My work focuses on the cultural and political meanings of live performance in America, both historically and today.

I am a professor at Washington University and the author of Faith, Family, and Flag: Branson Entertainment and the Idea of America(Chicago, 2025), winner of the 2026 Book Award from the International Society for the Study of Musicals, and Katherine Dunham: Dance and the African Diaspora(Oxford, 2017), winner of the 2018 de la Torre Bueno First Book Award from the Dance Studies Association. I have been interviewed by the Christian Science Monitor, Forbes, NPR, and other media outlets.

You can find read more about me, learn about my books, listen to my interviews, see my recent events, or peruse my other writing and creative work. You can contact me here.