On any given day in a Richardson warehouse, the work of a live theater company unfolds in layers. Paint drying on a reversible set piece. Costumes cycling through the laundry. Actors rehearsing lines. Soon, all of these will move to Plano’s Courtyard Theatre for a series of performances. April was The Producers.
Co-founder and executive artistic director Debra Carter describes it like Santa’s workshop — a well-oiled machine after four decades.
“I’ve been doing it since I was 12, so it’s kind of a long road,” Carter says.
As an adult, after years of performing with others, she decided to go out on her own.
“I went to my husband, and I said, ‘I’m frustrated because I can’t do this the way I think it needs to be done,’” she says. “And he said, ‘Well, then you should do it yourself.’”
Carter, along with co-founders Sharon Lipshie and Kitty Beletic, launched Repertory Company Theatre, originally focusing on arts education before turning into a full-fledged production company with a repertory model — something Carter found lacking north of Interstate 635.
The theatre holds auditions once a year and pulls from the group of 70 to 90 actors chosen for each of the season’s productions. At the time of writing this article, that’s a team of 84 working on The Producers. Soon, the same team will shift to Grease.
Repertory Company Theatre is based in Richardson, sure, but its small theatre often serves as more of a warehouse for working on props, costumes and rehearsals. For decades, RCT has performed at the historic Courtyard Theatre in Downtown Plano, and its audience is built right into our city.
In fact, the company maintains a Plano office and takes part in the city’s larger ecosystem as a member of Collaborative Arts of Plano. To Carter, the fine arts are more than entertainment — it’s the intersection between art and business, entertainment and economy.
“When you go to see a show, and it’s a touring production, your money goes with that touring production … it doesn’t stay in your community,” she says. “We’re really wanting to get more commerce and more people coming into the Arts District.”
Carter also notes that Repertory Company Theatre is not a volunteer organization. Most of the team is on staff, and the company creates pathways for careers in the arts through annual internships.
Over time, a major shift has been the rise of digital entertainment.
“The challenge part of it is to get people’s faces off of their screens,” Carter says. “[But theatre] is so much engagement … You can’t get that from a movie … It’s that personal engagement … that electric communication.”
Throughout each reinvention, RCT is focused on the future and leaving a legacy north of I-635, where the arts are infused in the region’s culture.
“I’d like to see that sustainability … to be another 40 years.”
Repertory Company Theatre will be performing Grease at the Courtyard Theatre, located at 1509 H Ave., from June 19-28. Tickets are on sale now, starting at $37.
Below: Repertory Company Theatre performs each show at the Courtyard Theatre in Historic Downtown Plano. The Producers, shown here, was their spring show. In June, the company will perform Grease.
