Brenda Foley

Dr. Brenda Foley is currently on an awarded Presidential Leave for 2026. She earned an interdisciplinary PhD in women’s and gender studies, history, and theatre and performance from Brown University and an MFA in acting from California Institute of the Arts. Prior to joining Emerson College, she was a professor of theatre and gender studies at Marlboro College and held the Carol L. Zicklin Endowed Chair at Brooklyn College (2016-2018) where she taught disability studies seminars. 

She is the editor of the Routledge Series in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Theatre and Performance and author of Undressed for Success: Beauty Contestants and Exotic Dancers as Merchants of Morality (Palgrave), an analysis of the historical links between beauty pageants and striptease. She has served Emerson College in multiple leadership roles, including as co-chair and chair of the Department of Performing Arts, Area Head for the BFA Theatre Program, and as a member of the PA Department tenure and promotion committee.

In addition to her scholarship and service, Brenda is an award-winning playwright and actor whose work has been developed and produced with Athena Theatre (NYC), The Bechdel Group (NYC), The Theater Project (NJ), Theatre Breaking Through Barriers (NYC), Sky Blue Theatre Company (London), Boston Theater Marathon (MA), Benchmark Theatre (CO), Camino Real Playhouse (CA), Sleeping Weazel (MA), The Wilbury Theatre Group (RI), and The Road Theatre Company (CA). She was a member of Athena Theatre’s 2017 Playwriting Group and the Bechdel Group’s 2017 Play Development Reading Series. Her play, Protocol, is included in the The Best Ten-Minute Plays of 2018 (Smith & Kraus) and a monologue from Camouflage is published in The Best Women’s Monologues of 2019 (Smith & Kraus). Previous awards include winner of the British Theatre Challenge, Carbonell Award for Best Actress, and CLIR Mellon Fellowship. Acting credits include the La Jolla Playhouse, Roundabout, Studio Arena, Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Indiana Rep, Pioneer Theatre, Philadelphia Drama Guild, GeVa Theatre, StageWest, Florida Stage, The Theater Project, and Vienna’s English Theatre, Austria.