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| Established | 1900 |
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President | Dhruv Bhalla |
| Students | 153 |
| Website | www |
TheYale Dramatic Association, also known as the "Yale Dramat," is the third oldest collegetheater company in the United States.[1][2][3] Founded in 1901 by undergraduates atYale University, the Dramat has been producing student theatre in the United States for over a century.
Though no formal theatre company existed at Yale during its first two centuries of existence, dramas and comedies were enjoyed by students from the earliest days. When ProfessorWilliam Lyon Phelps, '87, commenced his teaching during the 1890s, he began a literary Renaissance that culminated in his sponsorship of the Dramatic Association, founded by Henry D. Wescott, Class of 1901, as a club for students interested in public performances of plays. The first meeting of the organization, chaired by Wescott, occurred on February 2, 1900.
As archivistGerasimos Tsourapas described its first days:
For its premiere production, the new organization choseThe Second Shepherds' Play, the medieval English comedy that offers both sacred and profane variation on the birth of Christ: the religious could take comfort in the play's theological interests; the secular could delight in the naughty pranks of the protagonist. All in all, a good choice to allay the fears of those distrustful of the theater. As if to reinforce the high moral tone of the inaugural performance, the Dramat Executive Committee added Wescott's own adaptation ofChaucer'sThe Pardoner's Tale. Frank Lea Short, a New York theatrical figure, was hired to direct; Phelps and Professor Albert Cook served as literary advisors. Although both plays called for small casts, an "audience-within-the-play"— some one hundred extras—was placed on stage as well; no doubt someone realized the importance of getting as many people involved in the new venture as possible. On May 13, 1900, the first production of the Yale Dramatic Association opened to the universal applause of town and gown.
Cole Porter was undoubtedly the best-known of the Dramat's early Twentieth-Century figures. Not only did he perform both male and female roles, but he wrote and directed three "smoker" productions and composed the totemic song "The Queen of the Yale Dramat" (1911) satirizing drag roles. His first show,And Still the Villain Pursued Her, poked fun at melodramas, while the second,Kaleidoscope, was a send-up of college life.
Since Porter's days the Dramat has fostered the careers of many distinguished actors, for example in the World Premiere production ofArthur Miller'sThe Crucible in 1957, (in two acts) prior to Broadway. In 1960Sam Waterston andAustin Pendleton starred inWaiting for Godot. The Dramat was the first company to performThornton Wilder's one act play,The Long Christmas Dinner.
During the 1970s the company expanded its range and sophistication, with daring productions such asThe Frogs, a musical adaptation of theAristophanes comedy byStephen Sondheim andBurt Shevelove, staged in the pool ofPayne Whitney Gymnasium.Ted Tally, a future Academy Award winning screenwriter forSilence of the Lambs starred oppositeAlley Mills of television'sThe Wonder Years. WhileMeryl Streep trod the boards at the Drama School,Mark Linn-Baker andRobert Picardo delighted audiences on the Dramat stage.
The 1980s saw additional steps forward, with original works by undergraduates such asTina Landau, class of 1984. HerIn the Image of Kings was a provocative treatment of lunatic monarchs. Since then the Dramat has maintained its high standards with both classics and modern masterpieces, musicals, reviews, light operas, and the occasional spoof in the tradition of Porter.[4]
The Dramat is run by an eleven undergraduate member executive board[5] which oversees the daily business of the Dramat, which includes selecting repertoire for performance and choosing or hiringdirectors for its productions. The Dramat's membership includes around 100Yale undergraduates as well as many honorary and life-time members.
The Dramat played a large part in the founding of theYale School of Drama and the construction of its main facility, the University Theater (also known as the UT).
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41°18′34.7″N72°55′51.7″W / 41.309639°N 72.931028°W /41.309639; -72.931028
