Adeline Medalia

Adeline Gittlen Medalia, of Manhattan, passed away on March 28, 2026. She was 105 years old. Born in Grand Rapids, MI in 1921 she earned her bachelor degree from the University of Michigan and her doctorate from Wayne State University. Adeline was a passionate lover of theatre, as actress, director, and scholar. In the 1950s and 1960s, she was a jeune premiere member of the Will-O-Way Theatre’s repertoire company in Bloomfield Hills, MI, starring with, among others, George C. Scott. After receiving her doctorate, she joined the faculty of Oakland University in 1966, where she founded in 1972 the Communication and Theatre program, as the university’s first female department chair. With her erudite knowledge of the history of theater, she mounted creative productions from classical to modern. In addition to her faculty appointment, she endowed the Gittlen Scholarship Fund, which continues to support students to this day. After her retirement in 1986, she remained active in the theater, particularly in productions she staged in San Miguel del Allende. She is survived by her son, Lawrence A. Hirschfeld, six grandchildren, Julie, Alexandra, Tessa, Bruno, Theodore & Andrew, two great-grandchildren, Oscar & Micah, and three step-children, Alice, Litty, and Taizz Medalia. She was preceded in death by her first husband, Alexander H. Hirschfeld, MD, her second husband Nahum Medalia, and her son, Robert M. A. Hirschfeld, MD. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Oakland University, Rochester, MI.