Shawn Knight

Biography

Shawn Knight is a professional Equity actor living in Nashville, TN, where he has taught and performed for sixteen seasons. Currently an Instructor in Belmont’s Department of Theatre and Dance, Shawn teaches “Acting I, II, and III” to Musical Theatre Students, “Audition Portfolio,” “The Business of Show Business,” and various other courses in the department, while serving as the Director of the BFA in Performance.  Shawn served as the faculty advisor and director for the Belmont Repertory Company for five seasons and recently piloted the Maymester class “Theatre for Change.”

Shawn holds an MA in English from Auburn University and an MFA in Theatre from the University of Louisville and teaches and directs frequently for Ensworth High School, Nashville Children’s Theatre, and Clarksville Youth Enrichment Programs.  Shawn has instructed and directed theatre students and practitioners from the pre-school age through the college graduate level.

As a playwright, Shawn was a 2011 playwright-in-residence with the Tennessee Repertory Theatre, where he completed the play Henson under the mentorship of Tony-winner John Patrick Shanley. Shawn has written and performed ten one-man shows about famous American Golden Age composers, as well as several interactive murder-mysteries, in which audience members participate in the theatrics.  Most recently, Shawn wrote the play 36, performed as part of Belmont’s 2020-21 season, inspired by the 100^th anniversary of the final vote for Women’s Suffrage, which occurred in Nashville.

Shawn’s Equity acting credits include portraying such memorable characters as Mozart in Amadeus, Charlie in The Whale, Horton the Elephant in Seussical, Stephano in The Tempest, and Wilbur in Charlotte’s Web.  As a performer, he has been seen on stage at Tennessee Shakespeare Company, Shakespeare Walla Walla, Nashville Repertory Theatre, Studio Tenn, Nashville Children’s Theatre, Kentucky Repertory Theatre, Kentucky Shakespeare Festival, and dozens of other venues. Before settling in Nashville, he performed, taught, and directed youth at the Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, a recipient of a Tony Award® for Outstanding Regional Theatre. As a director and musical director, Shawn has worked with Nashville Children’s Theatre, Belmont University, the Kentucky Repertory Theatre, Ensworth High School, and Bravo Arts.

Shawn received the 2012 Individual Artist Fellowship from the Tennessee Arts Commission and a 2016 First Night Honor for his performance as Amos in Nashville Repertory Theatre’s Chicago.