FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ON JULY 17, 2024                                                                             
CONTACT: Tyler Michaels King
tmichaels@trademarktheater.org
612-710-2032 

TRADEMARKTHEATER ANNOUNCES MERRITT RODRIGUEZ AS MANAGING DIRECTOR

Rodriguez joins the Trademark team ahead of the company’s ninth season

TWIN CITIES, MN – TRADEMARKTHEATER welcomes Merritt Rodriguez as the company’s Managing Director in advance of its ninth season of art-making. She enters the position on August 4, 2025 at the new works company.

“This is an important step forward for Trademark, and one that has taken nearly a year of planning to build toward.” Artistic Director Tyler Michaels King shares. “This new role will help us to grow our company, increasing Trademark’s impact with the artists we serve as well as our patrons and supporters. In short, it means more adventurous art for the Twin Cities.” The staffing expansion to include a Managing Director is a first for Trademark, evolving from a dual artistic leadership model that the company was founded on.

Merritt Rodriguez studied Theater Production at Florida State University and moved to the Twin Cities in 2012. After a successful freelance career, she became the Production Manager for Penumbra Theatre Company in 2016 transitioning to the Guthrie Theater in 2019 as the Development and Events Production Manager. During the pandemic, she stepped away from theater to support Minnesota’s state initiatives providing testing and vaccination to the community at large. This distinctive experience shifted her career to organization strategy and operations. She now joins the Trademark team.

“I am honored to be joining the innovative and ambitious team at Trademark,” Rodriguez says. “The artistic excellence and integrity Trademark maintains while developing new and relevant work is directly aligned with my own artistic ethos and practice. I cannot wait to serve the arts community including our patrons, donors and artists in my new capacity as Managing Director. I look forward to expanding our reach, connectivity and impact.”

Incoming Board Chair David Orbuch shares the Board’s enthusiasm for Rodriguez’s hiring: “We are excited for Merritt’s leadership in supporting our effort of telling bold stories by creating, developing and producing new works that entertain, challenge and inspire our community.”

“I can think of no one better to take on this role,” says Michaels King. “Merritt has been alongside Trademark for nearly a year now, serving in several different capacities, the biggest of which was acting as Producer/Production Manager for Cutting Room Floor Vol. 2, our annual Cabaret and Fundraiser which stands as the most successful fundraising event in our company’s history. She has a complete talent for advancing our non-profit, caring for our artists and patrons, and supporting us in making the best art possible. She so clearly matches the core values of our company and I’m thrilled to welcome her into this senior position.”

Trademark supporters and patrons can meet Trademark’s new Managing Director at their Season Launch event taking place on July 14th, 2025 from 5:30pm-7:30pm at Broken Clock Brewing Cooperative. The event is free to attend. Details on that event can be found on Trademark’s website.

ABOUT THE TRADEMARK TEAM

Tyler Michaels King (he/him) is a director, performer, and improviser based in the Twin Cities and is the founder and Artistic Director of Trademark Theater. He is also a recent recipient of the McKnight Theater Artist Fellowship. He has worked and played with the Guthrie Theater, Ordway, Children’s Theater Company, Theater Latté Da, History Theater, Chanhassen Dinner Theatres, Illusion Theater, Flying Foot Forum, and Minneapolis Musical Theater as well as many others. He has developed new works with History Theater, Live Action Set 7th House Theater and has created several plays for the Minnesota Fringe. Tyler holds the 2014 Emerging Artist Ivey Award and the Mark Twain Comedic Performance Award from the Kennedy Center ACT Festival. He has been named "Artist of the Year 2014" by City Pages, "Best Actor" by Minnesota Monthly, and Minneapolis' "Best Actor in a Musical" by Broadwayworld.com. Tyler is also a founding member of The Bearded Company.  tylermichaelsking.com

Merritt Rodriguez (she/they) is a mission driven, innovative and strategic leader in the arts community and beyond. An experienced artist and producer, Merritt spent five years as a freelance designer before transitioning into arts leadership as the Production Manager for Penumbra Theatre and later the Development Production Manager for the Guthrie Theater. During the pandemic Merritt transitioned into Healthcare Technology, serving in strategic and operational roles as the Director of Customer Solutions, driving product and market development and implementation success. She currently also serves as the Product Line Manager for Trading Card Games at Fantasy Flight Games, focused on market strategy and consumer insights. Throughout her time in the corporate sphere, she has been dedicated to local theater as an active patron, mentor and consultant. Merritt is driven by collaboration and committed to excellence in every project she supports.

ABOUT TRADEMARK THEATER

Trademark Theater challenges the boundaries of traditional theater-making and expands the breadth of original theatrical works produced in Minnesota by creating, developing, and producing dynamic stage productions. Trademark seeks to bring new focus to new works while providing space and resources for emerging and seasoned artists, both local and national, to create bold, adventurous new theater in the heart of the Midwest.

 For more information, visit www.trademarktheater.org.

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