Bread & Water Theatre was founded in the fall of 2000 at Nazareth College of Rochester, by J.R. Teeter, and marked with an adaptation of Christopher Marlowe's Dr. Faustus, the classic tragedy of the learned German doctor who sells his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power.  This production was crucial in developing BWT's aesthetic of simply-styled theatre where actors are the primary focus as well as a desire to focus on lesser performed works of literature.


 Mephistopheles (Lauren Firlit) in Dr. Faustus.

Bread & Water Theatre formally incorporated as a not-for-profit corporation in 2003 and later achieved 501(c)3 tax exempt status with the IRS in 2004.  This started a long process of codifying BWT's mission statement and process of operation.  During this time the theatre produced The Yellow Wallpaper, The Little Prince and reintroduced The Rainbow Theater Festival to the region.

Charlotte (Marcy J. Savastano) and John (Carl Girard) in The Yellow Wallpaper.

With a dedicated ensemble of actors working on  stage and off to provide the best possible theatrical experiences to our audience, BWT looks to the future with the below mission statement as our guide.

"This theatre is committed to making the arts accessible and affordable to a broad-based audience and acting as a positive agent of change in its community.  Under the artistic direction of J.R. Teeter, BWT develops theatre that speaks to our living, evolving, and dramatically-changing world through new works of drama, original adaptations of classic texts, rejuvenation of rare plays and aspires to be a major force in American theatre, providing audiences with challenging contemporary drama and innovative community outreach programs."