THE DISSERTATION DEFENDERS

The Lulubird Project and Cinema Sound Theatre Present

THE DISSERTATION DEFENDERS

A fictitious online university struggling to remain relevant, PhD candidates desperate to secure full-time teaching positions at adjunct wages, and academic-sounding topics make for a fraught (and odd) series of online debates written by local playwrights.

CREATIVE TEAM

Concept, backstory, and graphics by Lisa Wagner Erickson

Written by Sean Michael Cummings, Rebecca Gorman O'Neill, and Lisa Wagner Erickson

Directed by Veronica Straight-Lingo

Featuring Sean Michael Cummings and Sadie Gracelynn Trigg

The fictitious university . . .
Anoitos University enrolls PhD students who have been rejected by multiple doctoral programs. Prior to March 2020, every student was guaranteed a full-time online teaching job at adjunct wages upon graduation. But since COVID 19 hit, the number of positions have been cut in half. The result: Graduating students compete for full-time employment in the Dissertation Defense Debates.

How it all came together in virtual work environments . . .
FIRST: The playwrights were given character descriptions, the characters’ underlying conflict, and the debate topic and five days to write a 3-5 minute monologue/ dissertation defense.
NEXT: The director and actors rehearsed and recorded the episode online.
FINALLY: Dissertation Defenders will debuted on July 9th!

The Lulubird Projec (now Cypherbird Projects) is a collective dedicated to creating thought-provoking theatrical and multi-genre art that is imaginative, inventive, and original.

Cinema Sound Theatre is based in Denver and works with a core group of playwrights, actors, sound designers and foley artists to produce compelling audio stories that enrich your world.