by Nathan Pugh

by Nathan Pugh

Nashville has a reputation for being a bustling city for the music industry, with audiences and musicians throughout the country traveling for both work and entertainment. However, Nashville has also had a thriving history with Actors' Equity Association, with four Equity theatres in the middle Tennessee area: Nashville Shakespeare Festival, Nashville Repertory Theatre, Nashville Children's Theatre, and Studio Tenn. The newest of these companies, Studio Tenn shows the growing presence of theatre as a profession in the growing Nashville population.

Studio Tenn was founded in 2009 by director and designer Matt Logan, producer Philip Hall and Equity member Marguerite Lowell Hall. Since its beginning, the company has operated on Equity's Small Professional Theatre (SPT) contract, which guarantees the first six actors and stage manager on every production are on an Equity contract. The company holds open auditions each spring for the entire upcoming season and prides itself on always including local Nashville actors within its casts.

One of these local actors is Equity member Matthew Carlton. He arrived in Nashville in 1989 after publishing music, and he and his wife (both former Southerners) thought it would be a great place to live. He's been involved with Studio Tenn since its inaugural production (Our Town), and he's acted in 21 shows with the company since then. Carlton notes that Studio Tenn distinguished itself early on through its high-quality designs and productions, with designer Matt Logan drawing on his experience designing performance outfits for Reba McEntire and directing many theatrical productions.

"The meticulous look, the artistic vision of those early Studio Tenn shows made them stand out, because [Matt Logan] was an auteur of sorts," said Carlton.

Throughout the 2010s, Studio Tenn continued carving a niche for itself within the community. Each season typically includes a play and a concert, but the company's calling card has been its many musical productions, often featuring large ensembles. Carlton notes that because of Nashville's emphasis on music, and the closeby musical theatre program at Belmont University, all chorus members are very strong musically.

"The level of musicality and singing ability of almost every single person who's an actor in this town is off the charts," said Carlton. "I've never been in any greater ensemble anywhere than you can find in this town."

Studio Tenn's current artistic director, Equity member Patrick Cassidy, joined the company in the fall of 2019. A renowned actor, teacher, and director, Cassidy discovered Studio Tenn because his own son got a record and publishing deal in Nashville. He joined under a dyad leadership model with Todd Morgan, the managing director who joined the company in the fall of 2017.

Cassidy and Morgan helped keep the company going during the COVID-19 pandemic. Cassidy used the time to learn more about the Nashville community. He also created Studio Tenn Talks, a virtual talk show with Cassidy's many longtime friends/colleagues, including artists Audra McDonald, Kristin Chenoweth and Stephen Sondheim.

Studio Tenn's biggest change under Cassidy and Morgan's leadership has been its new performance space. The company had previously operated as a resident company of a performing arts venue, and has performed at multiple spaces around Nashville. One of these venues included The Factory at Franklin, a former stove manufacturing building that's been transformed into a center for shopping and dining (located in Franklin, TN, around 20 miles south of Nashville). When the developers reached out to Studio Tenn about building a permanent theater within The Factory, Cassidy and Morgan jumped at the opportunity. After construction, the Turner Theater opened in the fall of 2023.

Cassidy called the Turner Theater "a gamer changer" for increasing Studio Tenn's connection to the larger community. Morgan shared that in the 2019–2020 they had 643 season subscribers. In their first season at the Turner Theater (2023–2024) they increased to 1,060 subscribers, and for this upcoming season they have nearly 2,000 subscribers.

"We are thriving right now," said Cassidy. "A huge part of that is because of this destination, this new theater. It has been a surprise for both Williamson County and definitely Franklin."

Under Cassidy's leadership, the programming has continued to change. Studio Tenn has continued its emphasis on musical theatre, while also incorporating more works by contemporary writers. Morgan said staging musicals with well-known music, like Million Dollar Quartet, helps audiences feel welcome and connected to the Nashville entertainment scene. Morgan also stated a Studio Tenn board member once described their sensibility as more Matilda than Annie.

"My goal is to tell stories that educate, that open your mind," Cassidy said. He brought up a 2024 production of Cabaret as one such example. Cassidy noted that even though Cabaret is a venerated musical, "it was definitely an edgier story to tell here in the Bible Belt, and an edgier story to present in this community. And it was thrilling."

Tennessee is a "right to work" state, so union membership can hold less allure for local actors. Cassidy said he prioritizes hiring local actors, but he's also open to bringing in other Equity members from across the country (and providing transportation and housing).

Howell described the fine arts community in Nashville a "tight-knit group." She noted how Studio Tenn's The Sound of Music was a collaboration with the private school Christ Presbyterian Academy, which allowed Studio Tenn to perform in their Soli Deo Center and include students in the production. Howell said Nashville theatres' connections to their communities makes performing there special.

"In other locations, there's a disconnect between the people on the stage and the people in the audience," Howell said. "But when the people in the audience are your neighbors and your friends, and your community around you, that's definitely a different feel, for sure."

Stage manager Marlee Shelton was born and raised in Nashville, and she also attended the local Lipscomb University. Studio Tenn also gave Shelton her first professional theatre job in 2023, as a props designer for the play Smoke on the Mountain. Shelton has since been the assistant stage manager for Studio Tenn shows. In the 2025–2026 season, she's the primary stage manager for three Studio Tenn productions: Death Trap, Boeing Boeing, and Jesus Christ Superstar (starring Adam Pascal).

Shelton appreciates how Studio Tenn often includes a play by a Southern writer within their season programming. Working on productions of Smoke on the Mountain and Driving Miss Daisy, Shelton could see how creative team members brought their own family histories into their roles.

"I think that gives us a richer experience, a very personal take on how we perform those plays," Shelton said.

Shelton is applying to join Equity this fall through the Open Access policy, and she praised Studio Tenn as a place for achieving high artistic excellence but also growing as a working professional.

"They never settle," Shelton said. "Patrick really wants things to get better every year. I think that it does. In the three years that I've been working with them, I think every year has been a better experience."

Again and again, people who have worked in Studio Tenn productions state "professionalism" as one of Studio Tenn's priorities.

Shelton said that despite the short rehearsal periods before productions, the leadership of Studio Tenn is still responsive to the needs of specific shows. For example, when working on Crimes of the Heart, Shelton knew that the amount of prop gags and physical comedy would require more time for actors to rehearse in the performance space. When she communicated that with the team, they understood.

"We went and negotiated a schedule with the scenic team, and we were able to get into the theater two days sooner than originally planned," Shelton said.

Howell noted that Patrick Cassidy and Todd Morgan feel deeply connected to their audiences.

"I've been to see many productions at Studio Tenn, and whether I've been in the production or just seen it as a cast member, [Cassidy and Morgan] are always there greeting people at the theater," Howell said, "which I think is extremely intentional, and rare to find artistic directors and company leaders greeting the people in the seats – and just saying hello and being extremely personal."

Looking into the future, Cassidy wants to continue development on a new works program.

"I'm talking about from the ground up: a reading just with creatives, edits, reading a script, getting to an Equity staged reading," Cassidy said. "And then hopefully a production that we could put into our season."

Morgan stated that they recently completed their second second of doing camps, classes, and workshops for the area – not just for children, but for adults as well. They conducted a panel with the Williamson County School Board to speak to drama teachers around, which allowed them to "showcase Studio Tenn as a professional knowledge-based tool resource for theatre as a greater good."

Shelton said she's appreciated learning from other stage managers and creative team members in Studio Tenn, and working with them across multiple productions.

"I have gone through a lot of different roles there, and each time I have taken something new from it," Shelton said. "They really do care about the people that work for them and making sure that they want to come back. I have to give them a lot of credit for that."

Howell said that although Studio Tenn has high-quality productions, she hopes that doesn't intimidate new actors or theatre workers from engaging with the company.

"I have a mentor who says 'rising tides lift all ships,'" Howell said. "If there was ever a theatre company that embodied that kind of attitude, I would say that's what you find at Studio Tenn."

* in photo captions denotes Equity membership.