Tony Award-winning director and former Steppenwolf Theatre head Anna D. Shapiro has been tapped to lead Juilliard’s acting program.
Shapiro has been named the next Richard Rodgers dean and director of the drama division at the prestigious school, taking over starting in July 2027. She succeeds Evan Yionoulis, who ended her tenure at the end of the 2026 academic year to become the new dean of the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale.
Shapiro comes to the role after serving on the faculty of Northwestern University since 2002, where she leads the graduate directing program.
She also served as the artistic director of Steppenwolf Theatre Company in Chicago from 2015 to 2021. She has directed several Broadway productions, including winning the 2008 Tony Award for August: Osage County, and earning a Tony nomination for The Motherf**ker with the Hat. Her Broadway directing credits also include last season’s Eureka Day, Of Mice and Men, Fish in the Dark, The Minutes and This Is Our Youth.
Shapiro is a graduate of the Yale School of Drama and Columbia College. She most recently directed Eric Bentley’s Are You Now or Have You Ever Been, which ended its run at New York City Center earlier this month.
“Anna is among the theater’s most respected artists,” said Juilliard President Damian Woetzel. “She brings exceptional creative leadership, clarity of educational purpose, and an unwavering belief in the power of artists to shape culture. We are thrilled to welcome Anna as the next Richard Rodgers Dean and Director of Juilliard Drama. She is a singular presence in the field, deeply respected by her peers, connected to the most vital creative work, and passionate about preparing the next generation to lead with imagination and purpose.”
“It is such an honor to join the incredible community of faculty, staff, and students at Juilliard,” Shapiro said. “To be asked to add my voice to the leadership of this storied American institution, in a moment where the cultivation of our next major cultural voices is so critical, is a responsibility I do not enter into lightly. I am thrilled and humbled and ready, I cannot wait to begin.”
Shapiro will begin meeting with students, faculty, and staff in September. Her full-time tenure will officially begin July 1, 2027.
In the interim, Ara Guzelimian, who was provost at Juilliard from 2007 to 2020, will serve as Richard Rodgers Dean and Director of the Drama Division for the upcoming year, alongside other faculty and alum including Laura Linney, who will serve as an artistic advisor to the drama division.
English (US) ·