Margaret Araneo

Margaret (Meg) Araneo is a Brooklyn-based theatre maker and scholar whose work focuses on the intersection of performance and the history of neurological impairments. With a BA in Political Science from Johns Hopkins, an MFA in Acting from Carnegie Mellon and a Ph.D. in Theatre Studies from the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, Meg embraces interdisciplinary work that places practice in conversation with histories and theories of performance. Meg has worked collaboratively with performing artists from across the U.S., Europe, and Latin America. She has appeared in such works as Mosca [Fly] by Fabio Rubiano, The Pelican by August Strindberg, Woyzeck by George Buchner, and a stage adaption of Akira Kurosawa’s iconic film Rashomon. She recently collaborated with jazz musician, poet, and visual artist Oliver Lake and composer Rob Reddy on the multi-disciplinary performance piece Interruption! that was presented at BRIC Arts Media in Brooklyn. Her upcoming original play, Salomania, will premiere in late 2024.

Meg has worked closely with the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center as a curator and editor, serving as the Managing Editor of MESTC’s journal Slavic and East European Performance. She has written on contemporary theatre as well as published several performance and book reviews. She has presented papers at leading academic conferences, including those of the Association for Theatre in Higher Education, American Society of Theatre Research, Modernist Studies, and International Federation for Theatre Research.

In 2016 Meg co-founded with Rob Reddy Citizen Arts and Education, a non-profit arts organization committed to generating cultural dialogues through original artistic work. In 2023 she launched The Nest, a program committed to supporting emerging performing and visual artists (ages 18 to 26) as they embark on their artistic journeys.

EDUCATION

Ph.D. in Theatre History, Graduate Center, CUNY (in progress)
MFA in Acting, Carnegie Mellon University
BA in Political Science, Johns Hopkins University