PITTSBURGH: City Theatre Company has announced that co-artistic director Monteze Freeland will depart at the end of the 2024-25 season to become artistic director of the Alumni Theater Company (ATC), located in Pittsburgh’s East End. Originally joining City Theatre in 2009, Freeland has been a co-artistic director since 2021 alongside Clare Drobot and Marc Masterson (Masterson retired from the post in February).
A graduate of Point Park University, Freeland has held many positions within the company, from the box office to the board room, during which time the South Side company has been his artistic home as an actor, director, playwright, and producer. During his tenure, he directed six acclaimed productions, including the regional premieres of the Pulitzer-winning Fat Ham and Clyde’s, and performed in other memorable productions such as Paradise Blue and Wild With Happy. He co-wrote and co-starred in the theatre’s first film, Claws Out: A Holiday Drag Musical, created during the Covid shutdown and streamed nationally.
“Working alongside Monteze has been a deeply meaningful artistic partnership,” said fellow co-artistic director Drobot in a statement. “His artistry and generosity of spirit have been hugely influential and deeply felt across the company and the broader Pittsburgh artistic community. I am thrilled for his next chapter with Alumni Theater Company and excited for future opportunities for both organizational collaborations and to welcome Monteze back to City Theatre again as a freelance artist.”
Freeland’s achievements include producing six world premieres and serving as lead producer for the company’s annual Young Playwrights Festival, now in its 25th year, leaving an enduring artistic and educational imprint. He recently co-wrote (with Drobot) and directed Ghosted: Tales from Carson Street and directed a retrospective stage reading of Emily Mann’s Having Our Say, part of the 50th anniversary “City Rewinds” series. Freeland has received honors such as City Paper’s “Person of the Year for Theatre” in 2021 and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s “Performer of the Year” in 2017.
“Serving as co-artistic director of City Theatre has been a profound honor and a significant milestone in my career,” said Freeland in a statement. “I am deeply grateful to City Theatre’s staff, artists, board members, and our dedicated audiences. Together we have created meaningful work, and I am incredibly proud of what we have accomplished in audience development by producing bold and impactful stories that live in the pulse of our ever-changing society.”
As he transitions to lead the Alumni Theater Company, Freeland is excited to champion ATC’s mission of empowering Black youth in grades 6-12 through performing arts training and bold theatrical productions that amplify their voices. “ATC’s mission aligns with my passion for cultivating young talent and celebrating the voices of Black artists within Pittsburgh and beyond,” he noted. Alumni Theater Company is a frequent producing and community partner of City Theatre.
Freeland and the staff and leadership will continue collaborating on City Theatre’s current 50th anniversary season and contribute to the planning process already underway for 2025-26. Drobot and managing director James McNeel will continue in their roles as the theatre works in the coming months with an outside consultant on a leadership model evaluation process.
Founded in 1975, City Theatre began as the City Players, a touring company that performed in schools, parks, and housing projects, before growing into a LORT company. Their mission is to provide an artistic home for the development and production of contemporary plays that engage and challenge a diverse audience. As of 2022, they had a total budget of approximately $3.5 million.
