Alumni Faculty

Amaree Cluff

Associate Professor of Theatre

Professor Amaree Cluff

“The value of studying the arts goes far beyond technical skills and cultural literacy; all our creative endeavors are ultimately a search for truth, and as we earnestly search, we can explore and discover our own potential as children of God. As a teacher, my aim is to help students develop keener insight, a deeper sense of their personal worth, greater self-awareness, increased empathy, the courage to make and learn from mistakes, and the tremendous faith, discipline, and cooperation required to bring a production to the stage.”

Education

  • M.F.A. in Acting, University of Virginia, 2014
  • B.A. in Theatre, Southern Virginia University, 2007

Courses

  • Core: Acting I, Introduction to Theatre History
  • Theatre Major: Acting IV, Speak with Power, Dramatic Literature, Theatre Makeup, Movement for Actors, Applied Theatre
  • English Major: Public Speaking
  • Travel Study: Past trips to New York City

Teaching Positions & Professional Experience

  • Joined the Southern Virginia University faculty in 2015
  • Taught acting at University of Virginia 2011–14
  • Has worked as a professional actor since 2007, including roles with Heritage Theatre Festival, Imagination Stage, Virginia Repertory Theatre, Virginia Shakespeare Festival, and Colonial Williamsburg; also appeared on television in Women of the Revolution (PBS) 2011 and TURN: Washington’s Spies (AMC) 2014, 2015

Scholarship & Creative Work

  • Designs and creates costumes for four mainstage University theatre productions each academic year
  • Co-writer with Mike Long of “Martin and Margaret and the MINDSWAP.” Numerous productions include University of Virginia (2013), Southern Virginia University (2014, 2021), Rexburg Community Theatre (2017), and Frostburg State in (2020)
  • Research interests include studying and recreating historical clothing, investigating the application of acting theories, and learning about historical staging practices
  • Has a background in the museum industry, working as a costumed interpreter for Colonial Williamsburg from 2008–11 and as a docent at Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello from 2014–15
  • Volunteers at the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton, VA

Awards, Leadership & Service

  • Alumni speaker, Southern Virginia University’s Commencement, 2018
  • Keynote speaker, Phi Alpha Theta annual meeting, 2017
  • Clay E. Delauney Memorial Award for Excellence in Playwriting; “Martin and Margaret and the MINDSWAP,” 2014

Memberships

  • Actors’ Equity
  • Phi Kappa Phi
  • The Association of Dress Historians