Past, present, and future…

After diving deep into the eight unique disciplines that make up the David Geffen School of Drama, this final episode brings them all together to look to the next hundred years. What are the greatest challenges facing the Geffen School and the arts community writ large, and what is there to be hopeful about?

This episode features a roundtable conversation between former dean Stan Wojewodski, Jr., outgoing dean James Bundy, and incoming dean Evan Yionoulis.

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This episode features Shaminda Amarakoon (‘12, Faculty), James Bundy (‘95, Former Faculty), Erin Carney, Liz Diamond (Faculty), Anna Glover (Faculty), Riccardo Hernandez (‘92, Faculty), Christian Killada (‘25), Victoria McNaughton (‘26), Kay Perdue Meadows (‘09, Faculty), Chantal Rodriguez (Faculty), Sarah Ruhl (Faculty), Catherine Sheehy ('92, D.F.A. '99, Faculty), Jennifer Tipton (Former Faculty), Stan Wojewodski, Jr. (Former Faculty), Evan Yionoulis (Faculty), and Kim Zhou (‘24).

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Oh, the Drama! is written, produced, and edited by Zachary Goldberg and Isabel Robertson.

Executive producers are Jill BC Du Boff and James Bundy.

Episode art by Kiki Gordon (‘26).

Original music by James Harrison Monaco.

Additional music from Uppbeat.

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Recordings used from Scenes from Court Life; or the whipping boy and his prince by Sarah Ruhl (2016), Bellville (2011), The House Will Not Stand (2014), Fences (1985), and Indecent by Sarah Ruhl and directed by Destyne R. Miller, performed at the opening of A Century on Stage exhibit at the Haas Arts Library.

Behind the glitz and glamor, the craft of acting requires intense vulnerability and connection. The embarrassment of an audition, the humiliation of clown class, the yielding to a character’s emotional landscape… actors fight through it all to get to the heart of human experience.

Actors like HBO’s The Pitt star Patrick Ball, four-time Oscar-winner Frances McDormand, and Tony-nominated Juliana Canfield explain why it’s actually not about those awards and accolades – it’s about the story and the craft.

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This episode features Patrick Ball (‘22), Juliana Canfield (‘17), Samuel Douglas (‘24), Frances McDormand (‘82), Francisco Morandi Zerpa (‘26), Liev Schrieber (‘92), Ron Van Lieu (Emeritus Faculty), and Tamilla Woodard (‘02, Faculty).

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Oh, the Drama! is written, produced, and edited by Zachary Goldberg and Isabel Robertson.

Executive producers are Jill BC Du Boff and James Bundy.

Episode art by Kiki Gordon (‘26).

Original music by James Harrison Monaco.

Additional music from Uppbeat.

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August Wilson's Fences premiered at Yale Rep in 1985, directed by Lloyd Richards and starring Courtney B. Vance ('86) and James Earl Jones.

Other shows referenced include The Three Sisters by Anton Chekhov and directed by Joan MacIntosh (2016) and The Three Sisters directed by Joan MacIntosh again in 2025. The Play That Goes Wrong is currently running at New World Stages starring Sam Douglas (‘24) as Max.

Critics can get a bad rap amongst artists. But imagine having a critic with savvy research skills and extensive knowledge of theater history at your side throughout production to help make your show the best it can be.

Learn how Oscar-winning actor Frances McDormand, HBO showrunner Rolin Jones, and Bad Robot Productions executive Rachel Rusch Rich have each been influenced by dramaturgs, and how dramaturgs’ keen analytical abilities sometimes lead to incredible discoveries...

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This episode features Marcus Gardley (‘04, Faculty), Eric Glover (Faculty), Rolin Jones (‘04), James Magruder ('88, D.F.A. '92), Thando Mangcu (‘27), Nia Robinson (‘27), Rachel Rusch Rich (‘05, D.F.A. ‘08), and Catherine Sheehy ('92, D.F.A. '99).

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Oh, the Drama! is written, produced, and edited by Zachary Goldberg and Isabel Robertson.

Executive producers are Jill BC Du Boff and James Bundy.

Episode art by Kiki Gordon (‘26).

Original music by James Harrison Monaco.

Additional music from Uppbeat.

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Clip used from the Columbia Masterworks recording of Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot (1957), directed by Herbert Berghof.

Recordings: Paul Walsh at the meet and greet for Yale Repertory Theatre’s production of ⁠Hedda Gabler⁠ (2026) directed by James Bundy; and backstage of ⁠King Lear (La Noche Llegará)⁠, a Shakespeare Repertory Project production adapted by Héctor Flores Komatsu and Thando Mangcu and directed by Héctor Flores Komatsu.

Other shows referenced include the Yale Repertory Theatre production of Zora Neale Hurston’s ⁠Spunk⁠ (2025), the 2024 David Geffen School of Drama production of Jordan Cooper’s play Ain’t No Mo directed by Kemar Jewel (‘25), and Berkeley Rep’s production of Macbeth (2016) directed by Daniel Sullivan.