Suri Noelle is keeping her attention on the stage as her new name draws fresh public interest. The 20-year-old daughter of Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise was photographed smiling outside the Trust Arts Education Center in downtown Pittsburgh on Saturday, August 1, as per photos obtained by Page Six. The outing marked her first public sighting since voter records revealed that she had changed her surname from Cruise to Noelle, according to the outlet.
Suri Noelle Seen Outside Pittsburgh Theater
Suri appeared relaxed as she spoke with someone outside the venue, wearing a patterned purple tank top, white pants and black flats.
She had spent Friday and Saturday performing in two presentations of Midsummer! at the center’s Peirce Studio with classmates from Carnegie Mellon University.
Suri Cruise Prepares for Edinburgh Festival Fringe
The Pittsburgh performances served as a preview before the students take Midsummer! to Scotland for the 2026 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The production is scheduled to run daily at the Bijou from Aug. 6 through Aug. 19. Suri is studying musical theater at Carnegie Mellon’s School of Drama, according to TMZ.
Her interest in acting began well before college. In 2023, she played Morticia Addams in her high school production of The Addams Family: A New Musical. The latest project gives her an opportunity to perform for an international audience while continuing her training.
Why Suri Now Uses the Name Suri Noelle
Suri first attracted attention for using Noelle in the program for her June 2024 graduation from LaGuardia High School in New York City. Noelle is Holmes’ middle name.
Voter registration records obtained by People showed that she registered in Allegheny County under the name Suri Noelle in October 2024, during her freshman year at Carnegie Mellon. Those records indicate that Noelle is now her legal surname, though it remains unclear when and where the change was completed.
The decision has been widely viewed as a tribute to Holmes, who primarily raised Suri following her 2012 divorce from Cruise. Neither Suri nor her parents has publicly explained the change.
Katie Holmes Supports Suri’s New Chapter
GettyA source told Page Six that Holmes was not surprised by her daughter’s choice and respected the time she took to reach it. The actress reportedly did not encourage the change but supports Suri in making decisions that feel right for her.
Holmes has rarely discussed her daughter publicly, but she spoke warmly about Suri leaving for college in a 2024 interview with Town & Country.
“I’m proud of my daughter,” Holmes said. “Of course, I will miss the close proximity, but I’m really proud of her and I’m happy.”
Holmes has also emphasized the importance of protecting Suri’s privacy after she spent much of her childhood under intense media attention.
Suri and Cruise have not been photographed together publicly in more than a decade, as per a Metro report.
For Suri, the weekend appearance reflected a life increasingly shaped by college, theater and choices made on her own terms. Her next stop will place that work on one of the world’s best-known festival stages.
