Robert Stephen Cohen

Robert Cohen, the founding chair of the Department of Drama at UC Irvine, passed away on November 15, 2024, at age 86. A transformative leader in theatre education, direction, scholarship, and acting technique, he was instrumental in shaping the drama department and recognized across the world for his contributions to the theatre world.

Born July 14, 1938, to Lester and Lydia Cohen in Washington, D.C., he stumbled into theatre by chance, when the owner of the summer camp he worked at didn’t want to pay the fee for Cohen to be certified in water safety, and so placed him in charge of theatre instead. Cohen threw himself into producing, directing, and acting with the campers and soon found his life’s work. He completed his undergraduate studies at Dartmouth College and UC Berkeley, and a Doctor of Fine Arts at the Yale School of Drama.

Cohen joined the faculty of UC Irvine in 1965. As the Drama Department’s founding chair, Cohen established the M.F.A. programs, a Students’ Repertory Theatre (the first of its kind in the US), and helped grow the department’s faculty by recruiting leaders in each area of theatre practice and scholarship. A colleague recalled that when he first arrived at UC Irvine (his first teaching position), his plan was to stay briefly and then return to the “best theatre studies program in the nation, UC Berkeley.” But after two years, he instead found himself committed to staying at UCI and growing its Drama department into a new best program. For Cohen, making the department the best meant cultivating the highest level of achievement and creativity out of his colleagues. Throughout his career he was especially supportive of his younger colleagues, generously offering career advice and promoting courageous choices. UC Irvine and other institutions are filled with faculty whose careers were shaped by Cohen’s attentive guidance, and who continue to cite him as one of their most important mentors and friends.

Cohen’s own major research area was acting theory. His innovative "GOTE" acting system — focusing on Goal, Other, Tactics, and Expectation — revolutionized acting pedagogy and reached a global audience through his celebrated books Acting One, Acting Power, and Acting in Shakespeare. His scholarly contributions included translations of classics such as The Misanthrope and Carmen, two anthologies of globally recognized plays, nine original plays, over 400 theater reviews, 24 books on theater and collaboration, a memoir, and 35 journal essays published in distinguished academic journals.

In 2008, Cohen and his wife established the Robert and Lorna Cohen Endowment for Excellence in Drama, which brings world-class speakers and artists to the department. Over his illustrious career, Cohen earned numerous accolades, including UCI’s highest honor, the UCI Medal (1993), and the UCI Distinguished Faculty Award for Research (2015). In 2011, the Claire Trevor School of the Arts renamed its Studio Theatre the Robert Cohen Theatre, and in 2016, Cohen and his wife were honored with a Claire Trevor Commemorative Star for their exceptional contributions to the arts.

Robert Cohen’s legacy is one of transformation. He believed that a director’s role was to “transform words on paper into actors on a stage.” Throughout his life, Cohen transformed not only the field of theater but also the lives of those who had the privilege of learning from and collaborating with him. His profound impact on the dramatic arts will continue to inspire for generations to come. He is survived by his wife, Lorna, and children Michael and Whitney.

Annie Loui, Professor
Department of Drama

Eli Simon, Chancellor’s Professor
Department of Drama

Tara Rodman, Associate Professor
Department of Drama