While Emily Vitrano spends her weekdays championing the arts for the United Performing Arts Fund, much of her free time is devoted to advocating for the arts from the stage.
Vitrano, development specialist at UPAF, is an actress for local theater company Splinter Group, among other area theater troupes, and a teacher for First Stage’s Summer Theater Academy.
Vitrano’s stage roots run deep. She committed much of her childhood in Wauwatosa and Hartland to dance, singing and theater.
“I honestly can’t remember a time where I wasn’t part of the arts in some regard,” she said.
After pursuing theater at University of North Carolina at Greensboro, Vitrano joined scores of hopeful actors in New York City for a two-year run of countless auditions and freelance opportunities.
Upon her return home, she discovered a vibrant arts scene in Milwaukee and a level of access to major arts organizations that other cities do not boast.
“It’s exciting,” Vitrano said of Milwaukee arts. “I think that a lot of our organizations are doing really new and exciting work. They’re pushing the envelope and stretching our audiences.”
