Career advice is sometimes hard to find for graduate students hoping to make the world their stage, but for these aspiring actors, Dudley House hosted a forum last night with local theater directors.

Speaking to an intimate group of 20 people in Lehman Hall yesterday, the directors discussed their own experience working in Boston's theater community and gave tips to the students on how to get involved themselves.

The forum was conducted as a discussion, which caused participants to linger for over two hours. Sarah Wall, a first-year graduate student studying English, said she was impressed with the program.

"It was a really great opportunity to hear Boston theater professionals talk in a down-to-earth setting," Wall said.

The directors began by describing how they became interested in theater. The conversation quickly turned to the vitality of the Boston theater community.

"I'm very happy to be here when the Boston theater community is regaining its former glory," said Scott Edmiston, literary and artistic associate at the Huntington Theatre Company.

Edmiston described an exodus of acting companies from Boston during the 1980s, but expressed optimism that the city was regaining its prominence in the field.

Panelist Floyd Richardson, artistic director for the Koinonia Theatre, described the reason that so many companies disbanded.