For nearly two decades, USC’s independent student group Musical Theatre Repertory (MTR) has been producing full-scale musicals as an independent student production company, currently mentored by faculty advisor Professor MaryAnn Hu. MTR provides the opportunity for students to take the reins on all elements of the creative endeavor: everything from costumes, lighting and set design to casting and performance.
For most of the MTR all-student board, the challenge—along with an unquenchable passion for musical theatre—is the point.
“Sourcing all that on a limited budget—and as students—is really hard, but we succeed at it every time,” said MTR production manager Sarah Costigan (BFA Stage Management ’25). “We’ve never had a show not go up.”
Costigan relayed a story about the time the entire board rented a U-Haul and drove down to Orange County to pick up set pieces. A high school musical had just finished the same production, and MTR was eager to re-use what they could to make their own show happen.
“It’s definitely hard, but it’s all the more rewarding in the end,” Costigan said.
MTR produces two shows a year, one per semester. The shows are pitched directly by student-directors and selected based on the strength of their vision. Last semester, MTR put on a production of A New Brain, a lesser-known show by composer William Finn. This year they’re sticking with the same composer: their production of Falsettos will perform in the Scene Dock Theatre October 3-6.
“A lot of time people are pitching us their dream shows, the ones they’ve always wanted to be part of, or always wanted to see performed here on campus,” said MTR president Allison Stowe (BS Business Administration ’26). “Because we’re all students, we’re all on the same playing field, we’re all experiencing similar things. So if someone really loves a show, chances are they aren’t the only one.”
“I’d never been on a creative team before [last semester],” said Adam Hassan (BA Theatre ’26), MTR’s Public Relations chair. “Going through trial and error, whether it be looking at different spaces or preparing for anything that comes our way—it was something I’ve never had to do in this much depth before. It was a wild journey but I did not regret a second of it.”
Stowe agreed. “My favorite part of producing a musical is that it brings people together who are all excited about the same thing,” she said. “So even if we’re facing challenges, we know we’ll get through it, because we really want people to see the show.”
It’s the relationships
Members of MTR emphasized how putting on musical theatre independently, while challenging, can teach a variety of new skills and give students different perspectives, especially for those who have only seen one side of auditioning and performing theatre.
“I’m the most anxious person when it comes to auditions,” said Hassan. A theatre major, he has had no shortage of experience with auditioning and performing; but having the opportunity to take on casting responsibilities changed his perspective about the process.
“Being on the other side of that table, you realize that’s not how it works,” he said. “We’re there to support each other. We’re there to see the best version of ourselves.”
And of course, there’s the magic that only comes with live musical theatre. Each member of MTR has a different reason for how they got there. For Costigan, it was embracing the daunting challenge of independently producing live theatre; for Stowe, who grew up around her grandparents’ community productions, it was about taking part in a family legacy. By contrast, Hassan had no exposure to musical theatre until high school, when a single production ignited his interest in the genre.
Regardless of how they got there, there was one thing they all agreed on: nothing can replace the pure magic of live musical theatre.
“It’s a chance where you get to express feelings and these different types of emotions in ways that you may not usually be able to in society,” Hassan said.
“At the end of the day, MTR is a college organization. It’s for fun,” said Costigan. “It’s awesome that everyone takes it so seriously. But something that is overlooked is how valuable the relationships you get out of it are.”
“It’s just that community feeling that I hadn’t felt before joining an ISP,” added Hassan. “It’s something that you truly only get in these unique experiences of having gone through challenges together, in putting up a show and creating art together.”