Margaret Laurena Kemp 

Margaret Laurena Kemp is an actor, a multidisciplinary performing artist, writer, and teaching artist, and Associate Professor of Theatre & Dance at UC Davis. She trained at The George Washington University at The Shakespeare Theatre and has a B.S. in Interdepartmental Studies from the School of Speech at Northwestern University. She is also the Director of Creative Projects and an Advisory Group member for the nonprofit Fitzmaurice Institute, as well as a Master Teacher and Lead Trainer for the Fitzmaurice Voicework Teacher Certification Program. She has performed at Arena Stage, Mark Taper Forum, Yale Repertory, South Coast Repertory, La Mama Theatre (Melbourne, Australia), Theatre of Changes (Athens, Greece), Red Pear Theatre (Antibes, France), and The Magnet Theatre (Cape Town, South Africa).

She won worldwide praise for her starring role in the film Children of God. Other screen credits include the supernatural film thriller Blood Bound, The Orlando Jones Show, and Commander in Chief. Her visual work has been shown in solo and group shows at Art Share Los Angeles and The National Gallery of Art in Nassau, Bahamas. Her recent work CITE was shown at the Elaine Jacobs Gallery in Detroit, Michigan in 2019.

Her research explores authorship and spatial politics through performance. Within actor training environments, while specifically teaching voice, speech, movement and acting, she incorporates and re-contextualizes interdisciplinary topics such as Identity, Movement Theory, Accents-Dialects, Contemporary and Classical Heightened text, Solo Performance, and Devised Theatre.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0447335/

Education and Training

M.F.A. Classical Theatre, The George Washington University at The Shakespeare Theatre
B. S. Interdepartmental Studies, School of Speech, Northwestern University
Fitzmaurice Voicework Senior Instructor
Knight-Thompson Speechwork
Michael Chekhov Technique Certified Instructor
Balanced Body Comprehensive Pilates
Archetypes, Janet Rodgers

Professional Affiliations

Screen Actors Guild—AFTRA
Actors Equity Association Director of Creative Projects: Fitzmaurice Institute MICHA Micheal Chekhov International Associate Faculty

Awards

Montalvo Guest Artist Residency (2019) Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival Award - Directing (The Bluest Eye) (2019) MICHA Michael Chekhov International Scholar Award (2019) Voice and Speech Trainers Association Closing Keynote Presenter (2019) Lucas Arts Residency (2017) Headlands Residency Fellowship- Performance(2017) Bundanon Residency ( Australia) (2017) Biever Fellowship, Loyola University (2015)
U.C. Davis, Project REACH Keynote Speaker and Guest Artist (2015)
Pomona College Travel Grant Recipient (2015)
Children of God (Feature Film), Winner of over 20 awards worldwide, including New York
LGBT Film Festival Audience Award Best, BET Top Ten Film
The George Washington University, Shakespeare Theatre Drama fellowship in Acting/Performance

Representation

mlkempspace@gmail.com