Playwright, actor, and professor Anna Deavere Smith, hailed by Newsweek as “the most exciting individual in American theatre,” will present “The Changing Landscape of Doctor-Patient Relationships”. Deavere Smith is University Professor at New York University Tisch School of the Arts, and is affiliated with the NYU School of Law. She has held appointments at Stanford and at the Yale School of Medicine. She was recently commissioned by the Stanford University Medical School to create a project on diversity in the medical school. She was awarded the prestigious MacArthur Foundation “genius” Fellowship for creating “a new form of theatre — a blend of theatrical art, social commentary, journalism and intimate reverie.”
Smith has a recurring role on the Showtime series Nurse Jackie, played National Security Advisor Nancy McNally on NBC’s The West Wing, and has appeared in such films as Rachel Getting Married, Philadelphia, and The American President. She is perhaps best known as the author and performer of two one-woman plays about racial tensions in America — Fires in the Mirror (Obie Award-winner and runner-up for the Pulitzer) and Twilight: Los Angeles 1992 (Obie-winner and Tony Award nominee). Interviewing subjects from all walks of life, Smith recreates their words in performance, transforming herself into an astonishing number of characters. Her latest book is Letters to a Young Artist: Straight-up Advice on Making a Life in the Arts (Doubleday, $14.95). Registration is required for Professor Smith’s presentation. Tickets are free of charge. There will be advance registration for the UM Community from August 23rd to September 1st.  Tickets will be available to the public beginning September 2nd.  For further information and to register please visit http://humanities.miami.edu/programs/lectures/anna-deavere-smith  Event begins at 7pm.