Fairfield University, Fairfield Theatre Company Announce Arts And Education Partnership

FAIRFIELD, CT — Fairfield University and Fairfield Theatre Company have entered into a partnership that will connect the university with the nonprofit arts organization through educational and cultural programming.

Under the arrangement, Fairfield University will serve as FTC’s exclusive Arts and Education Partner. The partnership formalizes a relationship between the organizations that dates back more than 25 years.

In 2001, FTC restaged and presented three off-Broadway productions for its first season, which Fairfield University hosted at the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts on campus.

The partnership could lead to co-presentations, co-productions, educational opportunities and student involvement. It will also build on programming offered through the Quick Center and the Fairfield University Art Museum.

Students could have additional opportunities to work with professional artists and arts organizations outside the university, participate in the creation, presentation and promotion of cultural programming, and learn about arts leadership and nonprofit cultural production. The partnership also is intended to provide the public with access to additional cultural programming.

“This partnership is rooted in something Fairfield University has always believed: that education does not stop at the classroom door, and that the arts are among our most powerful ways of learning, imagining, questioning, connecting, and becoming more fully human,” University Provost Christine Siegel said. “We are thrilled to formalize our relationship with Fairfield Theatre Company in a way that creates new possibilities for our students, our faculty, our audiences, and our neighbors.”

The partnership also follows the development of the university’s Center for Arts & Minds and the appointment of Matt Malone as Fairfield University’s inaugural vice president for arts and culture, effective Oct. 19, 2026. Malone will lead the newly formed Division of Arts and Culture, coordinating artistic initiatives and public programming across the university.

“This really is a full-circle moment for Fairfield Theatre Company,” FTC Executive Director Patsy Fox said. “We remember the early days when a small group of people had a big idea: that Fairfield County deserved extraordinary theatre and that we could build something meaningful here. Fairfield University believed in that idea and gave us a place to begin. 25 years later, to formalize this relationship with the University in such a significant way, is incredibly exciting. It brings new visibility and prestige to FTC, but even more importantly, it creates opportunities to dream bigger about the productions, artists, educational experiences, and community connections we can create together.”

“Fairfield is fortunate to have arts leaders that are willing to be ambitious about the role arts and cultural programming can play in a community,” Siegel said. “This partnership is an invitation to imagine what becomes possible when we all start thinking about the cultural life we can build together.”