Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) is a non-profit professional theatre located in Lowell, Massachusetts, USA. Known for its productions of contemporary work and world premieres, the company presents a September - May season of seven plays at the Nancy L. Donahue Theatre in the historic Liberty Hall, a 279-seat theatre located adjacent to the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. MRT is the only professional theatre company in the Merrimack Valley region of Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and one of three League of Resident Theatres (LORT) members in Massachusetts.
MRT operates under the leadership of the Nancy L. Donahue Executive Artistic Director Courtney Sale
History Merrimack Repertory Theatre was co-founded in 1979 by Barabara Abrahamian, John Briggs and Mark Kaufman, who had met while working at a New Hampshire summer stock theatre (where a young Michael Chiklis, a Lowell native who went on to appear in several MRT productions before moving on to a film career, was appearing in a production of Bye Bye Birdie). They conceived the idea of a professional non-profit theatre company in Lowell and formed the Committee for Legitimate Theatre in Lowell.
The company was incorporated as Merrimack Regional Theatre on February 1, 1979. MRT's first venue was Mahoney Hall at the University of Lowell (now University of Massachusetts Lowell). Its first production, The Passion of Dracula, opened on October 23, 1979. Nancy Donahue assumed presidency of the company. Kaufman and Briggs were the theatre's first producing artistic directors.
Dan Schay was hired as producing artistic director in 1982 and, in 1983, the company moved to its current location at Liberty Hall, changing its name to Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Schay produced MRT's first world premiere (Jack Neary's First Night) in 1987, and has been succeeded by David Kent (1989-2001), Charles Towers (2001-2015) and Sean Daniels (2015–present).
In 2012, the theatre underwent an extensive $750,000 renovation. Improvements included wider seats with more legroom (the overall number of seats was reduced from 309 to 279), a refurbished theatre lobby and concession area, and a larger, more accessible box office.Nancye Tuttle, "Audience comfort is the star in Merrimack Repertory Theatre’s top-to-bottom renovation", The Sun (Lowell), 30 August 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2020. The theatre was named in honor of founder Donahue.
+ Artistic leadership Name Years served Mark Kaufman & John R. Briggs 1979-1982 Dan Schay 1982-1989 David Kent 1989-2001 Charles Towers 2001-2015 Sean Daniels 2015–present
+ Executive leadership Name Years served Tom Parrish 2005-2011 Steven Leon 2011-2013 Elizabeth Kegley 2013–2017
Notable productions Bob Hall & David Richmond's The Passion of Dracula (1979, dir. Mark Kaufman), MRT's first production. Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol was produced for 11 consecutive seasons, from 1983 to 1993. Jack Neary's First Night (1987, dir. Joan Courtney Murray), MRT's first world premiere. The Lowell Trilogy, a set of three works by the playwright Jon Lipsky, ran from 1992 to 1994. The trilogy includes Lipsky's original play Living in Exile (first presented at Boston's TheaterWorks), plus adaptations of Kerouac's Maggie Cassidy (Maggie's Riff) and Haing S. Ngor's Cambodian Odyssey (The Survivor: A Cambodian Odyssey). Bob Clyman's Secret Order (November 2007, dir. Charles Towers), was the first MRT production to make an Off-Broadway transfer. The world premiere staged reading of Lowell native Jack Kerouac's only play, Beat Generation (2012, dir. Charles Towers), in partnership with UMass Lowell. (The script had been uncovered in a New Jersey warehouse in 2005.)"MRT and UMass Lowell to Present World Premiere of Kerouac's Only Full-Length Play", UMASS Lowell press release, 12 March 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2020. Michael Golamco's Year Zero (September 2014, dir. Kyle Fabel), brought several partnerships between MRT and organizations in Lowell's Cambodian-American community (the second-largest in the United States). Among these partners was the Angkor Dance Troupe (subject of the 2004 documentary Monkey Dance), which now regularly uses MRT's performance space in Liberty Hall.Nancye Tuttle, "Merrimack Repertory Theatre kicks off series with a play suited to open in Lowell", The Sun (Lowell), 11 September 2014. Retrieved 12 February 2020. The Lion, singer-songwriter Benjamin Scheuer's award-winning musical memoir (also directed by Daniels), launched its national tour from MRT in August 2015, following runs in New York and London. Lauren Gunderson's I and You (October 2015, dir. Sean Daniels), which follows two teenagers on one night as they work through a school assignment on Walt Whitman's Leaves of Grass, was praised by The Boston Globe, which called it "Funny and moving by turns... suffused with a warmth that does not cloy, an intimacy that does not stifle, and a wit that connects it all together."Don Aucoin, "Warmth, wit, and Whitman in Merrimack Rep's "I and You'", The Boston Globe, 20 October 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2020. The production ran Off-Broadway at 59E59 Theatres in January 2016.Rob Weinert-Kendt, "Lauren Gunderson on ‘I and You,’ a Play With an Explosive Twist", The New York Times, 6 January 2016. Retrieved 12 February 2020. Sean Daniels’ The White Chip (January 2016, dir. Sheryl Kaller), a dark comedy stage memoir about the MRT artistic director's recovery from alcoholism, produced by the five-time Tony nominee Tom Kirdahy. Free admission was offered to individuals in recovery from addiction, sponsored by the local recovery organizations Lowell House, Megan's House and Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery.
Production history https://mrt.org/about-mrt/production-history 2006-07 season Augusta by Richard Dresser, directed by Charles Towers Aunt Dan & Lemon by Wallace Shawn, directed by Melia Bensussen Completely Hollywood (abridged) by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor, directed by the Reduced Shakespeare Company Trying by Joanna McClelland Glass, directed by Kyle Fabel Dinah Was by Oliver Goldstick, directed by Charles Towers Syncopation by Allan Knee, directed by Maggie Mancinelli-Cahill Secret Order by Bob Clyman, directed by Charles Towers
2007-08 season The Pursuit of Happiness by Richard Dresser, directed by Charles Towers Tunney/Shakespeare in Six Rounds by David E. Lane (world premiere) 2 Pianos 4 Hands by Ted Dykstra and Richard Greenblatt, directed by Richard Greenblatt The Missionary Position by Keith Reddin, directed by Tracy Brigden A Delicate Balance by Edward Albee, directed by Charles Towers The Four of Us by Itamar Moses, directed by Kyle Fabel (world premiere)
2008-09 season The Fantasticks by Tom Jones and Harvey Schmidt, directed by Jonathan Silverstein and John Bell Skylight by David Hare, directed by Charles Towers A View of the Harbor by Richard Dresser, directed by Charles Towers Tranced by Bob Clyman, directed by Charles Towers Bad Dates by Theresa Rebeck, directed by Adrianne Krystansky A Moon for the Misbegotten by Eugene O'Neill, directed by Edward Morgan
2009-10 season Flings & Eros by the Flying Karamazov Brothers, directed by Paul magid (world premiere) The Seafarer by Conor McPherson, directed by Charles Towers Heroes by Gerald Sibleyras, adapted by Tom Stoppard, directed by Carl Forsman Fabuloso by John Kolvenbach, directed by Kyle Fabel Black Pearl Sings! by Frank Higgins, directed by Benny Ambush The Last Days of Mickey & Jean by Richard Dresser, directed by Charles Towers (World Premiere) The Blonde, the Brunette and the Vengeful Redhead by Robert Hewlett, directed by Melia Bensussen
2010-11 season The Complete World of Sports (abridged) by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor, directed by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor Four Places by Joel Drake Johnson, directed by Charles Towers Beasley's Christmas Party by C.W. Munger, directed by Carl Forsman Tryst by Karoline Leach, directed by Joe Brancato The Exceptionals by Bob Clyman, directed by Charles Towers (world premiere) Two Jews Walk Into a War... by Seth Rozin, directed by Melia Bensussen A Picasso by Jeffrey Hatcher, directed by Charles Towers
2011-12 season The Persian Quarter by Kathleen Cahill, directed by Kyle Fabel This Verse Business by A.M. Dolan, directed by Gus Kaikkonen The Ultimate Christmas Show (abridged) by Reed Martin & Austin Tichenor, directed by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor The Voice of the Turtle by John Van Druten, directed by Carl Forsman Daddy Long Legs by Paul Gordon & John Caird, directed by John Caird Mrs. Whitney by John Kolvenbach, directed by Kyle Fabel Ghost-Writer by Michael Hollinger, directed by John Kolvenbach
2012-13 season Homestead Crossing by William Donnelly, directed by Kyle Fabel (world premiere) Beat Generation (staged reading) by Jack Kerouac, directed by Charles Towers (World Premiere) Memory House by Kathleen Tolan, directed by Melia Bensussen Half 'n Half 'n Half by John Kolvenbach, directed by Kyle Fabel Shakespeare's Will by Vern Thiessen, directed by Miles Potter Red by John Logan, directed by Charles Towers Proof by David Auburn, directed by Christian Parker Glengarry Glen Ross by David Mamet, directed by Charles Towers
2013-14 season God of Carnage by Yasmina Reza, directed by Kyle Fabel Mrs. Mannerly by Jeffrey Hatcher, directed by Mark Shanahan Stella and Lou by Bruce Graham, directed by Charles Towers The Devil's Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith by Angelo Para, directed by Joe Brancato Equally Divided by Ronald Harwood, directed by Charles Towers Talley's Folly by Lanford Wilson, directed by Kyle Fabel The Complete History of Comedy (abridged) by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor, directed by Reed Martin and Austin Tichenor
2014-15 season Year Zero by Michael Golamco, directed by Kyle Fabel Dusk Rings a Bell by Steven Belber, directed by Michael Bloom 13 Things About Ed Carpolott, book, music and lyrics by Barry Kleinbort, Based on a play by Jeffrey Hatcher, directed by Barry Kleinbort The Best Brothers by Daniel MacIvor, directed by Charles Towers Oceanside by Nick Gandiello, directed by Melia Bensussen (world premiere) Out of the City by Leslie Ayvazian, directed by Christian Parker The Outgoing Tide by Bruce Graham, directed by Charles Towers
2015-16 season The Lion by Benjamin Scheuer, directed by Sean Daniels I and You by Lauren Gunderson, directed by Sean Daniels It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play, adapted by Joe Landry, directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian The White Chip by Sean Daniels, directed by Sheryl Kaller Tinker to Evers to Chance by Mat Smart, directed by Sean Daniels The Realness: a break beat play by Idris Goodwin, directed by Wendy C. Goldberg
2016-17 season MRT’S 38th season focused on local stories, with three of the seven productions on New England themes. The seven plays were: 45 Plays for 45 Presidents by Andy Bayiates, Sean Benjamin, Genevra Gallo-Bayiates, Chloë Johnston, and Karen Weinberg, directed by Sean Daniels Abigail/1702 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, directed by Tlaloc Rivas Going to See the Kid by Steven Drukman, directed by Alexander Greenfield The Making of a Great Moment by Peter Sinn Nachtrieb, directed by Sean Daniels Women in Jeopardy! by Wendy MacLeod, directed by Sean Daniels Chill by Eleanor Burgess, directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian My 80-Year-Old Boyfriend, Conceived and performed by Charissa Bertels, book and lyrics by Christian Duhamel, music and lyrics by Edward Bell, directed by Sean Daniels
2017-18 season MRT’S 39th season consisted of the following seven shows: The Royale by Marco Ramirez, directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson, directed by Sean Daniels A Christmas Carol adapted by Tony Brown, directed by Megan Sandberg-Zakian KNYUM by Vichet Chum, directed by KJ Sanchez