Emily Anabeth Hoolihan

Emily has found the perfect job for putting her Theatre major and her double-minors in Music and Jewish Studies to use — at the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene, in Battery Park City, New York, where she’s been working for the past nine months.

“NYTF has been the perfect fit with my Muhlenberg education,” she says. “I began as an unpaid intern and now, after much perseverance and a bit of luck, I’m the lead Development Manager for the company. I work closely with our donors and board members, raising money for our programming.

“Over the past few months, I’ve been working to raise support for our largest production yet — the U.S. premiere of Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish. I have also performed with them as an actor, most recently in The Sorceress, a restored operetta in Yiddish by Avram Goldfaden, this past December.

“As I grew with this company, I realized I wanted to take my passion for music, Judaism, and artistry a step further. On June 4, 2018, I am moving to Jerusalem to begin my journey towards becoming a Cantor in the Reform movement of Judaism. I was accepted to Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion in March for their Cantorial Studies program. The program is one year in Israel and four in New York City. I can’t wait to continue my education and to share my love of artistry and Judaism with the world — and Muhlenberg’s Theatre & Dance Department encouraged my passion for both.”