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The Kansas City Actors Theatre (KCAT) is a non-profit theatre company in Kansas City, Missouri.[1]
Started in 2004, Kansas City Actors Theatre was founded in order to "challenge and enlighten the Kansas City community by producing classic and modern-classic plays using Kansas City theatre artists". The company presents a collection of plays that are integrated either over a season or in rotating repertory, in order to deepen the appreciation of each play.[2]
The theatre is also known to be a place for young local actors to obtain experience in a professional setting.[3] The artist-led theatre company often collaborates with theatre students from the UMKC Theatre.[4][5] This mission was exemplified when it was the first theatre company to present Lanford Wilson's Tally Trilogy in repertory.[6]
In 2015, KCAT was awarded the American Theatre Wing's National Theatre Company Grant.[7]
KCAT uses professional actors in various performance spaces around Kansas City, Missouri.[8] Notably, KCAT has produced productions at the National World War I Museum,[9] H&R Block City Stage, and in Union Station. Many founders of KCAT are also professors at UMKC Theatre (the theatre department of the University of Missouri–Kansas City), including Tom Mardikes.[10]
For a short period, starting in 2006, KCAT changed its name to Actors Theatre, but the name returned to the original name shortly after.[11]