Teresa Kovacs, PhD (University of Vienna) wanted to work in a strong and vibrant German studies department conducting interdisciplinary research. She chose the University of Michigan for its creative colleagues who share her interest in ruins and the aesthetics connected to contaminated landscapes, including Professors Julia Hell, Kerstin Barndt, and Helmut Puff. 

For her newest project on landscapes she has been learning about different approaches to the study of urban decay, widening her focus to include performances and installation art. Kovacs has been busy, presenting her research on contemporary theatre at Yale University, the University of Mannheim, Lafayette College, the German Studies Association in Atlanta and the Austrian Studies Association in Burlington. Her papers on Christoph Schlingensief, Einar Schleef, Wunderbaum and Elfriede Jelinek will be published in 2018 and 2019. She has upcoming volumes on Elfriede Jelinek’s play Burgtheater (Praesens 2018) and Postdramatic Theatre as Transcultural Theatre (Narr 2018).