In 2025, Montgomery Theater will mark a significant milestone as we transition leadership for the first time in our history. Founding Artistic Director Tom Quinn will retire, passing the torch to Kristin Heckler, who will become our new Executive Artistic Director. Kristin has been serving as Managing and Associate Artistic Director since August 2022.
Together, they have co-curated the 2024 and 2025 seasons, and Kristin has already directed several productions, including Morning After Grace, Mrs. Harrison, and I and You. As of July 7, 2025, Tom will officially step down from his role, though he will remain on the Board of Directors and, of course, be just a phone call away.
In a fitting full-circle moment, Montgomery Theater’s other co-founder (and Tom’s wife), Hope deFrenes, rejoined the staff in 2024 as Patron Services and Facilities Supervisor. With Kristin’s artistic leadership and Hope’s deep knowledge of the theater’s operations and patrons, they will work together to ensure a smooth transition and a bright future for Montgomery Theater.
The Artistic Director shapes the artistic vision of the theater, overseeing all programming and productions. Kristin will be responsible for:
- Selecting all Main Stage and Project Stage productions
- Directing at least three shows per year
- Assembling and hiring creative teams, including directors, designers, and production staff
- Overseeing our Education Programs, including two sessions of classes and two student productions annually
- Expanding and strengthening programming to better serve our diverse community
- Serving as the theater’s spokesperson and community liaison, continuing Tom’s legacy of delivering professional, thought-provoking, and entertaining theater to our audiences
Kristin’s journey with Montgomery Theater began long before she joined the staff—she grew up in Sellersville, and while she was in high high school, her family had a season subscription. When she graduated from Duke University with a dream of pursuing theater, she met with Tom for career advice. His favorite moment of that lunch 15 years ago? When she told him, “I want your job.” Serendipitously, there was a job opening at the theater and Kristin joined the staff as Box Office Manager & Production Associate. During that time, she worked closely with Tom and became his first (and only) Assistant Director, on productions including Becky Shaw, Any Wednesday, Jacob and Jack.
She later moved to New York City, earning her MFA in Theatre Directing from The New School and working as a director and producer for nearly a decade. Kristin founded Recognize Theater, a company dedicated to exploring gender roles in society, and was Associate Producer for On Her Shoulders, a reading series reviving forgotten works by female playwrights. Before returning to Montgomery Theater, she worked as Programming Manager at Theatre Row, a six-venue theater complex in Midtown Manhattan. In 2020, she snuck in a return to MT to direct a very successful run of Crimes of the Heart by Beth Henley
Since returning to Montgomery Theater in 2022, Kristin has already made her mark by:
- Launching a New Work Series on the Project Stage, developing plays by local playwrights such as Mamalogues & Other Stories of Being Human by Deborah Lynn Meier, Material by Jessica Bedford, and Dani Who Made a Deal with the Sun by Tanaquil Márquez with music by Ximena Violante
- Renovating the Project Stage to improve the space used by our students and provide a venue for the community
- Expanding accessibility initiatives, including Assisted Listening Devices, Open Captioning, and Audio Description
- Enhancing marketing and audience engagement, modernizing print materials, increasing social media presence, and producing more video content
- Crafting a Strategic Plan to guide Montgomery Theater’s growth and innovation over the next two years
Kristin will continue the tradition of delivering thought-provoking, professional theater that has made Montgomery Theater a community gem. Expect familiar favorites, fresh interpretations, and bold new works that will challenge and inspire.
We invite you to join us in celebrating this exciting transition and the bright future ahead!
We are very excited for the next chapter. Please submit below your thoughts about what you hope never changes about MT or changes you’d like to see implemented under new leadership.