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A countdown on the television in the Schine Underground commenced, cameras in the back began to roll, and the lights turned on. At 6 p.m., Heather Dubrow walked down an aisle and toward the stage in a black bandage dress. Her hair shined, and her makeup looked expertly applied. She wore a big white smile fit for reality TV. 

“Nice to see you all,” Dubrow said to the crowd of about 90 people. 

Dubrow, College of Visual and Performing Arts alumna who has appeared on “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” returned to campus Thursday evening for the first time since graduating in 1990 to tape a live recording of her podcast “Heather Dubrow’s World.” The alumna’s podcast has over 100 million downloads, and this is the first time she’s recorded with an in-person crowd in three years due to the pandemic, she said.

Since graduating as a musical theater major, Dubrow has appeared in shows such as “Hawaii Five-0,” “Jenny” and “That’s Life.” The alumna also owns a skincare and supplement line called Consult Beaute with her husband Terry Dubrow, a plastic surgeon and fellow reality TV-star. The alumna, who she said was named “most likely to be famous” in high school, spoke to the audience about her struggles at SU and her career successes since graduating.  

For her first visit back to SU since graduating, Dubrow’s family joined her and watched from the front row. She opened the podcast expressing how great it was to be back on campus. 

“This is our first show in almost three years because of the pandemic, and it is phenomenal to see half your faces,” Dubrow said. “You look amazing.”

Halfway through her 40-minute live show, Dubrow welcomed special guest Ashley Iaconetti on the television screen. Iaconetti, a 2013 Newhouse master’s alumna and former “The Bachelor” contestant, joined over Zoom for a question and answer segment. 

After attending graduate school at SU with a focus in broadcast journalism, Iaconetti used “The Bachelor” as a platform to launch her career in media and entertainment coverage. It was what she planned to do with her Syracuse University degree all along, she said. 

Though she’s made a career of portraying a picture-perfect and Instagrammable life, Dubrow did not shy away from sharing that at times her SU experience was anything but.

“I really lost myself and found myself here,” Dubrow said. “I showed up here and folded into myself in a way I hadn’t before.”

But it wasn’t until Dubrow won the title of “Miss Syracuse” in 1989 that she figured out what she wanted her life to look like. During the pageant process, she learned public speaking skills and the importance of staying up to date on current events. 

Now as her oldest twin sons begin the college application process, with SU as a prospect, Dubrow said she encourages them to follow their hearts and stay faithful that it will all work out in the end.

“It’s great to have dreams and goals and life plans, but you have to listen to the universe, you have to pivot,” she said at the end of the podcast. “Ages come in stages. Enjoy it, live it to the fullest.”  

Published on September 24, 2021 at 12:34 pm