Indiana Repertory Theatre

Indiana Repertory Theatre, commonly known as IRT, is a professional regional theatre company in Indianapolis, Indiana. Founded in 1972, it began as a genuine repertory organization, with actors and creative teams working on several productions during the same period. The company initially operated from The Athenaeum before moving in 1980 to the Indiana Theatre, a historic 1927 former Paramount Pictures Publix movie palace at 140 West Washington Street in downtown Indianapolis. The Indiana Theatre has remained the company’s principal home. IRT’s role is broader than that of a conventional commercial theatre. It develops and presents a season of plays for local audiences, serves students and families, commissions and stages work by contemporary playwrights, and provides a platform for Indiana stories and artists. The company is a member of the League of Resident Theatres, placing it within the established network of professional nonprofit regional theatres in the United States. A typical season has consisted of approximately six productions presented across two stages. Most of the season, including the company’s recurring holiday production, has been presented on the OneAmerica Financial Stage. The holiday staging of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol, adapted for IRT by former artistic director and company member Tom Haas, is one of the organization’s most recognizable traditions. The production is notable for retaining darker and less frequently performed elements of Dickens’s story while using an intimate chamber-theatre approach. The company’s repertory has covered classical drama, modern American plays, adaptations of novels and historical material, family theatre, solo performance, comedy, mystery, and selected musicals. Its productions have included Shakespeare, August Wilson, Harper Lee, Agatha Christie, Arthur Miller, Yasmina Reza, Stephen Sondheim, and other established writers. IRT has also supported new work through commissions and world-premiere productions. Playwright James Still served as Playwright in Residence and wrote or developed works for the company, while Charles Smith created commissioned pieces including Les Trois Dumas and Sister Carrie. Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, commissioned by Still and first presented at IRT in 2001, dramatizes the life of Alonzo Fields, who served as a White House butler to three U.S. presidents. Although IRT largely moved away from musicals during the 1990s, it continued to produce selected musical works, including the world premiere of Captive Heart: The Frances Slocum Story, Enter the Guardsman, The Fantasticks, A Little Night Music, and other productions. Musicals returned more prominently in the 2023–2024 season with Little Shop of Horrors, followed by The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and a planned 2026 regional production of Come From Away. IRT also has an educational and civic mission. Its programming has included productions for students and families, and it sponsors Young Playwrights in Process, an Indiana playwriting competition for middle- and high-school writers. The organization has been recognized for inclusive casting and accessibility; it became the first theatre to cast an autistic actor, Mickey Rowe, in the lead role of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Through its downtown venue, resident-company structure, new-play activity, education programs, and long-running holiday repertory, IRT functions as one of Indiana’s principal professional theatre institutions.

Indiana Repertory Theatre was established in Indianapolis in 1972. Its early identity was that of a genuine repertory theatre: company members could appear in multiple productions during a season rather than being engaged for only one play. The organization began presenting work at The Athenaeum, a historic Indianapolis venue that served as its first home. During its first phase, IRT developed the working methods and artistic profile associated with a resident professional theatre. Its repertory included established drama, adaptations, classical works, and programming intended for different audience groups. The company’s operation in Indianapolis allowed it to build a sustained relationship with audiences and artists rather than functioning as a touring production unit. In 1980, IRT moved to the Indiana Theatre at 140 West Washington Street. The building had been constructed in 1927 as a Paramount Pictures Publix Theatre and had originally been designed for motion-picture exhibition. Its conversion for theatrical use gave IRT a permanent downtown base and linked the company’s future to one of Indianapolis’s major historic performance buildings. The venue later supported the company’s use of two stages and its presentation of both large-scale and more intimate work. Over time, IRT evolved from a strict repertory model into a regional-theatre model. It became a member of the League of Resident Theatres and developed regular seasons combining contemporary plays, classics, adaptations, comedy, drama, family programming, and holiday work. The company’s programming history shows a balance between canonical writers and new or commissioned material. Productions have included Shakespearean plays such as Macbeth, Julius Caesar, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Two Gentlemen of Verona, and The Crucible; modern American drama including Fences, Radio Golf, Rabbit Hole, and Other Desert Cities; and adaptations such as The Great Gatsby, The Giver, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and Around the World in 80 Days. The theatre became particularly associated with its production of A Christmas Carol. The adaptation by Tom Haas, a former IRT artistic director and member of the earlier resident company, uses a chamber-theatre format and preserves several of the story’s more severe and unsettling passages. The recurring holiday production became an important part of the company’s public identity and seasonal programming. New-play development has also been central to IRT’s history. James Still served as Playwright in Residence and wrote or helped develop works for the company, including The House That Jack Built, Miranda, April 4, 1968, The Heavens Are Hung in Black, and other pieces. IRT commissioned Looking Over the President’s Shoulder, a solo play about White House butler Alonzo Fields, and presented its first production in 2001. Charles Smith also wrote commissioned works for the theatre, including Les Trois Dumas, Sister Carrie, and The Gospel According to James. These activities positioned IRT as both a presenter of established drama and a producer of new American work. The company generally reduced its production of musicals during the 1990s, but it continued to make exceptions. Its musical history includes the 1999 world premiere of Captive Heart: The Frances Slocum Story, Enter the Guardsman, The Fantasticks, Crowns, and A Little Night Music. IRT later increased its musical programming again, reintroducing the form during the 2023–2024 season with Little Shop of Horrors. Subsequent musical programming included The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and a planned 2026 regional premiere of Come From Away. Education and community engagement have remained important parts of the organization’s activities. IRT has presented material for students and families and sponsors Young Playwrights in Process, a competition for Indiana middle- and high-school writers. Its casting and programming history also includes a significant accessibility milestone: the company cast autistic actor Mickey Rowe as the lead in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time. Today, IRT remains an active Indianapolis resident theatre, presenting a multi-production season from its historic downtown home while combining professional performance, education, new work, and community service.

• 2026

  Planned regional premiere of Come From Away

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  The company is identified as producing a regional premiere of Come From Away in 2026.

• 2023

  Musicals return to the regular program

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  IRT reintroduces musicals during its 2023–2024 season with Little Shop of Horrors.

• 2001

  Premiere of Looking Over the President’s Shoulder

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  IRT premieres the commissioned solo play about White House butler Alonzo Fields.

• 1999

  World premiere of Captive Heart

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  IRT presents Captive Heart: The Frances Slocum Story, a new musical by Jeff Hooper and Bob Lucas.

• 1980

  Move to the Indiana Theatre

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  IRT relocates from The Athenaeum to the former 1927 Paramount Pictures Publix Theatre at 140 West Washington Street.

• 1972

  Indiana Repertory Theatre is founded

  [1]Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org

  The company begins operations in Indianapolis as a genuine repertory theatre, with casts working across multiple productions.

A professional, nonprofit regional theatre that combines accessible repertory programming with new-play development, Indiana-focused storytelling, education, family programming, and inclusive casting.

• Professional theatre · 1972

  Mainstage regional theatre season

  IRT’s principal offering is a recurring professional season of plays presented across two stages at its Indianapolis home. The programming has combined classical drama, modern American theatre, adaptations, comedy, mystery, solo performance, and new work. A standard season has generally included about six productions, with most performances staged on the OneAmerica Financial Stage.

• Holiday theatre

  A Christmas Carol

  IRT’s recurring adaptation of Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is one of its signature offerings. Adapted by Tom Haas, the production uses an intimate chamber-theatre approach and retains darker material that is frequently shortened or omitted in other versions. It has served as a regular holiday anchor for the company’s season.

• Educational and family programming

  Student and family theatre

  IRT presents productions intended for students, young audiences, and families. Examples in its documented seasons include The Cay, Stuart Little, The Giver, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Velveteen Rabbit, Peter Rabbit and Me, and Holes. These productions extend the company’s audience beyond conventional adult mainstage subscribers.

• Play development

  New-play commissions

  The theatre develops and presents new work through commissions and relationships with resident or affiliated playwrights. Documented examples include Looking Over the President’s Shoulder by James Still and works by Charles Smith, including Les Trois Dumas, Sister Carrie, and The Gospel According to James.

• Arts education

  Young Playwrights in Process

  Young Playwrights in Process is an Indiana playwriting competition for middle- and high-school students. The program supports emerging writers and connects the theatre’s professional activities with creative education. It has been funded in part by a gift from Robert and Margot Eccles.

• 2023

  Reintroducing musicalsStrategy

  Background

  After a long period in which musicals were produced only selectively, IRT revisited the form in its regular season planning.

  Action taken

  The company produced Little Shop of Horrors during the 2023–2024 season and subsequently programmed The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

  Aftermath

  The renewed musical programming expanded the range of IRT’s contemporary season offerings.

  Source

• 1990

  Reducing regular musical productionStrategy

  Background

  The company’s programming direction shifted during the 1990s away from producing musicals as a routine part of its repertory.

  Action taken

  IRT largely stopped producing musicals while continuing to stage selected musical projects and later individual exceptions.

  Aftermath

  Musicals remained an occasional part of the company’s history until the form was reintroduced more prominently during the 2023–2024 season.

  Source

• 1980

  Establishing a permanent downtown venueStrategy

  Background

  After beginning at The Athenaeum, the company needed a long-term home capable of supporting its expanding regional-theatre activities.

  Action taken

  IRT moved into the Indiana Theatre, a former movie palace on West Washington Street, and adapted it for professional stage use.

  Aftermath

  The move created the physical base associated with IRT’s continuing identity and enabled the company to operate from a historic downtown Indianapolis venue.

  Source

• 2020.04.03

  Reported2020.04.07

  Indiana Repertory Theatre sues Cincinnati Casualty over pandemic losses[3]Indiana Repertory Theatre就疫情损失起诉Cincinnati Casualtywfyi.org

  Indiana Repertory Theatre sued Cincinnati Casualty Company over lost business income during the COVID-19 pandemic, claiming its insurance policy covers income losses from a forced business suspension. Cincinnati Casualty denied the claim, saying physical damage to the property was required.

Read more

1. 1Indiana Repertory Theatreen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Indiana Repertory Theatre official websiteirtlive.com
3. 3Indiana Repertory Theatre就疫情损失起诉Cincinnati Casualtywfyi.org