Born in Shenandoah, Iowa in 1969. Studied theater and comparative literature as well as fine arts / video and performance, later studying directing at Columbia University, School of the Arts in New York. With his New York-based ensemble, Jay Scheib & Co., Scheib began the development of an approach to contemporary performance which would draw together an improvisation-rich approach to physical performance with the meaningful integration of new (and used) technologies. Recent works include Jim Steinman’s Bat Out of Hell in the West End, Richard Wagner’s Parsifal in Bayreuth, and Paola Prestini’s forthcoming opera Sensorium Ex. Scheib is professor for Music and Theater Arts at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he heads the Music and Theater Arts programs.

"Thrilled to join and delighted at the prospect of expanding and contributing to a network of conservatories and academic institutions in support of the development of new operas, opera education, and especially the deep integration of new (and used) technologies. If, along the way, I were afforded the opportunity to collaborate on an approach to developing works that might also encourage new audiences and greater appreciation for the operatic form—all the better.New friends, old friends, colleagues, and cool potential partnerships.

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Opera and new music theater might play an increasingly important role within the context of an R1 institution. Briefly I will explore two case studies from recent projects at MIT, and speculate briefly on current trends."