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Kris Danford, MFA, is an Associate Professor of Voice & Speech at Penn State University. She has been a theatre artist for more than 20 years and has worked with some of the most prestigious theatres in the country, including the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, George Street Playhouse and Asolo Repertory Theatre. While on faculty at Penn State, Kris maintains an active professional career working as a voice and text coach and as an actor across the nation.

 

In addition to her creative work, her research involves the exploration of the voice. Increasingly, her interests center on womens' voices and the application of theatre voice work within innovative contexts involving women. Her research on the use of voice during childbirth and labor - recently referenced in The New York Times - is an ongoing, interdisciplinary collaboration with researchers at the University of Michigan. As a scholar and teacher, Kris has developed an international presence, most recently expanding her work as far as Finland. She is a certified teacher of Fitzmaurice Voicework®, an active member of Actors' Equity (AEA), the Voice & Speech Trainers Association (VASTA) and the Association for Theatre in Higher Education (ATHE).