On a hot summer evening in 1976, the Cambridge City Council faced a packed hearing room—and a decision that would echo across the globe.
At the center of it all stood Mayor Al Vellucci: sharp-tongued, fearless, and ready to take on science itself. The issue? A new biohazard lab designed for groundbreaking recombinant DNA research—celebrated by some as the future of science, feared by others as the birthplace of “Frankenstein bacteria.” Nobel Prize–winning scientists, passionate citizens, politicians, and the global press all converged on Cambridge to confront one explosive question: Who gets to decide the boundaries of scientific discovery?
Fifty years later, step back in time with an immersive theatrical experience staged in the very same Cambridge City Hall hearing room where this conversation took place. Relive the tension, the debate, and the moment that turned local politics into a worldwide reckoning and that formed the Kendall Square that we know today.
Stay after the show to engage in thought-provoking conversation about the legacy of the hearing, the power of public oversight, and the future of community-driven science.
No Recombination Without Representation is a partnership between the MIT Museum, Central Square Theater, and the City of Cambridge. Performances will occur at Sullivan Chamber in Cambridge City Hall. All shows are free and open to the public.
This production was made possible through the generous contributions of MIT Museum supporters Phil and Ann Sharp and MIT’s Department of Science, Technology, and Society. This program is part of the MIT Museum’s year-long exploration of TIME and is part of the Massachusetts 250 activities celebrating the many “firsts” and innovations created in our state through the last 250 years.
