STAGE TUBE: I AM THEATRE Project - Anthony Runfola

BroadwayWorld.com is excited to share a weekly series developed by the Theatre Communications Group! This week production manager Anthony Runfola shares pivotal moments in his theatre career and why the arts matter to him!

Anthony Runfola is a production manager, director and sound and projection designer. He is currently in his 12th season serving as production manager for Childsplay, a professional theatre for young audiences in Arizona. Anthony has worked with Childsplay during a tremendous period of growth. He has led the expansion of the production department from a staff of two (including himself!) to a staff of 12; provided oversight to the company's renovation of an abandoned elementary school into its headquarters; and served on the design committee for the Tempe Center for the Arts, Childsplay's home theatre. This past season, along with colleagues at Childsplay, he founded the Sustainable Stagecraft Initiative funded by a TCG/MetLife Foundation Think It! Grant. The initiative's goal is to discover best practices for the reuse and recycling of stage scenery as well as to identify an alternative to the tropical plywood often used in scenic construction. His directing credits at Childsplay include THE NEVERENDING STORY, ERIC AND ELLIOT, THIS IS NOT A PIPE DREAM, THE BEAUTY MACHINE, and NEW KID, as well as the world premieres of A LITTLE BIT OF WATER, INTERRUPTING VANESSA and the upcoming ROCK THE PRESIDENTS. He has also directed for Black Theatre Troupe, Scottsdale Community College, Herberger Theatre Center, Actors Renaissance Theatre, and Stray Cat Theatre. From 1994 - 2002 he served as artistic director of Upstairs Theatre Company in Tucson, Arizona of which he was also a founding member. Anthony resides in Phoenix with his wife Jannine and their two wonderful children. Anthony is originally from Phoenix, Arizona.

I AM THEATRE spotlights the stories of theatre practitioners, in their own words. With 50 videos over the next 50 weeks, TCG is celebrating its 50th anniversary by sharing stories from a diverse group of people who are creating, supporting, and engaging with theatre. YOU ARE THEATRE: We want to hear your stories! TCG will release a new video each week of individuals sharing pivotal moments in theatre - and hope they will inspire you to tell your stories too. Join us as we seek to raise the international awareness of the depth, diversity and impact of the theatre field. WE ARE THEATRE! Today, not-for-profit professional theatres in the U.S. employ 130,000 people annually, inspire more than 30 million attendees and contribute $2 billion directly to the U.S. economy. What if thousands of theatre artists across the world posted their own video testimonies of why they do what they do and why theatre matters? How might that transform communities' awareness of our work? Please share the stories we've recorded, and we'll share the videos you make, and together we'll testify in a voIce That everyone will hear...I AM THEATRE. YOU ARE THEATRE. WE ARE THEATRE!

For 50 years, Theatre Communications Group (TCG), the national organization for the American theatre, has existed to strengthen, nurture and promote the professional not-for-profit American theatre. TCG's constituency has grown from a handful of groundbreaking theatres to nearly 700 member theatres and affiliate organizations and more than 13,000 individuals nationwide. TCG offers its members networking and knowledge-building opportunities through conferences, events, research and communications; awards grants, approximately $2 million per year, to theatre companies and individual artists; advocates on the federal level; and serves as the US Center of the International Theatre Institute, connecting its constituents to the global theatre community. TCG is North America's largest independent publisher of dramatic literature, with 11 Pulitzer Prizes for Best Play on the TCG booklist. It also publishes the award-winning AMERICAN THEATRE magazine and ARTSEARCH®, the essential source for a career in the arts. In all of its endeavors, TCG seeks to increase the organizational efficiency of its member theatres, cultivate and celebrate the artistic talent and achievements of the field and promote a larger public understanding of, and appreciation for, the theatre. www.tcg.org