FHASS Welcomes Gabriel Levine!
Born in Toronto, I grew up in the Annex in a family of U.S. exiles obsessed with books and politics. I was an obsessive reader, and later with my friends and younger brother found music as an outlet. I went to McGill, studied English and theatre, and lived in Montreal for a decade and a half with detours through Vermont and France. I spent my Montreal years playing music and making performances (including lots of puppets) as a member of bands and collectives. We toured North America and overseas, made records, and created shows; it was a romantic and tumultuous time. Later I went back to grad school in Toronto at York University, and eventually earned a PhD in Social and Political Thought. Along the way, I met my partner, Bee, a dance artist and therapist. We had our son, Leo, in 2015. We are proud residents of the Junction Triangle (not to be confused with the Junction!)
In 2017, following a postdoc, I started teaching in and coordinating the Drama and Creative Arts program at York’s Glendon Campus on a contractually limited appointment. I published articles and books (Art and Tradition in a Time of Uprising and Practice), mostly about what I called “experiments with tradition” in the arts, drawing on my creative passions. After six years of joyful teaching and not-so-joyful precarity, I moved into admin, taking on the role of Associate Dean Academic at the School of the Arts, Media, Performance and Design at York. And then a few months ago, I made the leap to Sheridan…
Alchemy’s Proust Questionnaire:
Favourite virtue: Kindness
Most overrated virtue: Temperance
Most important lesson I’ve learned this year: We always change
My favourite qualities in a student: Curiosity, a sense of humour, willingness to grow
My favourite qualities in a teacher: Curiosity, consistency, kindness
Moment in my life I’d like to re-live: New year’s eve 1999, dancing to accordions on the beach and swimming in freezing water at St. Malo
My idea of perfect happiness: Playing music with friends, time in nature with loved ones
My idea of complete misery: A day of online meetings (sorry)
In my opinion the secret to success is: Finding a meeting-place between passion and realism
My favourite word: Welcome
My least favourite word: Operationalize
If I weren’t a teacher/administrator I’d be: a theatre director
The talent or skill I wish I had: Carpentry
Language I’d love to be able to speak: Brazilian Portuguese (for the songs)
A country/place I’d like to visit: Japan
On my bucket list: A trip to Leyte in the Philippines to meet my partner’s extended family
My favourite historical, literary, or cinematic character(s): Emma Goldman
My favourite painter/artist: Most recently: Wael Shawky
My favourite singer/musician and song: Jennifer Castle, “We Always Change”
The most embarrassing song/album in my iTunes or music collection: Europe, “The Final Countdown”
My guilty TV/film/gaming pleasure: Raptors basketball, “Only Murders in the Building”
—Thank you very much!
