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Drama Tomorrow:
The Campaign for
Yale School of Drama
New Haven, Connecticut 2006–2011
A Message from the Dean
Celebrating theater for Yale
and the nation
Drama holds a special place at Yale. Within a University marked by its
dedication to the arts, the study and practice of drama is a valued and lively
tradition. Theater permeates the campus, from the School of Drama and Yale
Repertory Theatre to the many undergraduate productions staged in the
University Theatre, the residential colleges, and other venues. Professional
students bring innovation, passion, and skill to Yale’s intellectual life. And in
making their own art, students in Yale College add an essential dimension to
an education that is among the world’s best.
Yale drama is itself a national resource. The School of Drama is the largest
and most comprehensive professional school of theater in the nation—
the only school o≠ering programs in every theatrical discipline. Partnered
with Yale Rep, the School has produced generations of leaders in the
field, from artists who are household names to unsung heroes who are
the backbone of non-profit theater, transforming communities at the
grassroots level. Together, the School and Yale Rep train the artists,
managers, and technicians who vitalize the American theatrical imagination.
Securing our foundations
for tomorrow
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Our vision is to build on this remarkably creative community—and its
tradition of leadership—for tomorrow’s generations. To attract the most
talented people to our campus, Yale must sustain excellent facilities, stateof-the-art tools, and resources to support innovation. Most important is
direct investment in our artists—faculty, students, and guests—who are
dedicated to the exploration of this art form. Over the years, the University
has made periodic investments in support of the program. Now, we have
an opportunity to invest in the School’s foundations—students, faculty, and
facilities—at a level not undertaken since its founding in 1925.
The history on which we are building is strong. Theater at Yale is robust,
with nearly 200 productions each year, buoyed by the endless creativity of
faculty and students in Yale School of Drama and Yale College. The Arts Area
Plan continues to revitalize Yale’s core arts campus, injecting new energy
into an arts arena that encompasses not only drama, but also architecture,
music, painting, photography, sculpture, and digital media. The Report on
Yale College Education has rea∞rmed the role of art in the undergraduate
experience. And President Richard C. Levin, in his vision for Yale Tomorrow,
has asserted drama and art as central to a University that contributes so much
to the quality of life and the creativity of our nation. With this University-
wide campaign under way, the time has never been better to secure a bright
and lasting future for theater at Yale.
Renewing our strength in
professional arts training
Our first aspiration is greater opportunity for students. The School of Drama
is determined to build its financial aid endowment, with the long-term goal
of becoming a debt-free program for all students. Such an investment in the
a≠ordability of professional arts training is vital to the advancement of our
culture, empowering artists just as we seek to empower scientists and other
intellectual leaders of our time.
The School is investing, too, in its faculty. We teach and train every theatrical
discipline and maintain a faculty that is widely recognized as superb—a point
underscored by recent department chair appointments in acting, playwriting,
and theater management. In addition, we seek endowment to support artistic
innovation at Yale Rep, particularly permanent endowment funds supporting
the commissioning and production of new plays—guaranteeing Yale’s role as
a leader in new play production for generations to come.
With the Yale Tomorrow campaign, we seek to enhance and consolidate
theater facilities by building a new home for the School of Drama and Yale
Repertory Theatre, which is both a leading regional theater and the primary
teaching laboratory for the School. This shared space will enlarge and
modernize the facilities of both institutions, making an investment that is
fundamental not only to the School of Drama and Yale Rep as they relate
to the profession, but also to Yale College students who use these facilities
daily, and to members of the greater New Haven community who attend our
productions by the tens of thousands.
Building resources
for permanently greater
theater at Yale
As the University embarks on the Yale Tomorrow campaign, we are positioned
to permanently expand the capabilities, scope, and influence of theater at Yale.
With new resources for the School of Drama and Yale Repertory Theatre, we
will secure our ability to contribute outstanding young artists to the theater
profession, new forms and innovation to the field of theater production, and
new repertoire to the English-speaking theater. At the same time, we will
bring new life and opportunities to undergraduate theater as we strengthen
long-standing ties between the School of Drama and Yale College.
As William Shakespeare wrote, “Ripeness is all.” Please join us in this
generational opportunity to invest in the future of theater at Yale.
Sincerely,
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James Bundy
Dean, Yale School of Drama
Artistic Director, Yale Repertory Theatre
Together, Yale
School of Drama
and Yale Rep
train the artists,
managers, and
technicians who
vitalize the
American theatrical
imagination
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Securing Tomorrow for
the School of Drama and
Yale Repertory Theatre
Theater training, study, and theatrical production are alive and well at Yale,
together forming a core element of the Yale experience that distinguishes the
University from other liberal arts institutions. In a place that prides itself
on training leaders for every human endeavor, Yale’s theatrical productions
are a fertile ground for new ideas and the preparation of skilled artists and
thinkers who have a powerful impact on American culture.
Within this remarkable setting, Yale School of Drama and Yale Repertory
Theatre together form a unique conservatory. Students are drawn to the
School from all over the country and around the world. In an environment
that promotes collaboration, many achieve significant mastery of skills
outside their discipline—actors become writers, and writers often become
performers. Alumni of the School of Drama hold creative and technical
positions throughout the nation, and the School’s reputation for training
theater professionals is unsurpassed. Likewise, Yale Repertory Theatre,
professional producer of nearly 100 world and American premieres—
including two Pulitzer Prize winners—and winner of nine Tony Awards,
plays a key role in the creation and dissemination of new American drama,
as well as bold interpretations of classic plays.
The School of Drama and Yale Rep are now aiming for new distinction.
Together, the School’s ability to teach writers and the Rep’s ability to
commission and produce o≠er the promise that Yale can lead the next era of
American playwriting. The planned dramatic arts complex, so important to a
revitalized Yale Rep, is shaped also by a vision of new standards in technical
theater production, including design in digital media. And the School of
Drama is uniquely positioned to establish the nation’s only comprehensive
program in writing for musical theater. All this activity will be supported by an
enlarged faculty and a vastly expanded program of financial aid for students.
Building a tuitionfree program
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The first priority for the School of Drama is financial aid. The School is
building its endowment, and the Campaign will take it closer to its longterm objective of waiving tuition for all students. Currently, the School
o≠ers a limited package of need-based aid to its students, with most meeting
tuition and living costs by borrowing. Moreover, the School sends many
of its graduates into the world shouldering a burden of debt—often as much
as $80,000—that is unreasonable given their earning potential. Such debt
levels deter some candidates from pursuing a drama degree and often steer
new graduates away from careers in theater. By committing resources to cover
tuition costs and stipends for students with need, Yale can send an important
message about the place of the arts in modern society, and enhance the
professional prospects of its graduates.
In the years to come, a tuition-free program will be essential for Yale School
of Drama. Competition for the nation’s most talented students grows more
intense each year, and virtually every student enrolled in the School today had
the option of generous financial aid from another institution. It is imperative
that these artists continue to view Yale as the best choice for their education—
and one that they can a≠ord.
Expanding a worldclass faculty
Widely cited as a powerful draw for students, faculty of the School of
Drama stand among the best in the nation. Many of the faculty members
are prominent professionals, an arrangement that brings superior craft and
real-world experience to Yale classrooms and production workshops. The
addition of more full-time professors will augment the capabilities of this
faculty, expand research and teaching, and support the unique production
capability of the program. To this end, the School aims to endow at least
three new faculty positions during the Yale Tomorrow campaign.
Consider the impact of an endowed full-time faculty member in the
Playwriting Department, the oldest such program in the nation, which has
for decades helped train some of America’s most distinguished playwrights.
The department prepares students for the profession, with a curriculum built
around the students writing and producing plays. In addition to intensive
study of writing for various genres of theater, each playwriting student has the
opportunity to stage three original productions, through a series of new-play
performances directed and acted by students and culminating in the Carlotta
Festival for third-year playwrights. An endowed faculty position to teach in
the department would support the School’s leadership in the creation of new
work for the American theater.
We are also seeking to endow a chair in the nationally acclaimed Directing
Department which could bring new prominence to this highly sought-after
program. Emphasizing the role of the director as creative artist and leader, the
department o≠ers a directing practicum, directing seminars, a scene study
lab, and a series of master classes and labs with visiting artists from around
the world. In addition, student directors practice their craft in diverse forums,
ranging from scene work to full productions in various performance spaces,
and work as assistant directors on Yale Repertory Theatre productions.
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The Theater Management Department is also well positioned for growth,
especially as construction of the Yale dramatic arts complex draws near.
Under the guidance of faculty members, students in the department learn to
create organizational environments that favor theater art and its presentation
to audiences. The program involves students in responsible positions in the
management of the Rep from the beginning of their training. A new facility,
providing dramatically improved venues for both Yale Rep and the School
of Drama, will create exciting opportunities and challenges for these aspiring
professionals.
Adding new dimensions
to Yale’s undergraduate
theater
Funding a landmark
dramatic arts complex
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At least one new faculty chair envisioned for the School of Drama will be
appointed jointly with the undergraduate Program in Theater Studies—
a position that will have a powerful impact not only on professional theater
education but also on Yale’s culture of undergraduate study and performance.
A senior faculty member bridging the School of Drama and Yale College
will bring a di≠erent dimension to intellectual discourse for undergraduates
and create opportunities for faculty mentoring of undergraduates involved
in curricular or extracurricular theatrical work. A jointly appointed faculty
leader will also foster exchange between the two student populations, possibly
developing co-organized symposia, post-production analysis, or week-long
intensive practica for undergraduates led by School of Drama students.
These interactions would enrich all participants and expand the practice of
theater at Yale.
Yale’s planned dramatic arts complex will stand out as a landmark in the
University’s arts campus and as a milestone in the School of Drama’s
distinguished history. The complex is conceived as a signature building that
can include teaching, production, and o∞ce space for the School and Yale
College. Equally important, it will provide a new and modern home for
Yale Repertory Theatre. At present, the School’s operations are scattered
over portions of ten buildings, only one of which was intentionally designed
for theater. For the School and the Rep to achieve their full potential,
a contemporary facility accommodating modern theater and theatrical
training is essential.
The new building will expand and centralize o∞ces for the dean, faculty,
and sta≠ of the School and Yale Rep, add much-needed work spaces for
students, and incorporate lounge areas, a multi-purpose room, and a design
library—the kinds of shared spaces that encourage collegial and creative
relationships. Classrooms, design studios, and rehearsal rooms will support
the School’s academic mission, and a full suite of rehearsal halls will sustain
students in a range of curricular and extracurricular productions. Available
to undergraduates as well as School of Drama students, the rehearsal halls
will be a particularly welcome addition to anyone staging a play at Yale. Plans
also include a studio theater to help meet the growing need for performance
space on campus. When combined with other planned projects such as
the complete restoration of the University Theatre and the renovation or
relocation of the Yale Cabaret, the dramatic arts complex will significantly
improve and enrich the resources available to all students.
Yale Repertory Theatre will have a major presence in the new complex. The
theater, which will seat approximately 400 patrons, will feature full fly space,
trap space, an orchestra pit, and state-of-the-art lighting and sound systems,
enabling the Rep to undertake an ambitious slate of productions. Audiences
will enjoy comfortable seating and lobby areas, and plans include room for
several adjacent retail establishments that will appeal to theatergoers. Behind
the scenes, a generous loading dock will lead to fully equipped scene, prop,
paint, and costume shops, and sound studios. Performers will have access
to rehearsal spaces, dressing rooms, and Green Rooms; and along with
these superior technical capabilities and amenities, the complex will include
professional o∞ces for marketing and box o∞ce operations, which will
play an important role in the Rep’s audience expansion in the years ahead.
The potential of the new Yale Rep—as a professional regional theater, as
the master teacher for Yale School of Drama, and as a platform for training
some of America’s most promising talent—is tremendous. To help meet
this potential, Yale is committed to building and outfitting this new stateof-the-art theater, securing the new resources to assert Yale’s position as a
leader in the American theater.
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Sustaining and Expanding
Theater at Yale
Theater, as an area of study and as a creative pursuit, occupies a unique place
in the Yale landscape. It is very much part of the Yale identity—the School
of Drama is widely perceived to be the finest in the country, if not the world.
Yale Repertory Theatre, one of the nation’s first regional theaters, continues
to have a reputation not only as the Drama School’s professional master
teacher, but as a hub for classic productions and adventurous new work within
a vigorous New Haven cultural scene. At the undergraduate level, drama
permeates Yale College life, with more than 120 student productions annually
and a Theater Studies major that attracts forty to fifty students each year.
The Yale Tomorrow campaign promises to secure this culture of theater well
into the future. The generosity of alumni, parents, and friends is sustaining
Yale’s leadership in the training of theater professionals in every discipline,
improving the theater curriculum in Yale College, and strengthening
the University’s relationship to New Haven, the community, and the world.
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Representative Giving
Opportunities in
Yale School of Drama
Faculty and Senior Sta≠ Support
Deanship of the Drama School
Professorship (3)
Student Support
Scholarship (multiple opportunities)
Program Support
Digital Media Center for the Arts (multiple opportunities)
Dean’s Resource Fund (multiple opportunities)
Facilities
School of Drama/Yale Repertory Theatre Facilities
Annual Giving
Yale School of Drama Alumni Fund
$5,000,000
$3,000,000
$50,000
and above
$100,000
$100,000
$50,000
and above
$25–$50,000
To learn more about the many ways of giving to Yale School of Drama,
please visit www.givingcatalog.yale.edu or call Deborah S. Berman,
Director of Development and Alumni A≠airs, at 203.432.2890 or email to
[email protected].
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Yale School of Drama
O∞ce of Development and Alumni A≠airs
P.O. Box 208244
New Haven, CT 06520-8244
T 203.432.2890 F 203.432.2562
Photography
Cover: Erik Pearson
Interior:
Erik Pearson
T. Charles Erickson
Carol Rosegg
© 2008 Yale University
05/08 2.5M
Printed on 100% recycled,
postconsumer-waste paper
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the campaign for yale university