, and the Institute for Creativity, Arts, and Technology. This immersive theatrical installation attracted 1070 visitors. The Cube, Moss Arts Center, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  •  Summer 2017 Director, George and Ira Gershwin’s Oh, Kay!, produced in conjunction with the 
  •  Summer Arts Festival and the School of Performing Arts at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia.
  •  Summer 2016 Director, Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart’s "Babes in Arms," as a new experimental summer mini-session course produced in conjunction with the Summer Arts Festival and the School of Performing Arts at Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia.

Undergraduate Courses:

  • Arts Management
  • Introduction to Acting
  • Introduction to Arts Marketing
  • Performing History (Special Topics Performance Course)

Graduate Courses:

  • Arts Marketing
  • Arts Advocacy
  • Creativity, Collaboration, and Artistic Decision Making ( part of the MFA Graduate Seminar rotation)
  • Development (Fundraising)
  • Human Resources in the Arts
  • Leadership and Community Engagement
  • Strategic Management in the Arts
  • Primary Advisor, MFA in Theatre: Arts Leadership
  • Director, Graduate Certificate in Arts Leadership

What is your favorite place on campus? Why?

The rehearsal room in Theatre 101 is a wonderfully bright space and has become one of my favorite places on campus. Why?  I feel inspired and energized when I am working with students in the space.

What gives you the most satisfaction as a teacher?

When students are so inspired that they challenge themselves to go further and do more than they thought they could.