01/06/2026
Dear Friends, Fans and Followers,
The New Renaissance Theatre Company wishes a very happy and prosperous New Year to our supporters. For us, 2026 begins at the close: as 2025 ended, our board made the difficult decision that the time has come to fold up the big purple tent and for NRTC to cease production.
Since 2014, first as The Unrehearsed Shakespeare Project and then as The New Renaissance Theatre Company, we have successfully promoted the Unrehearsed Cue Script Technique - an historically informed practice based upon the working condition of Shakespeare's company and his contemporaries - through performances and workshops. With this unique performance style, we brought 20+ free, unrehearsed productions of 15 plays by William Shakespeare to communities across the Pittsburgh area, including performances at the Westmoreland Arts and Heritage Festival, as well as performing at Artscape in Baltimore, MD three times. We presented work by local playwright Matt Henderson, produced the Pittsburgh premier of Wittenberg by David Davalos. and during the lock-down created the online shorts "Where Art Thou Now." We have done so much with what we had, and now it's time to lay down our cue scripts.
On behalf of the board, I want to thank all our donors, partner organizations and venues and of course the performers and everyone who made it possible for NRTC to accomplish our mission.
On a personal note, I want to express my profound gratitude to Elizabeth Ruelas, our co-founder and first Artistic Director without whom NRTC would not exist; Charlene Baker, our indomitable Stage Manager without whom nothing would have gotten done backstage; and to Adam Rutledge, Tonya Lynn and James Baker, board and company members whose talents on and off stage helped to make everything happen. Above all, I am truly grateful to the brave actors who shared their talents with us and who trusted us enough to take the leap and live the actor's nightmare. You were all inspiring, and I hope you got as much from your experience with NRTC as I and the audience got from watching you.
Finally: thank you! Before every show, we asked you to take a strange trip with us, and you came along for the ride. Your support meant the world to us, and we are grateful.
If you were watching an unrehearsed show now, sitting on your blanket in front of the big purple tent, you'd hear the prompter's long loud whistle, and then: FINIS! The New Renaissance Theatre Company!
Sincerely, and thank you,
Andy Kirtland
Artistic Director
The New Renaissance Theatre Company
