Entertainment

New Rep Theatre Suspending Operations Citing Pandemic, Uncertainty About Performance Space

By |

Watertown-based New Repertory Theatre announced it will be suspending operations beginning July 21. The company based at the Mosesian Center for the Arts had to cancel the end of its 2019-2020 season and its entire 2020-21 season. It has put on a pair of moving plays in outdoor locations around Watertown. 

“As with many cultural institutions, the COVID-19 pandemic led to fiscal challenges for the New Repertory Theatre,” said the statement from New Rep, which was published by the Newton Needham Regional Chamber. Along with the pandemic, New Rep faces uncertainty about its stage space. 

“Additionally, our performance venue, the Mosesian Center for the Arts, is undergoing renovations, which adds to the COVID-related uncertainty we are already experiencing regarding mounting in-person performances in the near future. With these challenges in mind, the Board of Directors of the New Repertory Theatre has made the decision to suspend operations until we determine next steps for the organization,” the announcement said. 

New Rep will be making more announcements in the near future, the announcement said. “We have informed the staff of this decision and the reasons for the suspension.

Entertainment

New Rep’s Newest Play Takes Audiences on Tour of the History of Local Indigenous People

By |

Jennifer KavanaughSipu, played by Maria Hendricks, addresses the audience during a performance of New Rep Theatre’s “Listen to Sipu.” Looking on is Emma the tour guide, played by Grace Wagner. New Repertory Theater has brought live theater back to Watertown with its second Historical Moving Play, Listen to Sipu. The production focuses on the Indigenous people who lived on land that is now Watertown, looking at both their past and present. Listen to Sipu features what New Rep calls Indigenous culture-keepers: actors Maria Hendricks (Mashpee Wampanoag) and Grace Wagner (Wampanoag Tribe of Aquinnah), script writer Morgan (Mwalim) J. Peters (Mashpee Wampanoag), and directed by Jaime Carrillo (Aymara).

Entertainment

Watertown Children’s Theatre Presenting “The Laramie Project”

By |

The following information was provided by the Watertown Children’s Theatre:

Watertown Children’s Theatre at the Mosesian Center for the Arts presents The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman and the Tectonic Theater Project. In October 1998, Laramie, Wyoming was the site of a violent crime against a young man named Matthew Shepard. Moisés Kaufman and fellow members of the Tectonic Theater Project made six trips to Laramie over the course of a year and a half, in the aftermath of the violent attack and during the trial of the two young men accused of killing Shepard. Kaufman and Tectonic Theater members have constructed a deeply moving theatrical experience that explores the depths to which humanity can sink and the heights of compassion of which we are capable. In this online production, WCT features a cast of 9th-12th graders exploring what this story means for a new generation of performers and audiences over twenty years later.

Entertainment

New Rep Theatre Hosting Virtual Gala, Complimentary and Experience Tickets Available

By |

The following information came from New Repertory Theatre:

New Rep is thrilled to announce our 2021 gala:

“Technical Difficulties: A New Rep Gala ”

Our virtual gala will present electrifying performances, entertainment, and honorees with a digital twist, embracing the technological hiccups of the digital world with humor and joy. We’ll celebrate the resilience of our organization in an event that might not be free from glitches, but is guaranteed to be an evening of unforgettable fun. Virtual galas never feel quite the same as the real thing. We know this, you know this—there’s no use beating around the bush! Virtual galas never encompass the Gala experience….

Entertainment

New Rep Theatre Putting on Video Production of One-Woman Play, “Unveiled”

By |

The following announcement was provided by New Rep Theatre:

New Repertory Theatre presents a professional recording of Unveiled, a provocative one-woman show written, preformed, and recorded by Rohina Malik, to be shared digitally with New Rep audiences for a limited time only. Previously produced in cooperation with the Greater Boston Stage Company in New Rep’s Blackbox Theater in 2018, this beloved and important production can be viewed from the comfort and safety of your home between April 2-18, 2021. Tickets for this digital production will be on sale in mid-March. More information about Unveiled can be foundat https://www.newrep.org/productions/unveiled-digital/. “We are so thrilled to bring back the critically acclaimed New Rep favorite, Unveiled in arevived digital platform,” shares New Rep’s Communications Director, Jaclyn Dentino.

Anti-Bias Coalition

Upcoming One-Man Performance Part of Watertown Youth Coalition’s Diversity & Equity Series

By |

The Watertown Anti-Bias Coalition will host An Evening With Mykee Fowlin on Monday, March 15 from 6:30 to 8 p.m.

The performance is called “You Don’t Know Me Until You Know Me,” and will be held remotely over Zoom. It is part of a series of the Watertown Anti-Bias Coalition’s series addressing diversity and equity in the Watertown Schools. Fowlin describes it as:

“To varying degrees, we all wear masks. We are conditioned to hide our true selves, out of fear of being rejected and/or judged. We are taught to devalue or ignore our pain as if its utility is better served hidden than exposed.

Entertainment

New Rep Presents Virtual Romeo & Juliet for Schools, Community Groups

By |

Schools and community groups can view a recording of #RomeoJuliet, New Rep and Queen Mab Productions’ interpretation of one of Shakespeare’s classic plays. New Repertory Theatre and Queen Mab Productions present #RomeoJuliet, a raw and relevant 2-person interpretation of Shakespeare’s classic Romeo & Juliet, directed by Benjamin Evett and starring Diana Lobontiu and Sharmarke Yusuf. Considering our shared experiences of 2020, this production examines deeply the play’s themes of isolation, separation, and what sacrifices we make as we attempt to cross boundaries. The performance will be available to view March 15 – June 15, 2021 for school and group organizations only. More information about #RomeoJuliet can be found athttps://www.newrep.org/productions/romeojuliet/

“We are so thrilled to collaborate with Queen Mab Productions to produce this innovative and contemporary educational version of Romeo & Juliet.” shares New Rep’s Communications Director, Jaclyn Dentino.

Arts

New Rep Director Leaving to Head Mass. Cultural Council

By |

Michael Bobbitt will take over as New Repertory Theatre’s Artistic Director in August 2019. Michael Bobbitt, the artistic director of New Repertory Theatre, will be leaving the company to become the new executive director of the Mass. Cultural Council. Bobbitt took over New Rep in July of 2019, and left his mark in his time in Watertown — increasing audiences, revenues and leading company’s anti-racism efforts in the wake of the George Floyd’s killing. Prior to that, he had already started efforts to stress the importance of diversity, inclusion and equity at New Rep.

Even during COVID-19, New Rep brought theater to town with its Historical Moving Plays, which were performed on the streets of Watertown.