Darren O'Donnell

Who is Darren O'Donnell?

Darren O'Donnell is a Canadian novelist, essayist, performance artist, playwright, director, actor and urban planner.

He is the artistic director of theatre company Mammalian Diving Reflex, has written many plays including A Suicide-Site Guide to the City, White Mice, Who Shot Jacques Lacan?, Radio Rooster Says That's Bad, Over, [boxhead] and pppeeeaaaccceee, and has published one novel entitled Your Secrets Sleep With Me. In addition to the novel he has published four other books with Coach House Books: Inoculations, pppeeeaaaccceee, Social Acupuncture and the most recent [boxhead]. He holds a M.Sc. in Urban Planning from the University of Toronto and a B.F.A in Acting from the University of Alberta.

Social Acupuncture is both the title of his book and a wing of Mammamlian Diving Reflex where O'Donnell creates work that engages the public and claims to prove the "generosity, abundance and power of the social sphere." The book is an extended essay outlining the possibility for a civically engaged artistic practice as well as an in-depth description and analysis of his work in this field.