Geraldine EM Wagner (she/her)

Geraldine.Wagner@jwu.edu

Biography and Expertise

Geraldine Wagner received her Ph.D. in English from Brown University with a specialization in 17th-century women’s writing and early modern drama. A native New Yorker, she began her career as an actress, studying with Lee Strasberg and performing off-Broadway before attending Brooklyn College, where she graduated summa cum laude. She writes and publishes both literary critical essays and creative texts.

Her critical work has appeared in English Studies, Genre, Early Modern Literary Studies and Cultural Studies, among other peer-reviewed journals. Her screenplays, “Marital Arts” and “Explosive Chemistry,” have been optioned by Sarkissian Productions; her latest screenplay, “Ad Nauseum” is currently in submission as well. A number of her stage plays, including “For Better or Foreclosure,” “Dinner and Death” and “Deadlines,” have been produced locally, including by the JWU players. Her most recent work is the young adult novel, Love and War in Illyria.

A JWU faculty member since 2003, Dr. Wagner regularly publishes poetry and the occasional comic memoir. She has taught a wide range of courses, from Composition and Communications to Shakespeare, Introduction to Film, and Creative Writing, as well as various ILS courses.

She is honored to be a professor in the Humanities Department at JWU, not only because the courses she teaches are intellectually exciting and rigorous, but also because JWU students are motivated to succeed, and, thus, eager to learn. In her role as professor and advisor, she has had the highly rewarding experience of working with a diverse population of students, whose efforts and achievements never fail to impress and inspire her.

Education

PhD
Brown University

MA
Brown University

BA
Brooklyn College