Class Notes
Updates from the BU College of Fine Arts community
Robert T. Freeman, Allan Crite—American Griot, 2025. Courtesy of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
Class Notes
Fall 2026 updates from the Boston University College of Fine Arts community
1960s
Susan Surman (’60) had her play A Greek Tragedy selected for performance in the Naples Players’ Annual New Play Festival, an evening of one-act plays.
Vern Miller (’69) and college friends founded the band the Remains in 1964, with Miller serving as bassist. A new abridged documentary, America’s Lost Band, chronicles the band’s travels, including their appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show and their stint opening for the Beatles in 1966. The film is now streaming on YouTube and can also be seen on PBS.
1970s
David Kneuss (’70) celebrated the 25th anniversary of the founding of the Seiji Ozawa Music Academy in 2025. Kneuss, the academy’s artistic director since its opening, has directed 18 productions featuring students from Japan, the United States, China, and Korea, as well as top international opera soloists from around the world.
Robert T. Freeman (’71,’81) was commissioned by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston to create a façade painting as part of a tribute to the artist Allan Rohan Crite. In 2025, Freeman accepted the invitation to be artist-in-residence at the Gardner Museum. Also, two of Freeman’s paintings, Etude #1 and Etude #4, which are part of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston’s permanent collection, are on display at the John Axelrod Gallery (Gallery 326), also home to Crite’s Tire Jumping in Front of My Window.
Kate Katcher (’73) published a debut novel, 36 (Vine Leaves Press, 2026), based on the Talmudic legend of 36 hidden righteous people upon whom the world depends.
Stewart F. Lane (’73) was honored along with his wife and partner, Bonnie Comley, at the New York Landmarks Conservancy’s 2025 Living Landmarks Celebration, joining fellow honorees Aerin Lauder, Kenneth Lonergan, Mark Ruffalo, Cynthia Wainwright, Stephen Berger, and Darren Walker. The annual celebration recognizes New Yorkers who helped preserve the city through their cultural and civic contributions. Conservancy President Peg Breen praised the couple for bringing “wonderful productions to the stage” and allowing audiences to enjoy the best of Broadway. Lane also participated in the Broadway production of Celebrity Autobiography, which featured celebrities reading and acting out excerpts from other celebrities’ autobiographies.
James A. Walker (’73) is among a selection of composers whose work was adopted by the Insight Timer platform, a free and highly rated app for meditation, sleep, anxiety, and mindfulness. Walker is the former director of Humanitas, an online platform dedicated to offering resources for enhancing spiritual presence, and is cofounder of Oasis of the Heart, an interspiritual ministry.
Tony Beadle (’74) retired after a career in symphony orchestra management. After receiving a fellowship from the League of American Orchestras, he held positions in several American orchestras, including the Oregon Symphony, the Atlanta Symphony, and the Boston Symphony. In 2010, he became the president and CEO of the Shalin Liu Performance Center in Rockport, Mass. Beadle’s 2025 memoir, My Father, the Father: A Memoir of Love and Double Lives (Archway Publishing), chronicled his secretive upbringing by Ralph Gallagher, a well-known parish priest, and his mother.
Lesley Cohen (’74) participated in Draw a Line, a December group exhibition at Storefront Art Projects in Watertown, Mass., with artists Sand T. Kalloch and Christine Kyle. Cohen’s practice uses charcoal and pastels to make layered marks that join together to form “a fragmented whole.”
Alfre Woodard (’74, Hon.’04) and Geena Davis (’79, Hon.’99) costarred in The Boroughs, a supernatural series from the Duffer Brothers Productions that premiered on Netflix in May 2026. The show was set in a picturesque New Mexico retirement community, where paradise quickly turned into something far more sinister. Woodard played Judy, a sharp-witted former journalist, while Davis played Renee; the two appeared alongside an ensemble cast that included Clarke Peters, Denis O’Hare, and Bill Pullman.
David Copeland (’75), an actor and a stunt double, was featured in a Canadian publication celebrating the 47th anniversary of Walter Hill’s 1979 film The Warriors. Copeland played Pelly, a foot soldier in the Electric Eliminators gang.
Tracy Burtz (’78) presented her solo show What She Knows at The Painting Center in New York, N.Y., in March of 2026.
Howard Kolins (’78) was production supervisor for the 79th Annual Tony Awards. In addition, Kolins produced Brooklyn’s oldest and largest street festival, the Atlantic Antic Festival, for the fifth time. Kolins’ other roles include show-calling business productions for corporate meetings and special events
David Lebow (’78) unveiled Supernatural, a new series of oil paintings that blur the line between classical realism and the uncanny. Rooted in academic tradition, Lebow conjures images that feel timeless yet dreamlike, weaving narratives where beauty collides with strangeness and the everyday world slips into the otherworldly.
Marsha Goldberg (’79) was featured in Gesture and Grid, a two-person exhibition with artist Jill Scipione, which ran from February to March 2026 at the Fine Arts Gallery at Saint Peter’s University in Jersey City, N.J.
Edward Wierzbicki (’79, COM’90) was the producer of Healing Powers, a 2025 film that captured the collaborative efforts of mental health professionals and creative artists to advance life-changing therapy while deepening our understanding of trauma’s impact on youth.
1980s
Julia Shepley (’80) presented her artworks in three recent exhibitions, The Long View: Women Artists in the Studio at the Suffolk University Gallery; Traces and Transitions: Henry Ferreira/JuliaShepley at the Wheeler School’s Chazan Gallery; and Return, a Boston Sculptors Gallery alumni exhibition. Shepley’s photographic works use sculptural shadowboxes and feature traces of representative imagery to reference shifting layers of sensory experience, struggle, and resilience.
Thomas Vegh (’80) published his play Elision Or An Unrequited Survivor, which follows the story of Ardy, an actor whose downward spiral is marked by the threat of homelessness, alcoholism, drugs, and sexual addiction. Set in San Francisco in the 1990s, the story features a lot of laughs along the way of Ardy’s unraveling.
Jason Alexander (’81, Hon.’95) directed a production of Stephen Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street starring Will Swenson and Lesli Margherita. The show ran from January through February 2026 at La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts. In April, he directed Fault at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, which ran through May 2026. Also in May, he joined David Hyde Pierce, Lucie Arnaz, and Dan Bucatinsky in a script-in-hand production of Larry Gelbart’s Better Late, directed by five-time Tony Award winner Susan Stroman, as part of the Plaza Theatre’s rePLAY series in Palm Springs.
George Hagerty (’82,’84) started a new position as director of museum operations at the Rhode Island School of Art & Design Museum. In this role, Hagerty oversees the facilities and security departments.
Julianne Moore (’83) narrated The New Yorker at 100, a documentary exploring how the magazine’s definitive features—its investigative journalism, distinctive literary fiction, critical essays, and wry cartoons—shaped cultural discourse over the last century. Moore also received Kering’s Women in Motion Award at the Cannes Film Festival in May of 2026. The award honors her body of work and long-standing commitment to advancing meaningful representation on- and off-screen. Previous recipients of the award included Nicole Kidman, Jane Fonda, Viola Davis, Michelle Yeoh, and Salma Hayek Pinault.
Michael Chiklis (’85) headlined The Creative Coalition’s annual Night Before Dinner gala in April of 2026 and chaired its 2026 Capitol Hill delegation. He was joined by fellow performers, including Tim Daly, Wendie Malick, Pamela Adlon, Zachary Levi, Iain Armitage, William Stanford Davis, Asher Grodman, Rob Morrow, Rebecca Wisocky, and Jazz Raycole. The evening featured a live performance by The Creative Coalition’s Jam Band and was supported by a bipartisan US congressional host committee, reflecting the nonprofit organization’s ongoing advocacy work around federal arts funding, journalism, and free expression through initiatives such as its #RightToBearArts campaign.
1990s
Stasi Schaeffer (’92) directed the world premiere of Flora, a new musical based on the life of Scottish Jacobite heroine Flora MacDonald. The show premiered at Eden Court Theatre in Inverness, Scotland, before moving to the pavilion theatre in Glasgow.
Eric Peterson (’95) is cocreator of Skillsville, an animated television series for kids ages four through eight, developed with funding from the US Department of Education’s Ready to Learn program. Since its debut, Skillsville has earned more than 63 million streams across PBS KIDS platforms. The series was also honored with four 2025 Telly Awards, recognizing excellence in television and gaming, and was named a finalist for the 2025 Anthem Awards.
Georgia Jarman (BUTI’92,’93, CFA’97) (below, center), Daniel Brenna (’98,’00), and Sarah Zieba (’24) performed in Festen, a one-act opera with music by Mark-Anthony Turnage and libretto by Lee Hall. The production ran at the Finnish National Opera from March to May of 2026.
Dana Clancy (’99), a CFA associate professor of art, painting, had her work featured in Passages, a solo exhibition on view at Alpha Gallery in Boston in May of 2026. The show, composed of Clancy’s paintings and works on paper, examined the passage of time, cycles of nature, and the daily rhythms of our lives, and was crafted in response to her recent artist residency at the Blue Hill Observatory.
Melanie Muradian (’99) is artistic administrator for the Seattle Symphony, where she focuses on artistic planning for symphonic and classical music programming that spans three performance venues. In addition, she was the curator, commissioner, and host of its new and experimental music series in the state-of-the-art immersive venue known as Octave 9 Raisbeck Music Center. Muradian was thrilled to partner with the Seattle Symphony’s new music director, conductor Xian Zhang, who in 2025 made history as the first woman to become the music director of a major West Coast orchestra.
2000s
Ginnifer Goodwin (’01) (pictured below, center left) reprised her role as Judy Hopps in Zootopia 2, released in theaters in November 2025. Fellow Terrier Peter Del Vecho (’80) served in studio leadership for the film’s production.
Liliane Klein (’02) was cast in the role of Frankie in Frankie & Johnny in the Clair de Lune at The Gamm Theatre in Warwick, R.I., in November of 2025. She was also cast as Kate in The Cripple of Inishmaan, also at the Gamm Theatre, in spring of 2026. In 2027, she will appear—and do her own stunts—in F.A.S.T., a Warner Bros. action thriller directed by Ben Richardson and written by Taylor Sheridan.
Kayla Mohammadi (’02) participated in Home, a group exhibition at the Barry Whistler Gallery in Dallas, Tex.
Bonnie Discepolo (’03) directed Neo-Dome, a short film starring Anna Camp. The 15-minute sci-fi adventure premiered at the 2024 SXSW Film & TV Festival, where it won the Independent TV Pilot Audience Award. It also qualified for Academy Award consideration in the Best Live Action Short Film category.
Rose Drucker (’04), Daniel Doña (’05,’09), Heather Braun (BUTI’01,’02, CFA’08,’13), and Agnes Kim (’10) (pictured), members of the Arneis Quartet and faculty at the CFA School of Music, presented their 2025–2026 season finale featuring music by Joseph Haydn, Caroline Shaw, and Ludwig van Beethoven. Braun is a lecturer in string literature and performance, Drucker and Kim are lecturers in performance, and Doña is a senior lecturer in performance.
Lisa Flanagan (’04,’09) had her opera libretto, Threshold of Brightness, performed by West Edge Opera and reviewed in the San Francisco Chronicle.
Coleen Scott (’04) received tenure at Santa Rosa Junior College, where she heads the costume design, technology, and makeup programs for its departments of theater and fashion.
David Rufino (’05) was elected president of the Boston Musicians Association, Local 9-535, of the American Federation of Musicians.
Vasiliy Medved (’08,’09) was one of the finalists in Ablaze Records’ International Call for Scores, winning the opportunity to record his triptych for strings, The Three Graces, among the works of his colleagues, with the Brno Philharmonic Orchestra in Czechia. The recording of The Three Graces took place in May of 2026, with Mikel Toms as conductor, and appears on Ablaze Records’ Orchestral Masters Volume 12.
Chaerin Kim (’09) performed with the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Venezuela in May of 2025 where she played Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and her own harp concerto, Rendezvous. The performance marked the first time in music history that a soloist had performed two concertos on two different instruments—harp and piano—with an orchestra on the same stage. Kim was also named a Recording Academy voting member in 2025
2010s
Brian August (’10) is celebrating his seventh season as stage manager for the Houston Grand Opera, where he assisted with Francesca Zambello’s production of Porgy and Bess. August continues to serve on the American Guild of Musical Artists as one of its national vice presidents.
Paul Tate dePoo III (’10) was nominated for a 2026 Olivier Award for Best Set Design for the Tony Award–winning musical The Great Gatsby, in its London run. The Broadway production launched a US tour in January of 2026.
Kate Bancroft (’11) had her contemporary still lifes and sculpture featured in Crying in the Mirror, a solo exhibition at Tappeto Volante in New York, N.Y., from March through May 2026.
Nikki DiLoreto (’12) directed The Last Podcast on Earth, which held a staged reading in March of 2026 at the Elysian Theater in Los Angeles, Calif. A dark comedy written by and starring Kaley Ronayne (’12) alongside Will Madden (’14), the production is an exploration of late-stage capitalism, influencer culture, and messy female friendship. The reading also served as a fundraiser for CHIRLA, one of California’s largest immigrant rights organizations. DiLoreto is a theatrical director, producer, mentor, and performance coach. Her previous projects include the Tony Award–winning musical SIX, for which she was associate director.
Sydney Lemmon (’12) appeared as Lauren Bessette, sister of Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, in the highly anticipated FX series Love Story: John F. Kennedy Jr. & Carolyn Bessette.
Brian Stanton (’12) was appointed to Bakersfield College’s full-time faculty as an associate professor of art.
Laurel (Weatherby) Larivee (’13) had her design selected as the winner of the inaugural Heirloom Marriage Certificate Design contest for the state of New Hampshire. Couples married in New Hampshire now have the option to purchase a keepsake item featuring Larivee’s watercolor painting of Mount Washington. Larivee teaches art, with a focus in painting, at Winnacunnet High School.
Juan Carlos Vega (’13) was appointed a member of the Fideicomiso Pablo Casals (Pablo Casals Trust) by Puerto Rico Governor Jenniffer González-Colón. In his new role, Vega contributes to initiatives that safeguard Casals’ legacy while inspiring future generations of musicians and cultural leaders. Vega also contributes to Make Music Happen, a nonprofit organization in Puerto Rico that nurtures young musical talent.
Martin Wittenberg (’13) is director of Intermusica New York, the American office of one of the world’s foremost artist management companies. In his role, Wittenberg manages a roster of established and emerging conductors and soloists; oversees the company’s North American touring; and works with institutions such as Carnegie Hall, the Metropolitan Opera, and all major North American orchestras.
Matisse Haddad (’15) earned the top spot on the 2025 Black List, an influential annual list of Hollywood’s top unproduced screenplays, for her screenplay Best Seller.
Evan Morse (’15) and Taylor Apostol (’15) had their work featured in Here and Gone, a two-person exhibition of their recent plaster and stone sculptures, at ArtsWorcester from January to March 2026.
Matthew Corcoran (’16), a tenor, appeared in the Academy Award–winning film The Singers, which tied with Two People Exchanging Saliva for Best Live Action Short Film at the 2026 ceremony.
Chengcheng Ma (’17,’25) made his New York solo piano debut in January of 2026 with a sold-out recital at the Kaufman Music Center’s Merkin Hall. The performance drew an audience of approximately 500 and received critical coverage from New York Classical Review and Blogcritics, including a concert review and an artist interview.
Erin Price-Hamilton (’17,’23) published “Music Teacher Experiences of Trauma Sequelae in the Elementary General Music Classroom: A Case Study” in Music Education Research. The article was based on her dissertation.
Kaitlyn Leahy (’18,’24) published “The Effect of Music Familiarity on Preschoolers’ Heart Rate during Musical Engagement: Preliminary Report” in Frontiers in Psychology: Auditory Cognitive Neuroscience. The article was coauthored by Jack Carbaugh (GRS’23) and Diane Dansereau, CFA associate professor and chair of music education.
Hannah Beebe (’19) and Rosalind Bevan (’19) formed a producing collective, The Rebel & The Warrior, which is now in an artistic residence at Sanguine Theatre Company, a New York–based theater company led by Sarah Boess (’19) and cofounded by Jillian Robertson (’19). The Rebel & The Warrior kicked off its inaugural production in Los Angeles with the premiere of Louis Reyes McWilliams’ chaotic and heartfelt romantic comedy How to Have Sex Again. Other alums involved in the production included Boess, Hannah Solomon (’19), Ben Swimmer (‘19), and Ken Yotsukura (’22).
2020s
Jacob Schnitzer (’20) (pictured) was named music director of the Gateway Chamber Orchestra for its 2025–2026 season. Schnitzer shapes GCO’s artistic vision by leading programming, performances, and community initiatives. The orchestra is composed of leading symphony players, recording musicians, and college faculty from throughout Nashville and Clarksville, Tenn., where Schnitzer is also director of orchestral activities at Austin Peay State University. He also continued working in Austin, Tex., for his ninth season as artistic director of Density512, the city’s leading chamber orchestra and new-music collective.
Camryn Connolly (’21) hosted Lonely Table, a group exhibition, also featuring Annika Earley and Julia Cheng, at Gallery 263 in Cambridge, Mass., from November to December 2025.
Zhen Wang (’22,’25) joined the faculty of Tarrant County College as an instructor in piano and clarinet performance in spring 2026.
Bryan Ping (’23), a cellist, won a position with Miami’s New World Symphony.
Johnny Mok (BUTI’10, CFA’24) won the principal cello seat in the Boston Festival Orchestra in February of 2026.
Tommy Vines (’24) founded Breaking Motion LLC, a film, television, and theater production company, in 2025. Under Breaking Motion, Vines wrote, starred in, created, and produced the scripted series Interloper, which has a tentative release date in late 2026. Breaking Motion is also producing an off-off-Broadway play, How to Put Down the Weight of Your Past. Vines wrote and starred in the production, which ran at the American Mime Theatre in summer of 2026. Vines also appears in It’s Always Almost Over, a feature film that premiered at the New York CineFest in April of 2026.
Kevin A. Virgilio (’24) continues to share his research on early 20th-century Danish solo trombone repertoire. Developed as a lecture recital at BU, his work has since appeared in the July 2025 issue of the International Trombone Association Journal and has been presented at the Scandinavian Cultural Center and Library, at Keene State University, and at the 2026 Society for the Advancement of Scandinavian Studies conference.
Jonathan Legere (’25,’27) won first place and the Best Performance of a Contemporary Composition award at the James Pappoutsakis Memorial Flute Competition. His prizes included $3,000, free studio recording time, and a recital performance.
Cassandra McDonald (’25) teaches a cohort of 21 students in trumpet lessons and ensembles at Tennessee Technological University. She also serves as faculty advisor for Mariachi Los Dorados de TN Tech.
Rodolfo Mireles-Manzano (’25) won the principal clarinet seat in the Sarasota Opera Orchestra.
Siqing Shen (’25) won an associate principal cello seat in the Ningbo Symphony Orchestra in Zhejiang, China.
Share Your Story
CFA alums: we want to hear what you’ve been up to. Send us your news and photos at bu.edu/cfa/share-your-story, and we may include your story on our channels, or in an upcoming CFA magazine Class Notes!
This Series
Also in
Class Notes
-
June 18, 2025
Class Notes
-
December 21, 2024
Class Notes
-
May 26, 2024
Class Notes