Awards and Honors, Institutional News

Announcing the 2020 Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation Fellowships

Eighteen students from Bennington College have been selected to participate in the 2020 Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation Fellowships, a program run in partnership with the Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation.

Photo from Everybody play

Established in 2018, the Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation Fellowships is an annual fellowship program operated in partnership with the Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation, offering exceptional Bennington drama students the opportunity to work in paid internships at off-Broadway non-profit theatre companies during the College’s winter Field Work Term. Participating students also receive mentorship and experience live theatre, immersing themselves in the New York City theatre world.

In 2020, the program will continue to expand, offering the largest cohort of Fellows to date. Several new theatres have also joined the partnership, including Harlem Stage and Spanish Theatre Repertory/Repertorio Español.

“We are delighted to extend the Foundation’s investment in the New York off-Broadway theatre community by supporting experiential learning opportunities for the next generation of theatre creatives,” said Executive Director of the Lucille Lortel Theatre George Forbes.

“The Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation Fellowships are both an honor and an amazing opportunity for our students to experience the real world of theatre by working alongside the game-changers of our times,” said drama faculty member and fellowship advisor Dina Janis. “Students are challenged to raise their own bar and are offered a seat at the table moving forward. The experience is extraordinary on every level.” 

The diverse 2020 cohort, comprised of Bennington College juniors and seniors, hails from California, Georgia, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Washington, Canada, and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

As with all of Bennington’s fellowships, participants receive mentoring to support learning through a cohort-based learning experience.

In preparation for the Fellowship, the cohort met with George Forbes, executive director of the Lucille Lortel Theatre, and Jeremy Adams, managing director of The Public Theater, for an immersive workshop regarding the business of theatre. Students highlighted the eye-opening nature of this exposure and voiced that the content gave them an expanded perspective from which to begin their winter term work.

2020 Lucille Lortel Theatre Foundation Fellows: 

The Flea Theater

  • Graeme Cohen '21, Tech Assistant

  • Sabrina Konick '20, Production Assistant

Harlem Stage

  • Christina Polanen '20, Development Intern

La MaMa

  • Timothy Atkinson '21, Administrative Intern

 MCC Theater

  • Martha Bennett '21, Audience Services Intern

Mint Theater Company

  • Josh Goldberg '21, Production Assistant/Assistant to The Directors 

  • Larry Dembski '21, Production Management Intern

New Georges

  • Christiane Swenson '20, Artistic Associate

Rattlestick Playwrights Theater

  • Delaney Circe '21, Development Intern

  • Jelena Mijatovic '21, Marketing & Community Engagement Intern

Soho Rep

  • Benjamin Tersigni '21, Management Intern

Spanish Theatre Repertory/Repertorio Español

  • Brooks Hope ’21, Assistant to the Associate Artistic Producer Intern

  • Cy Wolfe '20, Marketing and Communications Intern

Theatre for a New Audience

  • Lillie Brown '20, General Management Intern

Vineyard Theatre

  • Alicia Katz '21, Production Management Intern

  • Holly Ray Sherrer '20, Performing Arts Management Intern

WP Theater

  • Delaney Hill '21, Marketing Intern

  • Eloise Gibbin '20, Artistic Intern

About the Lucille Lortel Foundation

The Lucille Lortel Foundation was created by Lucille Lortel to foster excellence and diversity in the theatre, as well as to preserve the history and support the prosperity of Off-Broadway. The Foundation has several programs, including its general operating support program that has provided millions of dollars for small to mid-sized theatres in New York City, universities, and theatre service organizations.