About the Theatre Program

Rigorous training enriched by an expansive academic curriculum, Fordham University’s Theatre Program prepares students as theater practitioners and visionaries. In a creatively fertile, experiential and artistically rigorous environment, the Theatre Program nurtures the individual, encouraging students to follow their passions and activism. As a program centered on the values of social justice and responsibility, we aim to serve our greater global community as citizen artists, using theatrical expression to create paths for empathy, understanding and dialogue.

Located on 60th and Columbus in Lincoln Center in the heart of New York City, and within walking distance of the Broadway and Off-Broadway theatre districts, the Fordham University Theatre Program is led by award-winning director and artistic leader, May Adrales. Faculty members are working theatre professionals who help students find their artistic voice and develop their skills in an intimate and supportive environment. Through core curriculum, individual mentorship, a robust student-led Studio Season and Mainstage productions, Fordham provides multiple opportunities for students to thrive.

Learn about our mission, and dive into the experiential work we do, by perusing our training and curriculum, and recent production photos pages.

Artists that graduate from the Theatre Program are risk-takers, creative thinkers, storytellers and innovators. If this sounds like the journey for you, review the requirements for the audition/interview process, and apply during our next audition/interview season. If you have questions, please contact us at [email protected]

Questions regarding the admission process, housing, financial aid, and acceptance notifications can be addressed by the Lincoln Center Office of Undergraduate Admissions at 718-817-4000.

Thank you for your interest in the Fordham Theatre Program. We look forward to meeting you!

Eliana Rowe and Rachel Ravel in Ibsanity

Fordham Theatre News

On Fordham Theatre Mainstage, an ‘Indecent’ Production

Indecent, the third production in Fordham Theatre’s mainstage season, is a Pulitzer prize winning play about the true story of the staging of another play—God Of Vengeance, by Sholem Asch. God of Vengeance was written in 1906 in Yiddish, and after great success in Europe, it was translated into English, and performed on Broadway in [...]

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Seen, Heard, Read: ‘White Noise,’ ‘Looking for Violet,’ and ‘All the Women in My Brain’

White Noise a film based on the novel by Don DeLillo, FCRH ’58 Don DeLillo’s novel White Noise has aged well since it won a National Book Award in 1985. Darkly funny, it parodies academia and captures the media, technology, and consumer culture of the mid-’80s—what one character calls the “incessant bombardment of information,” much [...]

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Students Perform at Inauguration Showcase

Students from the Ailey/Fordham B.F.A. in Dance program, Fordham Theatre, and the Fordham Lincoln Center Jazz Ensemble delivered a captivating set of performances at the Lincoln Center campus on Oct. 12 as part of the week’s events leading to the inauguration of President Tania Tetlow. The evening showcase, The Movement, Melodrama, and Melodies of NYC, [...]

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Denzel Washington Chair Mimi Lien on the Magic of Set Design

Mimi Lien, an award-winning set designer whose work in theater, dance, and opera has been featured on American stages and across the world, is Fordham’s Denzel Washington Endowed Chair in Theatre at Fordham this fall. Lien is the winner of a 2017 Tony Award for her set design in the musical Natasha, Pierre, & the [...]

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Denzel Washington Takes on Macbeth, Reflects on Fordham Roots

In November, when The New York Times published its list of “The 25 Greatest Actors of the 21st Century (So Far),” A. O. Scott said he and his fellow critics argued about every spot on the list but the top one: “Denzel Washington is beyond category,” he wrote, “a screen titan who is also a [...]

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Denzel Washington Chair Liesl Tommy: Command ‘Respect’ and Don’t Give Up the Ghost

This semester, Liesl Tommy, an award-winning South African director, and former actress, became the Fordham Theatre program’s 10th Denzel Washington Endowed Chair. Tommy was the first African American woman to receive a best directing Tony nomination for the 2016 Broadway production of Eclipsed, which told the story of five Liberian women and their survival during [...]

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Fordham Theatre Faculty, Alumni Earn 2020 Tony Nominations

In a year of theater unlike any other—one in which productions have been halted and delayed indefinitely because of COVID-19—members of the Fordham community still made their mark on Broadway, as evidenced by three Rams who are among the 2020 Tony Award nominees, announced on Oct. 15. Clint Ramos, head of design and production for [...]

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Fordham Theatre Grad Named New Yorker of the Week

Fordham Theatre alumna Holly-Anne Devlin, FCLC ’03, was recently named NY1’s New Yorker of the Week, an honor awarded to New Yorkers doing their part to give back and help those in need. Devlin formed the Hells Kitchen Happiness Krewe, a pop-up band of artists who visit different establishments in the neighborhood and offer surprise [...]

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4 Rams Receive 2020 Primetime Emmy Nominations

The list of 2020 Primetime Emmy Award nominees has been revealed, and it includes four Rams. Three alumni and one former faculty member have been nominated for awards this year. Fordham Theatre alumna Betty Gilpin, FCLC ’08, has once again been nominated for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series for her portrayal of Debbie [...]

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Denzel Washington Honored by Crossroads Theatre Company

Denzel Washington, FCLC ’77, received the inaugural Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee Living Legends Award from the Crossroads Theatre Company in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on October 19 during a ceremony that, perhaps more than any other in the celebrated actor’s career, highlighted his deep connections to Fordham University. Presenting Washington with the award was [...]

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New Theater Season Shines Spotlight on Issues of the Day

Fordham Theatre’s 2019-2020 mainstage season, which opens on Oct. 3 with Sarah DeLappe’s The Wolves, features no official title that might neatly bundle the quartet of plays together under one theme. Look a little closer though, and it’s possible to see in the season, which also features productions of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, Airline Highway by [...]

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