In 2024, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting proudly celebrates its 75th Anniversary, commemorating a legacy of inspiring generations of actors dedicated to the pursuit of artistic excellence and uplifting humanity.

Founded in 1949 by the legendary Stella Adler after a life on the New York stage and a transformative encounter with Russian acting guru Constantine Stanislavsky, the Studio began with a single class taught to an elite group of aspiring artists. Early students included Marlon Brando, Jerome Robbins, Elaine Stritch, and Alvin Ailey. Stella Adler later trained luminaries such as Robert De Niro, Benicio del Toro, Donna Murphy, Kate Mulgrew, and more.

Shortly after Stella Adler’s death in 1992, her grandson, Tom Oppenheim, assumed the role of Artistic Director. Under his leadership, the conservatory as well as a plethora of new curricular programs he put forth which include both short-term workshops and more rigorous intensives, maintained world-class standards, producing notable artists and award-winners like Arjun Gupta, Caitlyn Fitzgerald, Nik Walker, Lauren Patten, Katherine Waterston, Chloe Fineman and many more. He also added elements that serve society like the Art Series, offering free concerts, theater, dance, and lectures, and the Stella Adler Arts Justice Division. Arts Justice is a free theater program with a large footprint across New York City that provides transformative educational experiences to New York’s most severely underserved citizens, those impacted by poverty and who are justice-involved.

Artistic Director Tom Oppenheim reflects on the Studio’s roots, “The spirit with which this institution was founded, forged in the crucible of tough times, of pogroms and economic depressions, of world wars and artistic repressions, remains forward-looking, outward-gazing, and other-oriented.” He notes, “Stella Adler’s techniques embody a profound spiritual health, alive and thriving to this day. We don’t know what the next 75 years will bring. What we do know is that we will be fighting for the spirit of life that has animated us for these past 75 years – the pursuit of which has produced so much creativity and joy in the face of life’s many challenges.”

In the past 75 years, the studio has grown into a full-fledged cultural center with not only a globally-esteemed professional training conservatory, but also highly innovative community elements that invite all New Yorkers to participate in a vital, American theater tradition. While the studio is well-known for its conservatory, an essential part of its work and mission in recent years has been democratizing access to the arts through free programs that prioritize access. Today the studio serves nearly 10,000 students and audience members annually.

As part of this milestone year, the Studio is unveiling a refreshed visual identity, symbolizing its evolution and commitment to inclusivity. The new logo, designed by Graphic Designer Casey Morris, reflects the Studio’s growth and expansion since the prior logo’s creation in 2001. The rebrand aims to unify the New York and Los Angeles studios, as well as to elevate the Stella Adler Center for the Arts at 65 Broadway, the artistic home of tuition-based programs (the Studio of Acting), the Arts Justice Division, and diverse cultural programming branches that annually serve nearly 10,000 students and audience members.

Visit this link to learn more about the development of the new logo and branding process for the Studio.

More 75th Anniversary events and programming will be announced shortly.

About the Stella Adler Studio of Acting
The Stella Adler Studio of Acting is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization that nurtures theatre artists and audiences who value humanity, while providing art and education to the greater community. In addition to a world-renowned professional conservatory, the Studio offers multiple free programs that provide transformative educational experiences to New York’s most underserved citizens, like those impacted by poverty and who are justice-involved.

Established in 1949 by Stella Adler, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting was founded upon Adler’s belief in the supreme seriousness of her art, and has, for the last seven and a half decades, enriched every part of the American theater and film arts. Adler’s philosophies kept many well-known members of the theater coming back for her intelligent and passionate advice and the school has since trained many of the brilliant actors of our time. The Stella Adler Studio of Acting is a not- for-profit organization, which trains over 500 actors annually and also presents world-class lectures, poetry readings, jazz, classical music, theater, and dance theater events. Since 2009, the studio has been training actors in Los Angeles at the Art of Acting Studio.

As part of the milestone 75th anniversary year, the Stella Adler Studio of Acting is launching a refreshed visual identity to help communicate its mission, uniting its world-class programs and inviting new voices into the community.

The Studio has experienced significant growth and expansion since the prior logo was designed in 2001. Graphic Designer Casey Morris states, “With this rebrand, we aim to build more unity between our New York and Los Angeles studios, as well as our evolving cultural center at 65 Broadway, the Stella Adler Center for the Arts.”

She adds, “The design choices were made to reinforce our humanity-focused mission and the Studio’s core beliefs. We want to actively invite in our community, conveying that we value excellence without exclusivity, rigor without rigidity, and transformational art and culture for anyone and everyone.” The Stella Adler Center for the Arts is home to the Studio’s tuition-based offerings, the Arts Justice Division’s free educational experiences for severely underserved populations, and nine distinct branches of diverse cultural programming. To create a brand identity for both studios and the Center that complements this vast range of programs, the uptown-meets-downtown energy of New York was a perfect starting point to visually capture the spirit of the entire organization.

• From architectural landmarks to hand-painted storefront signs, the look and feel of the brand evolved from an eclectic collection of imagery. The attempt was to create a timeless identity by making it “time-filled,” with visual connections to key points and influences in the Studio’s history, including:
• Ancient Greece & Rome, where the Studio acting tradition finds its roots,
• The Yiddish Theater, which Jacob Adler helped establish in America,
• Early 20th-century Manhattan, where Stella Adler and Harold Clurman refined their craft and found their artistry,
• And present-day New York and Los Angeles, and the thousands of unique stories that pass through the Studio’s hallways each year.

Design elements were carefully chosen to enhance the brand’s personality without losing recognizability. The redesigned logo was created with the Trajan Sans typeface, a sans-serif counterpart to the prior logo’s Trajan. The font was chosen for a fresh take on historic lettering styles, to connect the brand’s time-filled influences while maintaining a modern feel. The new type suite also includes bold weights of Futura, an early 20th-century typeface that has become timeless itself, and Specter, a contemporary sans-serif inspired by the same era. These typography guidelines will connect the Studio with every branch of the Center for the Arts.

The new color scheme keeps the Studio’s signature “Adler Red” at the center, a passionate and warm color strongly associated with the brand. Additional accent colors include warm analogous tones and cool neutral shades, evoking both West Coast sunsets and East Coast industrial architecture. The broad color palette will support a variety of poster imagery for the Studio’s Professional Conservatory productions and many other live events at the Center for the Arts.

At the center of the visual identity is an overlapping-A emblem. Combining two A’s into one creates symmetry in the Stella/Adler logo and ties “Art of Acting” into the brand. The image of one A collapsing as another rises out of it evokes the transformations experienced by students, audience members, and participating artists. The shape also hints at a guiding star, symbolizing progress towards a unifying mission (“Stella” is also Latin for “star”). This symbol will be shared between the two acting studios (Stella Adler Studio and Art of Acting Studio) and the Stella Adler Center for the Arts.

“We are thrilled to introduce our new logo as part of our ongoing efforts to enhance the Stella Adler Studio and Art of Acting Studio joint brand” said Director of Marketing Ryan Chittaphong. “This new branding reflects our dedication to providing exceptional artistic excellence while embracing the evolving needs of our community and digital landscape.” The new logo will be gradually rolled out across all of the Studio’s materials, including its website, social media profiles, and marketing materials. The Studio invites its students, alumni, and the community at large to join in celebrating this exciting milestone to kick off the anniversary year.

Stay tuned for additional 75th Anniversary events and programming announcements.

After a 3 year absence due to the pandemic, the HCLAB Theater Company and the Art of Acting Studio are excited to return to Los Angeles theater to present its third annual Old Play Reading Festival, a twist on the concept of a “new” play festival that instead honors plays in the classic theater canon. The festival features alumni, faculty, administration, and friends of the Art of Acting Los Angeles and Stella Adler Studio of Acting NYC communities.

The HCLAB will present the following three plays:

The Effects of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds by Paul Zindel
Directed by Bryan Keith
Saturday 4/1/23 @ 7pm

Somewhere In Between by Craig Pospisil
Directed by Jenn O’Brien
Saturday 4/29/23 @ 7pm

As Is by William M. Hoffman
Directed by Mikey Mulhearn
Saturday 5/27/23 @ 7pm

Admission to the festival is free but reservations are encouraged, tickets available at https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pr/1156308.

THE HAROLD CLURMAN LABORATORY THEATER COMPANY is the Stella Adler Studio of Acting/Art of Acting Studio’s professional theater company. The Lab aims to produce socially relevant theater committed to the standards and ideals set out by Stella Adler, Harold Clurman and the Group Theater. The mission of the Lab is to provide the community, through theater and discussion, with a place of exploration and experimentation of what it means to be a human being. Select production history: King Lear, Turn of the Screw (Ovation Recommended), Rocket to the Moon, Talking to Terrorists, Mercy Killers by Michael Milligan (Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2013, Fringe First Award), Muckrakers, Lebensraum by Israel Horovitz (off-Broadway, Ovation-Nominated in Los Angeles), Long Way Go Down by Zayd Dohrn (West Coast premiere, Ovation Award Nominee), Waiting for Lefty, Our Town by Thornton Wilder.

Be sure to get your tickets for the 4th annual Party in the Parking Lot on Sunday, November 20th, 2022! Food, drink, and dance are all included!

All proceeds go towards our Student Scholarship Fund, so every ticket helps to partially or fully fund a student’s education. Due to generous donor support, all ticket sales and sponsorships will be matched up to $2500!

Proof of Covid vaccination required at check-in.
Email Johnny@StellaAdler.com with questions or inquiries.
Purchase Tickets at https://web.ovationtix.com/trs/pe.c/11155422

January 7, 2022

The Stella Adler Studio of Acting announced a memorial for Ron Burrus, master acting technique teacher. Burrus was the greatest exponent of the technique developed by Stella Adler. There will be a memorial for Mr. Burrus on Thursday, January 20, 2022 at 6pm ET online via Zoom Webinar.

Through tireless work and lifelong passion Ron Burrus made himself into the most creative interpreter of the techniques of Stella Adler. His uniqueness as an Adler-inspired teacher according to Artistic Director Tom Oppenheim was, “not only his capacity to shape Stella’s techniques into a systematized series of very clear exercises but his inclination to combine those exercises with the work of the great Hindu spiritual master Jidddu Krishnamurti”.

Ron studied under renowned acting teacher Stella Adler serving as her assistant in a protracted apprenticeship that lasted ten years. He then taught side by side with her, working closely with some of the most important actors of our time including Donna Murphy, Matthew Modine, John Mellencamp, Bill Paxton to name but a few. Mr. Burrus opened his own Ron Burrus Studio in 1983 and returned to the Stella Adler Studio of Acting under the invitation of Stella Adler’s grandson, Tom Oppenheim. There he trained a new generation of actors including Bryce Dallas Howard, Caitlyn Fitzgerald, Olivia Washington to name but a few. In 2009 Ron Burrus worked closely with Oppenheim to build a West coast branch of the Stella Adler Studio, the Art of Acting Studio.

Ron Burrus studied Stella’s work, researched and expanded upon it, adding elements to sharpen the actor’s sense of focus and awareness in imaginative spaces. Stella Adler, with roots in the Yiddish Theater and Group Theater, was the only American actor to study with the great Russian master, Constantine Stanislavski. Burrus assumed and extended this legacy in his work. He trained actors from the 1960s through 2021. Burrus, 79, of Los Angeles, CA, passed away on Dec.13, 2021 after a four-year battle with cancer.

MEMORIAL DETAILS

What Did You Learn? What Did You See?
A Celebration of the Life and Work of Ron Burrus
Thursday, January 20 at 6pm ET
Via Zoom Webinar
RSVP: Please click here to register to attend.

SHARE YOUR STORY: Please click here to share some thoughts or memories about Ron.

GIVE TO THE SCHOLARSHIP FUND:
If you cannot attend, but would like to contribute to a scholarship in Ron’s memory, which will be an annual campaign, please click here.

The memorial will be conducted like one of Ron’s classes. A small group of invited speakers will be followed by community members sharing what they learned from Ron. Those who don’t share in real time will be encouraged to write thoughts into the chat. Those thoughts will be captured and printed into an online book. The Ron Burrus Center will add photos and links of Ron and that book will be offered as a gift to all.

Ron Burrus was an American acting teacher and coach and the greatest exponent of the acting technique developed by Stella Adler. Ron studied Stella’s work, researched and expanded upon it, adding elements to sharpen the actor’s sense of focus and awareness in imaginative spaces. Stella Adler, with roots in the Yiddish Theater and Group Theater, was the only American actor to study with the great Russian master, Constantine Stanislavski. Burrus assumed and extended this legacy in his work. Burrus, 79, of Los Angeles, Ca, passed away on Dec.13, 2021 after a four-year battle with cancer.

OBITUARY

Ron Burrus was an American acting teacher and coach and the greatest exponent of the acting technique developed by Stella Adler. Burrus studied Adler’s work, researched and expanded upon it, adding elements to sharpen the actor’s sense of focus and awareness in imaginative spaces. Stella Adler, with roots in the Yiddish Theater and Group Theater, was the only American actor to study with the great Russian master, Constantine Stanislavski. Burrus assumed and extended this legacy in his work. Burrus, 79, of Los Angeles, Ca, passed away on Dec.13, 2021 after a four-year battle with cancer.

He was born in Onawa, IA, March 11, 1942, the son of Joe Burrus and Audrey (Hutchison) Burrus. He is survived by sister Marlene Cowan, brothers Stan Burrus and Richard Burrus, brother in-law, Chuck Cowan and sister in-law Debra Eaton, nephews, Jeff Cowan, Logan Burrus, Ethan Clark, nieces Kristin Rawson, Dana Clark, Cindy Cowan, Yma Sautbine and Aubrey Clark.

Growing up Ron enjoyed singing, musicals and was in the Drama Club.  He tried playing football in the 9th grade. But no go. He would rather do a soft shoe dance in the kitchen. Ron graduated from Leeds High School in Sioux City, Iowa, 1960, and the same year he and his mother and brothers traveled the original Route 66 out to California and settled in Burbank, a block from the airport.

Ron would often run with his brother Rich the one block to the airport where they would follow unsuspecting travelers and imagine stories about unknown destinations. This sparked a love for travel which he would pursue over the entire course of his life.

He graduated from Pasadena College and served in the U.S. Army in Germany and after returning to California, jetted off to New York to fulfill his dreams. Ron studied under renowned acting teacher Stella Adler serving as her assistant in a protracted apprenticeship that lasted ten years. He then taught side by side with her, working closely with some of the most important actors of our time including Donna Murphy, Matthew Modine, John Mellencamp, Bill Paxton to name but a few. Mr. Burrus opened his own Ron Burrus Studio in 1983 and returned to the Stella Adler Studio of Acting under the invitation of Stella Adler’s grandson, Tom Oppenheim. There he trained a new generation of actors including Bryce Dallas Howard, Caitlyn Fitzgerald, Olivia Washington to name but a few. In 2009 Ron Burrus worked closely with Oppenheim to build a West coast branch of the Stella Adler Studio, the Art of Acting Studio.

Throughout his long career Mr. Burrus worked internationally leading workshops in The film school in Lausanne, Switzerland first invited Mr. Burrus to conduct workshops for their directors and actors. This led over time to workshops in major cultural institutions and festivals in Mexico City, Mexico; Bogata, Colombia; Hamburg, Germany; Cecina, Italy; Tokyo and Osaka, Japan; Mumbai, India; Manila, Philippines and Toulouse, France. He really knew how to travel. One bag and he was off.

Through tireless work and lifelong passion Ron Burrus made himself into the most creative interpreter of the techniques of Stella Adler. His uniqueness as an Adler inspired teacher according to Oppenheim was “not only his capacity to shape Stella’s techniques into a systematized series of very clear exercises but his inclination to combine those exercises with the work of the great Hindu spiritual master Jidddu Krishnamurti”.

Ron was a beautiful, generous person.  He believed strongly in helping others fulfill and achieve their dreams and through endless mentorships touched many lives and awakened a curiosity in others to live with joy, pride, presence and awareness without judgment.

October 27, 2021

From Tom Oppenheim, Artistic Director:

Dear community,

It is with great sorrow and a heavy heart that I’m writing to inform you that we’ve lost our beloved teacher, friend and family member, James Tripp today. Jimmy joined the faculty of the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in the mid 1980s at the invitation of Stella Adler herself. By that time he had a full life in the theater working in major regional theaters, at the Public Theater and on Broadway. But Jimmy’s true artistic domain was in the classroom and his greatest performances were as a teacher. In that realm Jimmy’s talent knew no bounds. With a single gesture he could spank the devil and lick the sky. Jimmy was all theater. He was a theater bandit. He busted down borders with Dionysian glee and many of us who survive him at Adler and thousands and thousands of former students were freed by this man, were elevated by his greatness, were liberated by his passion, were made merry monsters like him. Jimmy made us feel like creatures in Where the Wild Things Are, “I’ll eat you up I love you so.”

My grandmother recognized her kind in Jimmy. She invited him to Adler after seeing a production of Moliere’s Tartuffe which he directed at his other artistic home, the National Shakespeare Conservatory, with me in the title role. It was my first production ever. Jimmy delighted in dressing me up in a long white wig and made me an aged, sex crazed, power hungry, hypocritical hippy. He gave me a comb as a prop to unsuccessfully comb the knots out of my tangled hair. He acquainted me with what was most corrupt in myself, what was most ghastly, grotesque, gory, ugly. He thus made a man of me. Stella appreciated him deeply for this, knew he was an artist, knew where he belonged, right in the heart of the Adler family

I first encountered Jimmy at Kerhonkson, National Shakespeare Conservatory’s summer program. I was so shy and scared and Jimmy’s energy was overwhelming to me. Jimmy was the contemporary scene teacher in those days with his dear friend Mario Siletti teaching Shakespeare. Jimmy was utilizing Meisner repetition technique but only as Jimmy could, repetition a la TRIPP!!! Actors were repeating what the other said but wildly, roiling into a frenzy. It scared the bejesus out of me in spite of the fact that I’m a Jew. After class I followed Jimmy to his car and told him that the exercise scared me. “Well, then you must try it!” he said with a face wide open like the sky. Jimmy opened up a door for me that day, a door that remains open and continues to beckon and challenge me.
There was so much freedom in Jimmy’s class, a freedom we desperately need. This freedom was scary for some, thrilling for others, scary and thrilling by turns. He would crack words over his knee and throw them in your face. You had the feeling that anything could happen. Passion, for example. Love. Hatred. High art. Low art. Lampoon. Anything. This freedom produced boldness, courage, a crystal clear understanding of the purpose of theater and the blessing. May Jimmy’s death inspire a resurrection of that freedom. May generations hence spring up as liberal as he, as outrageous, as passionate, as free.

We dedicate this year to our teacher, friend, family member James Tripp. We will soon open the James Tripp Theater. Long live Jimmy.

Love,

Tom Oppenheim
Artistic Director

Thank you so much for the outpouring of love we have seen online in the wake of Jimmy’s passing. It has been wonderful reading all the cherished memories you have had with him over the years. The Stella Adler Studio of Acting is in the process of collecting quotes, stories and favorite memories of Jimmy Tripp for the archives. Do you remember inspiring words he gave in class? Is there a favorite story of Jimmy? Please share with us by filling out the form linked below. Or you can simply reply to this email and I can add it for you.

Jimmy Tripp Memories and Quotes Form