Director and educator Rachel Stevens joins CCM's faculty
Stevens will serve as CCM’s Visiting Assistant Professor of Acting in Musical Theatre
UC College-Conservatory of Music Interim Dean Jonathan Kregor has announced the addition of Rachel M. Stevens to the college’s roster of distinguished performing and media arts faculty members. Stevens begins her new role as CCM’s Visiting Assistant Professor of Acting in Musical Theatre on Aug. 15, 2023.
A director, developer, educator and acting coach originally from Philadelphia, Stevens has called New York City home for more than a decade. She was assistant director on the Broadway run of the Tony Award-winning musical Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812. Her Off-Broadway credits include Smart Blonde (associate director, 59E59) and Preludes (assistant director, Lincoln Center Theater, LCT3), and her New York directing and devising credits include work with The Civilians' R&D Group, SheNYC Festival, NYMF, Theatre Now, TheaterWorksUSA and New York Film Academy.
Her regional credits include a production of Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 at American Repertory Theatre directed by Rachel Chavkin and The Bandstand at Paper Mill Playhouse directed by Andy Blankenbuehler, along with productions at Quantum Theatre, City Theatre Company and Front Porch Theatricals.
Stevens has also directed and taught at Point Park University’s Pittsburgh Playhouse, Oakland University. and Concordia College. Her teaching artist and guest lecturer experience includes work at University of the Arts, The Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University, Point Park University, Musical Theater College Auditions (MTCA), The Broadway Jr. Program, Upper Darby Summer Stage, Imagination Stage, Young Playwrights and ArtStream Access Theater.
Most recently, Stevens served on the musical theater faculty at Oakland University (Rochester, MI). In her role as a Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre, she directed mainstage, children’s theatre and the New Student Showcase. Stevens also served as faculty advisor for Oakland University’s inaugural Kaleidoscope Cabaret—featuring students of the global majority, she led as Chair of the DEI Committee for the School of Music, Theatre and Dance—and she spearheaded the direction for that university’s first ever sensory-friendly relaxed performance.
Stevens holds her BFA in Musical Theatre from Point Park University, her MFA from the Actors Studio Drama School at Pace University and is a proud SDC associate.
Her artistry stems from her commitment to the Hebrew adage of "Tikkun Olam," or "to repair the world." Her guiding purpose as a director, educator and mentor is to cultivate brave spaces where artists can unabashedly create from their authentic selves, collaborate from a place of trust and lead with compassion.
"To educate and inspire the whole artist and scholar for positions on the world stage requires exceptional, experienced pedagogues," said Kregor. "Rachel Stevens brings this exact kind of well-roundedness to her new role with CCM Musical Theatre. I would like to thank CCM faculty members Rebecca Bromels, Vincent DeGeorge, Diane Lala and Keyona Willis for their help in bringing Rachel to CCM for this visiting appointment."
Next Lives Here
At the University of Cincinnati, we realize the impact our teaching, research, artistry and service can have on our community and the world. So, we don’t wait for change to happen. We break boundaries, boldly imagine and create what’s Next. To us, today’s possibilities spark tomorrow’s reality. That’s why we are leading urban public universities into a new era of innovation and impact, and that's how we are defining Next for the performing and media arts.
We're about engaging people and ideas - and transforming the world.
We are UC. Welcome to what's Next.
Featured image at top: Rachel Stevens performs in A New Brain at Oakland University. Photo/Chuck Cloud
Additional Contacts
Rebecca Butts | Assistant Public Information Officer
buttsrl@ucmail.uc.edu | 513-556-2675
Related Stories
Get to know CCM’s newest faculty and staff members
July 3, 2024
UC’s College-Conservatory of Music will welcome a variety of new faculty and staff members to its roster of distinguished performing and media arts experts, researchers and educators this fall.
UC study: Brain organ plays key role in adult neurogenesis
July 2, 2024
The University of Cincinnati has published research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences that found the choroid plexus and cerebrospinal fluid play a key role in maintaining a pool of newly born neurons to repair the adult brain after injury.
University-wide Qualtrics license coming soon
July 2, 2024
The new university-wide Qualtrics license will provide current UC students, faculty, and staff members access to Qualtrics software, support, and technical assistance under a centralized license.
CCM students receive 16 award nominations from NATAS Ohio Valley Chapter
July 1, 2024
Students from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music received 16 Student Production Award nominations from the Ohio Valley Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).
Put down that beer; it's not a tanning lotion
July 1, 2024
The University of Cincinnati's Kelly Dobos joined WVXU's Cincinnati Edition to discuss what's fact and what's myth when it comes to sunscreen use, different kinds of sunscreen and a social media recommendation to use beer on your skin to help get a tan.
New project aims to better support teen mothers in Adams County
June 27, 2024
WCPO highlighted a partnership between the University of Cincinnati and the Adams County Health Department that is aiming to provide better support for teen mothers in the county.
Study aimed at reducing opioid overdose deaths presents results
June 27, 2024
The University of Cincinnati's John Winhusen and Caroline Freiermuth discussed the evidence-based practices implemented during the HEALing Communities Study to fight the opioid epidemic with Spectrum News.
Male birth control gel inches towards FDA approval
June 25, 2024
The University of Cincinnati's Wesley Baas spoke with Yahoo News and the Cincinnati Enquirer about a new male birth control gel that could be close to receiving FDA approval.
University of Cincinnati Cancer Center launches Blood Cancer Healing Center
June 25, 2024
The University of Cincinnati Cancer Center celebrated the opening of its state-of-the-art Blood Cancer Healing Center June 24.
Carnegie Foundation recognizes UC with Leadership for Public Purpose classification
June 24, 2024
UC part of inaugural group honored for focusing on developing students as leaders