Directing Thesis production of The Sea Does Not Reach Naples, conceived and directed by Elena Vannoni ‘23 and adapted by Siting Yang ‘22
About
The Lenfest Center for the Arts is Columbia University’s destination for multidisciplinary art in West Harlem. Standing at the entrance to Columbia’s Manhattanville campus, the Lenfest Center welcomes audiences from Harlem and across New York City to engage in a dialogue generated by our artist-centered programming. Through performances, screenings, exhibitions, and events, the Lenfest Center showcases the work of Columbia’s School of the Arts MFA students alongside diverse voices from the professional arts community, cultivating a conversation between these two worlds. It is a vibrant showcase for the arts and a central hub for Columbia’s artists.
The Lenfest Center features four unique venues and is home to the Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Art Gallery. Free and open to the public, we are dedicated to building a vibrant community around art and artists, at the center of creative life, in New York City.
Columbia University School of the Arts is an intellectual home for great artists, both established and in formation. The School of the Arts awards the Master of Fine Arts degree in the areas of Film, Theatre, Visual Arts + Sound Art, and Writing and the Master of Arts degree in Film & Media Studies.
Lenfest & School of the Arts Leadership
Lauren Weigel
Director, Lenfest Center for the Arts
Zack Tinkelman
Director of Production and Operations
Ethan Caso
Audience Services Manager
Dawn E. Clements
Audience Services Manager
Julia Hahn
Production Manager
Holly Ko
Production Manager - Lighting & Theatrical Systems
Dave Park
Film & Video Projection Manager
Calder Singer
Production Manager
Frank Spigner
A/V Network & Audio Production Manager
Cat Foley
Lighting & Production Associate
Sarah Cole
Dean of the School of the Arts
Jana Wright
Dean of Academic Administration and Planning
Melissa Smey
Associate Dean and Executive Director
Carol Becker
Dean Emerita, Professor of the Arts
Gavin Browning
Director of Public Programs and Engagement
The Building
The Lenfest Center for the Arts was made possible by a gift from Trustee Emeritus H.F. (Gerry) and Marguerite Lenfest, leading patrons of the arts. Mr. Lenfest (LAW ’58, HON ’89), 1930–2018, served on the boards of Philadelphia’s Museum of Art, the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, and the Curtis Institute of Music.
Columbia University School of the Arts recognizes Manhattan as part of the ancestral and traditional homeland of the Lenni-Lenape and Wappinger people. At the School of the Arts, we believe education and the arts are critical spaces to address issues of exclusion, erasure, and systemic discrimination.
Columbia University School of the Arts
Columbia University School of the Arts offers the rare opportunity for artists across all disciplines to learn and create together in one vibrant community. We award the Master of Fine Arts degree in Film, Theatre, Visual Arts, and Writing, an interdisciplinary program in Sound Art that leads to an MFA in Visual Arts, and a Master of Arts degree in Film and Media Studies. Artists from each of these fields, and those working between and among them, are supported here, and challenged to express themselves in new and innovative forms.
Manhattanville
The first new buildings on Columbia’s Manhattanville campus came to life during the 2016-17 academic year—the beginning stage of a sustainable urban design that will unfold over decades. The campus will provide innovative spaces for teaching, pioneering research, artistic expression, and the shared human experiences of a great city defined by openness and diversity. Read about Columbia University's Community Commitments at neighbors.columbia.edu.