Yale University has announced a $150 million gift from entertainment executive David Geffen in support of its School of Drama.

The largest gift in the history of American theater will eliminate tuition for all degree and certificate students at the school, including all students returning and enrolling in the fall semester. The only graduate-level professional conservatory in the English-speaking world to offer training in every theatrical discipline — acting, design, directing, dramaturgy and dramatic criticism, playwriting, stage management, technical design and production, and theater management — the school enrolls about two hundred students in ten degree and certificate programs. In recognition of the gift, the school has been renamed the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale University.

"David Geffen's gift will be transformative for us at the school and for the American theater at large," said dean James Bundy. "Full tuition support of our training will help us attract talent from the broadest possible spectrum of potential applicants, and it sends a clear message that Yale is a place where a stimulating mix of gifted students can devote their energies first and foremost to artistry. This will lead to a fuller representation of our society in every aspect of professional practice."

"It's an honor to partner with Yale University to create the first tuition-free drama school of its kind in the nation," said Geffen, who taught a course at the university in the late 1970s. "I knew Yale was the right place to begin to change the way we think about funding arts education. Yale already provides some of the best professional training available to actors, writers, directors, designers, and theater managers from diverse backgrounds. Removing the tuition barrier will allow an even greater diversity of talented people to develop and hone their skills in front of, on, and behind Yale's stages. I hope this gift will inspire others to support similar efforts to increase accessibility and affordability for arts education at colleges and universities across the country."

(Photo credit: Yale School of Drama)