Merrimack Repertory Theatre Summer Registration Now Open For Teens

Registration is now open for the MRT Young Company summer program, a professional theatre training program for high school students, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. for three weeks, July 15 to August 2, in downtown Lowell. Nationally recognized creative producer, director, and performer Will Rogers will return to lead the program.

The all-inclusive rate for the full program is $625. MRT is offering a special "early bird" rate of $550 for students who register by May 1. Past Young Company participants may register for only $450. To register, visit www.mrt.org/youngcompany or call the Box Office at 978-654-4678.

The MRT Young Company program offers a unique opportunity for teens (entering grades 9-12) to write and perform their own stories. Students will work with professional theatre artists from around the country, develop their own voices with playwriting, and learn about acting, auditioning, performing improv, musical theatre, and more.

The 2019 MRT Young Company is MRT Young Company is supported in part by a grant from the Lowell Cultural Council (affiliate of Mass Cultural Council), Greater Lowell Community Foundation, Ramsey McCluskey Family Foundation, and United Way of Merrimack Valley.

Will Rogers is a creative producer, director, and performer who focuses on the development of interdisciplinary work. Most recently, Rogers' work has focused on the collision of culinary and performing arts with the creation of Plateful Company (platefulcompany.com). He also developed and directed monologist Arlene Malinowski's A Little Bit Not Normal, a solo play intended to create dialogue around the subject of mental illness. In 2014, Rogers produced Living the History, the 125th anniversary celebration of Chicago's famed Auditorium Theater (starring Patti LuPone, John Mahoney, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Joffrey Ballet, and others). Rogers is a Ragdale Foundation alum and created and developed the performance track for Ragdale's High School Arts Week, a free program for students in the Chicago area. He has been on the faculty of Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts Camp in Steamboat Springs, CO, directing and developing work with young artists. Rogers was Associate Producer at Chicago's Victory Gardens Theater for seven years, during which time he also served as Casting Director and curator of the alternative programming series, Fresh Squeezed. For three years he co-directed Victory Gardens' Access Project, creating and presenting work by artists with disabilities. As a director, his work has been seen at Victory Gardens, Chicago Dramatists, Dublin Gay Theatre Festival, 16th Street Theater, FronteraFest, Salvage Vanguard, and others. He has also produced work for Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, Chicago Commercial Collective, The New Colony, Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs, Chicago Community Trust, Austin Lyric Opera, and Spoleto Festival USA.

Merrimack Repertory Theatre (MRT) celebrates 40 years this season as the Merrimack Valley's professional theatre. With a steadfast commitment to contemporary voices and new plays, MRT produces seven works, including several world premieres, each season.

Under the leadership of Artistic Director Sean Daniels and Executive Director Bonnie J. Butkas, MRT strives to fulfill its mission "to share theatrical stories of human understanding that reflect and engage our community." The company guarantees that shows are accessible to audiences of all incomes; partners with businesses and non-profit groups to fully engage the community; and contributes to the economic vitality of Lowell by attracting diverse audiences from throughout the region.

Recent acclaimed productions include Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, the bestselling production on MRT history (directed by Daniels); Daniels' own autobiographical play, The White Chip; I and You (Off-Broadway transfer) and Silent Sky by Lauren Gunderson, the most produced playwright in America; Women in Jeopardy! by Wendy MacLeod (directed by Daniels); KNYUM by Cambodian playwright and actor Vichet Chum; and The Lion, singer-songwriter Benjamin Scheuer's award-winning musical memoir (also directed by Daniels), which launched its national tour from MRT in August 2015, following critically acclaimed runs in New York and London.

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