Dr Sophie Duncan is Research Fellow and Dean for Welfare at Magdalen College, University of Oxford. As a writer and researcher, she has published extensively on Shakespeare and theatre history; as Dean for Welfare she manages the pastoral care of 600 undergraduate and postgraduate students.
She is the author of three books: Searching for Juliet: The Lives and Deaths of Shakespeare’s First Tragic Heroine (Sceptre, Hachette); Shakespeare’s Props (Routledge); and Shakespeare’s Women and the Fin de Siècle (Oxford University Press). For Bloomsbury, she is the editor of two editions of plays by Henrik Ibsen: A Doll’s House and Hedda Gabler. With Rachael Lennon, she is the author of Women and Power: The Struggle for Suffrage (National Trust Books). With E. Jay Gilbert, she is editor of The Banshee.
For theatre, television, and radio, she consults regularly on historical issues and acts as a rehearsal-room advisor and dramaturg. Companies she has worked with include the BBC, Shakespeare’s Globe, The Kiln, the New Vic, BADA, and the Kenneth Branagh Theatre Company. She is the Literary Manager for Ellie Keel Productions.
What motivated you to join the Oxford School of Drama Board of Trustees?
Above all, I was impressed by the talent of the current students and the ethos of the OSD leadership! At the same time, I’m aware of the challenges facing both the creative industries and the conservatoire model. Drama schools are essential to creating the next generation of innovative, resilient actors, and I feel I can play my part in supporting that work.
What would you like to contribute or achieve as part of your role?
I hope that my knowledge of both Higher Education and professional theatre can help the school create its most sustainable, progressive, and inclusive future.