Gift Will Create Drollinger Stage at Lawton Plaza
UNIVERSITY ADVANCEMENT | Loyola Marymount University’s College of Communication and Fine Arts has received $1.5 million from the Drollinger Family Charitable Foundation to create a modern outdoor performance stage to be located on Robert B. Lawton Plaza. In honor of the family’s generosity, it will be named the Drollinger Stage.
“We are grateful to the Drollinger family for their longtime philanthropy and for being champions of Loyola Marymount University,” said President Timothy Law Snyder, Ph.D. “Their vision has fostered the growth of our campus and has fueled the vitalization of the Westchester community. In naming the Drollinger Stage, we honor the family’s commitment to our symbiotic communities.”
In addition to live theatrical and dance events, music concerts, and public lectures, the Drollinger Stage will become the permanent home of the annual Shakespeare on the Bluff Festival. Led by CFA’s Theatre Arts Department, Shakespeare on the Bluff is open to the community and is the only free outdoor Shakespeare festival in the area.
“LMU’s College of Communication and Fine Arts is committed to providing students with a humanistic, liberal arts education that nurtures creative expression and dynamic thinking as critical components to educating the whole person,” said Bryant Keith Alexander, Ph.D., dean of CFA and professor of communication and performance studies. “The addition of the Drollinger Stage offers our students a unique outdoor performance opportunity, and shares that experience with our surrounding community.”
“My father, Howard Drollinger, was dedicated to serving this community, which included Loyola Marymount University,” said Karen Dial, president of Drollinger Properties and president of the Drollinger Family Charitable Foundation, and member of the LMU Board of Trustees. “My brother Jim (’81) and I, along with our families, are proud to continue his tradition of philanthropy and community partnerships.”
