Yale University announced that its drama school would go tuition-free thanks to a $150 million donation by David Geffen.
What We Know:
- The drama school will be renamed the David Geffen School of Drama. According to a press release from Yale, Geffen’s donation is believed to be the largest on record in American theater history. Yale will be able to offer both present and future students no tuition charge, the first program to do so in the nation.
- David Geffen’s relationship with Yale began during the 1978-79 academic year when he taught a semester-long seminar on the music industry. His own career started in the CBS mailroom and expanded into an entertainment conglomerate. He founded Asylum Records, Geffen Records, Geffen Pictures and co-founded the film studio Dreamworks SKG with Steven Spielberg and Jeffery Katzenberg. He has worked with artists such as John Lennon and Elton John and has produced movies and Broadway musicals alike.
- Yale approached Geffen about the donation, and he was happy to oblige. In the news release from the school, Geffen said, “When they approached me with this opportunity, I knew Yale was the right place to begin to change the way we think about funding arts education.” The drama school offers instruction in acting, design, directing, dramaturgy, dramatic criticism, playwriting, stage management, technical design, production, and theater management.
- The hope is that other institutions will follow suit to make advanced arts education more accessible and affordable. Theater studies at Yale began in the year 1925 and since then has produced the likes of Meryl Streep, Frances McDormand, and Paul Giamatti, among others. President Peter Salovey stated, “David Geffen’s visionary generosity ensures that artists of extraordinary potential from all socioeconomic backgrounds will be able to cultivate their talent at Yale.”
Geffen and Yale’s administration hope that by moving the tuition barrier, there will be greater diversity within the program and will shape the industry’s diversity.
