2022 Alumni Achievement Award
There are many ways to describe College of Fine Arts graduate Tamara Tunie — actor, singer, performer, director, producer, coach, writer — but her favorite is “working.” From big Broadway musicals to independent films, she has built a more than 30-year entertainment career with preparation, persistence and perseverance.
Many people recognize Tamara from her 23 seasons on NBC’s long-running “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit” as medical examiner Melinda Warner. Other television credits include “Cowboy Bebop,” “Dietland” and “Black Earth Rising.” A Pittsburgh native, Tamara built her critically acclaimed career portraying remarkable characters in films such as “The Devil’s Advocate” and “Flight” and on stage in “American Son,” “The Tempest” and in the London premiere of “The 47th.” One of her earliest roles was portraying Jessica Griffin on the CBS daytime drama “As the World Turns,” where she was nominated for two NAACP Image Awards.
As she expanded her career, Tamara stepped behind the camera to become producer and director for the feature film "See You in September.” As a stage producer, Tamara was part of the team who brought forth the Tony Award-winning musical “Spring Awakening.” She also produced the Tony-Award nominated “Radio Golf,” penned by famed Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson, and “Magic/Bird.”
Along with her busy career, Tamara is committed to giving back. She is a founder of Black Theatre United and chair emerita of the Board of Directors of Figure Skating in Harlem, a nonprofit organization that supports academic excellence and instills life skills to girls in the Harlem community through the art and discipline of figure skating. She also serves on the Board of Directors of Harlem Stage and Pittsburgh’s City Theatre Company as well as the advisory board of Hearts of Gold, a nonprofit that supports New York City women and their children as they transition from the shelter system to permanent homes. In 2020, she was unanimously invited to join the CMU Board of Trustees.
In 2005, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg awarded Tamara the Made in New York Award honoring her support and commitment to film, television and theater in Manhattan.