NICHOLAS S. ORVIS
Dramaturg, Scholar, Director
Nicholas Orvis
Nicholas Orvis (he/him) is a doctoral candidate in dramaturgy at the School of Drama at Yale. From 2014-2019 he served as Literary Associate and Resident Dramaturg for Premiere Stages at Kean University. Other dramaturgical work includes Yale Repertory Theater, Portland Stage Company, the Tank, the Yale Cabaret, and more. He is a former managing editor of Theater magazine, and his critical writing has appeared in Theater, 3Views on Theatre, and HowlRound. He co-produces (with Percival Hornak) Dungeons + Drama Nerds, an ongoing podcast investigating the intersections between theater and tabletop roleplaying games. His research interests include game-based performances, immersive and participatory theater, and early modern European drama, particularly the commedia dell’arte.
As a dramaturg, I work with artists to bring new theatrical projects to life: offering feedback to playwrights, research support to directors and designers, crucial context for performers, and engaging ways into the heart of the play for both general and specialized audiences.
As a director, I help the artists I collaborate with form an ensemble to work toward a collective vision of what a play - and theater - could be.
As a scholar of theater and performance, I research gameful theater - performances the audience can play - as well as early modern drama, improvisatory theater, and role-playing games.
