In two weeks this summer, the Yale Repertory Theatre received two major donations that together total $1.95 million. The first, valued at $950,000, was received on July 19 from the Robina Foundation, a private nonprofit based in Minnesota. The second major gift, announced on July 28, came from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation — $1 million, to be given to the Theatre in stages over the next five years.

According to University statements in July, both gifts will help to support the Yale Center for New Theatre, an initiative founded in 2008 by the Rep and the School of Drama to cultivate new plays and musicals for the national stage. These donations come as additions to the $2.85 million already gifted by the Robina Foundation to kick off the Center’s launch in 2008.

School of Drama Dean James Bundy DRA ’95, the artistic director for both the Rep and the Center, said in the press releases that the donations will help the Center to expand both in the depth of resources it is able to offer and the scope of its reach, adding that the Mellon Foundation’s gift will have “national impact.”