PROVIDENCE, R.I.: Trinity Repertory Company has announced that it will not produce in-person, indoor performances until fall 2021. The company has announced that they will focus on education initiatives, digital content production, and equity, diversity, and inclusion work in the meantime.
“While we are eager to get back onstage in front of our beloved audience, it is becoming increasingly clear that we won’t be able to do so in a safe or practical fashion this winter and spring,” says Curt Columbus, the Arthur P. Solomon and Sally E. Lapides artistic director, in a statement. “Nothing is more important to us than the safety of our audience and artists, so we are prioritizing that above all things. In the meantime, we have critically important work to do. Our labor in becoming a truly anti-racist theatre will take centerstage in the coming months, and our online programming will be even more robust as well. I am excited about all of these initiatives and the future of Trinity Rep.”
New in-person production dates and a slate of productions will be announced at a later date. Trinity Rep still intends to offer a free, online production of A Christmas Carol, which will stream on demand in late November. This will be the first time the annual tradition will be shown online. Trinity Rep will also continue to offer its Facebook Live show Your Half Hour Call with Curt on the first and third Thursdays of each month.
The education program has also transitioned online, with virtual classes for K-12 students and adults beginning in October. Trinity Rep, alongside Brown University, has also developed safety protocols for the MFA program which will allow for graduate acting and directing students to return to Providence. Depending on the state of the pandemic, the students may resume public performances in winter or spring 2021.
Trinity Rep’s anti-racism work includes chartering an anti-racism transformation committee—consisting of members of the staff, board, resident acting company, and local community—will work with a consultant who will provide training and facilitation. The preliminary objects are to establish mandatory formal training and continued learning for all board, artists, and staff; review and adapt all practices and procedures; host an anti-racism working forum; create and support affinity groups; and develop an equity, diversity, and inclusion/anti-racism strategic plan.
“With optimism and drive similar to what Trinity Rep’s founders must have experienced 56 years ago, we embrace the opportunities presented by this rare pause of in-person performances to develop, implement, and re-forge a bold new vision for theatre-making, education, and community engagement in Rhode Island,” says executive director Tom Parrish in a statement. “The organizational planning work ahead, which also includes facility and strategic planning, will ensure that when we reach the other side of the pandemic we can build Trinity Rep back as a more equitable, inclusive, and just organization for our artists, employees, and community.”
