Dennis Davenport

Professor
Department of Music

Dennis Davenport is Professor of Music at Otterbein. Beginning Fall 2025 he is also Director of Integrative Studies, the core general education program at Otterbein. Dennis teaches in the Musical Theatre BFA program (MUSC 2043/2044 History of Musical Theatre), the Honors program (HNRS 2600 The Shock of the New: Music and Modernism; HNRS 3000 Your Brain on Music with Psychology Prof. Cindy Laurie-Rose), and SYE 4202/INST 2606 Vienna Travel Course with Music colleague Jim Bates.

His recent music direction for Otterbein Theatre & Dance production program includes Cabaret (Fall 2023) and The Pajama Game (Fall 2021). For Otterbein Summer Theatre recent credits include Always…Patsy Cline and Dames at Sea (2025), Forever Plaid and Beehive (2024), Baby and I Do, I Do (2023) and The Pirates of Penzance (2022). For Otterbein Opera Theatre, Dennis has music directed Cox and Box, La Serva Padrona, The Gift of the Magi (David Conte) and The Life and Love of Joe Coogan (Paul Salerni). Dennis has composed music for two one-act operas to libretti by his spouse Sarah Davenport under the collective title “First Encounters”: Isak Dinesen Meets Marilyn Monroe, and Berthe Morisot Meets Edouard Manet. Both works have been produced by Otterbein Opera Theatre.  Other original work includes scores for Brecht’s Galileo at the University of Michigan Residential College, and for Brecht’s Caucasian Chalk Circle at Otterbein.

Dennis also serves as Music Director at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church and University Center on the OSU campus.