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Jeff Casazza

Jeff Casazza

Jeff Casazza

Assistant Professor; Acting, Directing; Voice

Jeff Casazza is a director, actor and playwright.  After receiving his undergraduate degree from Ball State University, he spent five years in various positions with the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago while acting, writing and directing for area theatres.  He directed Antigone at Steppenwolf and was the assistant director on various productions there working with directors and ensemble members Randall Arney, Austin Pendleton and Jeff Perry.

He did his graduate work at Florida State University, which gave him the opportunity of studying with Jose Quintero.  While there Jeff, and his wife Karin, created the Renegade Theatre Company to produce summer theatre in Tallahassee where he directed A Midsummer Night’s Dream.  His relationship with Midsummer continued with his internship, which took him to London where he worked with Jonathan Miller on his West End production and European Tour of the play.

Upon receiving his MFA in Directing, he worked for two summers directing The Tempest and Macbeth at The Waterside Theatre in North Carolina while working as an Assistant Stage Manager for The Lost Colony.  He spent several years working in various capacities at the Indiana Repertory Theatre in Indianapolis – primarily as the assistant to the Artistic Director.   While in the Indianapolis area he directed for many theatres including the Phoenix Theatre, Bridgework Theatre, The Edyvean Repertory Theatre, Indianapolis Civic, and numerous universities.  In 2003, the Arts Council of Indianapolis awarded him a Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship, which allowed him to spend two summers training with Anne Bogart and the SITI Company.

More recently, he was a visiting member of the performance faculty at Purdue University.  While there he received Certificates of Merit in Directing for his productions of As Bees in Honey Drown and Metamorphoses.

Along with those already listed, some of his favorite directing credits include Women of Lockerbie, Dancing at Lughnasa, Eleemosynary, Praying for Rain and Proof.  

As a playwright he received a Joseph Jefferson Citation for Outstanding New Work for his adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo (with David Zak).  Last year his play Ascent, was a finalist in the Indiana Theatre Association’s new play contest giving him the weekend to workshop it.

His teaching interests include Directing, Acting and Movement for the Actor (specifically Viewpoints and Suzuki).

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