May Farnsworth
May S FarnsworthProfessor of Spanish and Hispanic StudiesChair, Spanish and Hispanic Studies
Joined faculty in 2007
Ph.D., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Spanish American Literature.
M.A., University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Spanish American Literature.
B.A., The Evergreen State College, Olympia Washington.
Contact Information
Scholarly Interest
Theatre and Performance Studies
Bilingual Education and Teaching
Research
Research: My current book project, Feminist Rehearsals, examines how various aspects of performance culture—spectator formation, playwriting, professional acting and directing, and dramatic techniques—paralleled political activism and championed the goals of the women’s rights movement in Mexico and Argentina from 1900 to 1970.
I am also involved in reseach for bilingual education advocacy in the local community through my involvement in Vamos Geneva 2030.
Courses Taught
SPNE 210 Topics in Bilingual Education
SPAN 355 Teatro
SPAN 316 Voces de mujeres
BIDS 286 Gender, Nation, Literature
SPAN 121-122 Intermediate Spanish I and II
Teaching Abroad and in the Local Community:
Study Abroad in Chile: /news/current/studying-astronomy-and-literature-in-chile.aspx
Study Abroad in Ecuador: /news/current/studying-in-ecuador-this-summer.aspx
Independent Study on Bilingual Education: /news/current/suriel-20-explores-bilingual-education.aspx
Publications
In books:
Feminist Rehearsals: Gender at the Theatre in Early Twentieth Century Argentina and Mexico. U of Iowa Press. (Forthcoming Spring 2023).
Escrito por mujeres I. Edited volume of Latin American plays by women with critical introductions by May Farnsworth, Olga Martha Peña Doria, and Camilla Stevens. LATR Books (Latin American Theatre Review Books, University of Kansas. 2016).
Escrito por mujeres II. Edited volume of Latin American plays by women with critical introductions by May Farnsworth, Brenda Werth, and Camilla Stevens. LATR Books (Latin American Theatre Review Books, University of Kansas, 2013).
The Oxford Critical and Cultural History of Global Modernist Magazines, vol. I. (Contributing author: “Buenos Aires: Women’s Spaces in Turn-of-the-Century Print Culture. Nosotros, 1907-1943 and La Nota, 1915-1920).” (Forthcoming).
International Women Stage Directors. (Contributing author: “Argentina”). Eds. Anne Fliotsos and Wendy Vierow. University of Illinois Press (2013).
Encyclopedia of Modern Drama. (Contributing author: “Magdalena Mondragón; “Catalina D’Erzell"; “Maria Luisa Ocampo"; “Malena Sándor"). Eds Gabrielle H. Cody and Evert Sprinchorn. New York: Columbia University Press (2007).
Feminists Rehearsals (1914-1950).(in preparation).
In journals:
“Los cuerpos de los otros.” Co-authored with Celina Bortolotto. MIFLC Review. 20 (2020): 32-51. (2003) . http://miflc.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Bortolotto-Summer-Farnsworth-Volume-20.pdf
“Autismo, antropcentrismo y género en La mujer que buceó dentro del corazón del mundo de Sabina Berman.” (co-authored with Celina Bortolotto). Romance Notes (2015).
“We ARE the Revolution: Riot Grrrl Press” (co-authored with Kevin Dunn). Women’s Studies: An Interdisciplinary Journal. Special issue: “The Presence and Importance of Women in Punk Rock,” guest edited by Sharon Becker. (2012).
“Sex Work, Sickness, and Suicide: Early feminist Theatre in Argentina.” e-misférica. 6.1 Special issue: “Contagion.” Guest edited by Jill Lane and Marcial Godoy-Anativia (2009). https://hemi.nyu.edu/hemi/fr/e-misferica-61/farnsworth
“‘La Eva mexicana’: Feminism in Post-Revolutionary Mexican Theatre.” South Atlantic Review 72.2 (2007): 32-45.
“The Well-Made (Feminist) Play: Malena Sándor’s Challenge to Theatrical Conventions.” Latin American Theatre Review. 37.1 (2003): 61-73.
“Tempering Machismo: The Performance of Masculinity, Femininity, and Honor in Aquí no ha pasado nada by Josefina Plá and Roque Centurión Miranda” MIFLC Review. 11 (2003): 135-47.
Invited Lectures:
"Women's Rights and Theatre in Buenos Aires." Sentiments and Declarations. Women's Rights Historic Park. 2015.https://www.hws.edu/article-id-18570/
"Matchmaker and Melodrama." Staging Immigration and Women’s Labor Symposium. Ohio University. https://www.hws.edu/article-id-15238/
Resources in for Teaching and Scholarship:
Galeria Hispana at HWS: Browse Exhibits · Spanish and Hispanic Studies Digital Gallery at HWS (omeka.net)
Translations:
Feminist Revivals · Spanish and Hispanic Studies Digital Gallery at HWS (omeka.net)
Approaches to Teaching Spanish to Children:
Toys for Language Teaching (TILT): Toys for Language Immersion Teaching (TILT) · Spanish and Hispanic Studies Digital Gallery at HWS (omeka.net)
Vocabulary Practice: Vocabulary Practice in Spanish: Elves in the House · Toys for Language Immersion Teaching (TILT) · Spanish and Hispanic Studies Digital Gallery at HWS (omeka.net)
Interdisciplinary Collaboration:
Language consultant for a scientific article on Cuban ecology, with Prof. Meghan Smith Brown (Biology), "Plant Pirates of the Caribbean" https://www.hws.edu/news/default.aspx
PERSONAL STATEMENT
I believe that peer interactions support self-reliant critical thinkers. I agree with the revolutionary educator, Paulo Freire, who said that critical thinking is learned not by memorizing facts, but by participating in the exchange of ideas. For that reason, I design discussion-based participatory lessons in all my literature, culture, and language classes. My classes encourage students to generate ideas through discussion and to take an active role in their own learning.
SERVICE PROJECTS
Geneva 2030 Action Team Leader. Spanish-English Bilingual Education (Vamos Geneva 2030). 2020 to present. https://www.facebook.com/vamosgeneva2030/
https://www2.hws.edu/hws-launches-vamos-geneva-2030/
Board of Education Member. Geneva City Schools. Served a five-year term: 2016 to 2021. https://www2.hws.edu/article-id-19665/
Language Consulting/Translation for Connect Geneva (a partnership between BlueprintGeneva and the City/Town of Geneva focused on community services and support). Summer 2020-present.
Steering Committee member for the North Street School Multicultural Mural/Artist in Residency Program, 2018.
Children’s Library Volunteer Summer Spanish Teacher. Geneva Public Library. 2009-present. https://www2.hws.edu/building-a-bilingual-geneva/
https://www2.hws.edu/article-id-13309/
