Theatre TCU students brought “Hail Mary,” a new musical about the story of Rev. Mary Ramerman, to the stage this past weekend.
The creators of the show, Kyle Hughes, Jennifer Deaton and Julián Mesri traveled to Fort Worth for its first staged workshop.
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Ramerman, the musical’s subject, was ordained in 2001 after years of serving as a leader at Corpus Christi Church in Rochester, New York. Her ordination and the parish’s refusal to let her go led them to break from the Roman Catholic Church. Together with Father Jim Callan and hundreds of parishioners, Ramerman co-founded Spiritus Christi Church. She served as its pastor for two decades before retiring.
Hughes, the project head and lyricist, said the workshop was both a challenge and a gift. She first heard Ramerman’s story in 2015 when attending a service at Spiritus Christi.
“It’s also not the easiest subject matter in the world,” Hughes said. “This is the true story of a woman who became a female Catholic priest. That’s not allowed. It’s a touchy subject. It’s religion; it’s feminism. And the professors and the students have treated this material with such care. It’s just been so easy to trust them the whole time.”
Deaton, the book writer and Hughes’ cousin, said seeing the piece come to life on stage was a full-circle moment.
“It’s so cool to be working with the TCU students, in a way returning to my own college roots of studying theater and seeing them put things up live” Deaton said.
For Mesri, who joined the creative team later as the composer, the workshop offered valuable perspective.
“This workshop has been really wonderful because we’re finally able to not just have an incredible ensemble of students, but also to see what we’ve created with some distance,” Mesri said.
Students had just 10 days to rehearse, a process that required quick learning and flexibility. With new work, script and score changes often happen throughout rehearsals.
Lauren Teders, a sophomore acting major performed as Mary Ramerman in the workshop. The challenge shaped her growth as an actor, Teders said.
“We were forced to make big choices right off the bat because there wasn’t time for precise coaching, and we constantly had to be open to change as things were being added or cut almost every day,” Teders said. “It was amazing how open and collaborative the writers were, and their passion for the show was so evident in every step of the process.”
The subject of the show, Rev. Mary Ramerman, attended both performances. Teders said that meeting her was incredible.
“Hearing her speak about her life and her values helped me to fully understand why Jennifer and Kyle had chosen to write an entire musical about her,” Teders said. “I just feel honored to have helped spread her story to more people.”
