Allen Loomis is a scholar of early modern British literature and culture, specializing in the intersections of domestic architecture, material culture, and drama. He teaches early modern drama, Shakespeare, writing, and public speaking as an Instructor of English at Siena College and Binghamton University. His research interests lie in Shakespeare studies, cultural history, domestic architecture, the development of English window glass, and sixteenth- and seventeenth-century British literature.

His article “Crystal Casements and Shattered Panes: Staging Window Glass in Early Modern England” is forthcoming in Studies in Philology (2026), and “Window Gazing in Thomas Middleton’s The Triumphs of Integrity” is under review at Early Theater. His published work includes “Elizabeth Tudor’s Domestic Theatricality in the Windows of Kenilworth Castle” in Explorations in Renaissance Culture (2024).

His research has been supported by the Rakow Grant for Glass Research from the Corning Museum of Glass and various fellowships from Binghamton University. He has received recognition for his scholarship, including the Robert M. Kingdon Prize from The Sixteenth Century Society Conference and the Agnes Strickland Prize from the Queen Elizabeth I Society.

Allen earned his Ph.D. in English, General Literature and Rhetoric from Binghamton University (2024), and his M.A. and B.A. in English Language and Literature from Loyola University Chicago (2020, 2019). He shares his research with both academic and public audiences, including contributions to That Shakespeare Life podcast and the Corning Museum of Glass Blog.

Allen’s dissertation project, Transparent Glass Windows and Domestic Theatricality in Early Modern England, explores how the introduction of transparent window glass transformed domestic spaces in early modern England. He introduces the concept of “domestic theatricality” to theorize how transparent glass windows shaped early modern subjectivity by positioning inhabitants as spectators of street life and as spectacles for public view. Through analysis of country house entertainments, civic pageantry, and staged drama between 1575-1700, he demonstrates how innovations in glassmaking turned both aristocratic “lantern houses” and merchant “crystal sanctuaries” into stages where inhabitants performed their status while observing and being observed by others. By examining over 280 plays alongside spectacular performances like the 1575 Kenilworth Castle entertainment and the Lord Mayor’s Shows, this study reveals how technological advancement reshaped both architectural practices and dramatic representation in early modern England.