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Andrew Lloyd Webber to Deliver Keynote Address at 5th Annual TheaterMakers Summit This Weekend

The theme of this year’s event is “Places Please". It will be co-hosted by Christy Altomare (Anastasia) and Melvin Tunstall III (Beautiful: A Carole King Musical).

By: Nov. 03, 2021
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Andrew Lloyd Webber to Deliver Keynote Address at 5th Annual TheaterMakers Summit This Weekend  Image

Eight-time Tony Award winner Andrew Lloyd Webber will deliver the keynote address at the fifth annual TheaterMakers Summit. The TheaterMakers Studio presents the 2021 TheaterMakers Summit November 6 and 7, with a special bonus day November 8. The theme of this year's event is "Places Please." Co-hosted by Christy Altomare (Anastasia) and Melvin Tunstall III (Beautiful: A Carole King Musical), the 2021 TheaterMakers Summit will be held virtually for attendees and speakers.

WIN A TICKET TO THE VIRTUAL THEATREMAKERS SUMMIT HERE!

"I've had the great fortune of working with Andrew Lloyd Webber over the past several years, and every moment of that time, every conversation, every note, every observation, has been a master class in theatermaking," producer Ken Davenport. "Now, thanks to his dedication to new voices in the theater, theatermakers all over the world will have an opportunity to hear his exceptional insights on making theater and making better theater now . . . and forever."

The TheaterMakers Summit is the destination for all theatermakers. This two-day event aims to unite aspiring writers, producers, directors, actors, and other theatre professionals and fans alike with industry leaders to learn about and discuss the business of Broadway. The weekend will offer a series of panels and presentations on topics including Advancing Equity for BIPOC TheaterMakers Onstage And Off; The Non-Negotiable Must-Knows on Access & Inclusion in Theater; Level Up Your Social Media For You And Your Show; Why Broadway Investors Invest; The Next Gen of Broadway Producers; Musical Theater TikTok; Getting Your Show Produced on the Best Unconventional Platforms; Artistic Directors Tell You What They're Looking For In Your Show; Designing Broadway, Off-Broadway, Virtual Theater; How You Get Tony Award-winning Lead Producers To Produce Your Show; and many more to be announced.

In addition to Lloyd Webber, Altomare and Tunstall, this year's summit speakers and panelists include:

· Costume Designer Dede Ayite (Slave Play)

· Actor Pun Bandhu (The Treasurer)

· Producer Laura Z. Barket (Thoughts Of A Colored Man)

· Producer Valentina Berger (The Minutes)

· Actor Eric Berryman (The B-Side)

· Producer Dori Berinstein (The Prom)

· Actor Sierra Boggess (School of Rock)

· Chair in Musical Theatre at Shenandoah Conservatory Patrick Brady

· Social media manager & Digital Marketer Micayla Brewster (Hadestown)

· Actor Alex Brightman (Beetlejuice)

· Director Steve H. Broadnax III (Thoughts Of A Colored Man)

· Partner, Toby M.J. Butterfield (Moses & Singer, Intellectual Property & Litigation Groups)

· Producer Stephen Byrd (Ain't Too Proud)

· Director Sammi Cannold (Ragtime on Ellis Island)

· Producer Rashad V. Chambers (Ain't Too Proud)

· Composer & TikTok influencer RJ Christian (Ratatouille The TikTok Musical)

· Actor Jenn Colella (Come From Away)

· Producer Sydney Connors (Dreamgirls on Clubhouse)

· Producer E. Clayton Cornelious (Chicken and Biscuits)

· Composer, Lyricist & Playwright Jenna Cox (Wait For Her)

· Actor Kevin Davis (The Gospel at Colonus)

· Director of Social Media and Creative Strategy Felicia Fitzpatrick (Playbill)

· Actor, Dancer Singer/Songwriter Héctor Flores Jr. (Advocacy Leadership Institute, National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures)

· Actress Asmeret Ghebremichael (The Book of Mormon)

· Producer Amanda Gohh (Theatre Producers of Color)

· Actor & Disability Inclusion Consultant Alie B. Gorrie (Bastard Jones)

· Agent Max Grossman (Abrams Artists Agency)

· Artistic Director Darryl Reuben Hall (Stage Aurora Theatrical)

· Marketing Director Monica Hammond (Big Leap Brands)

· Artistic director Mark Hoebee (Papermill Playhouse)

· Artistic Director at Kenny Leon's True Colors Theatre & co-founder of The New Griots Festival Jamil Jude

· Director Sheryl Kaller (Mothers and Sons)

· Artist, Director, Choreographer, Dancer, Filmmaker, Acrobat & ASL Interpreter Brandon Kazen-Maddox (Body Language Productions, Inc)

· Producer Tom Kirdahy (The Inheritance)

· Performer, Choreographer Stephanie Klemons (Hamilton)

· Designer David Korins (Hamilton)

· Actress, Director Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon)

· Playwright & Director Tina Landau (Floyd Collins)

· Composer, Lyricist, Book Writer, Performer & Producer Andrew Lippa (The Wild Party)

· Actor, Writer, Director, Composer & Playwright Douglas Lyons (Chicken & Biscuits)

· Artistic Director & CEO at Berkshire Theatre Group Kate Maguire

· Producer JJ Maley (What The Constitution Means To Me)

· Producer Elliott Massie (The Prom)

· Performer Mark Mauriello (Little Horrors)

· Composer & TikTok influencer Daniel Mertzlufft (Ratatouille The TikTok Musical)

· Co-Founder/CEO Jim McCarthy (Stellar, Goldstar)

· Director & Choreographer Jerry Mitchell (On Your Feet!)

· Producer Brian Moreland (Thoughts Of A Colored Man)

· Producer Tyler Mount (Pass Over)

· Actor Eva Noblezada (Hadestown)

· Composer & lyricist Ryan Scott Oliver (Freaky Friday)

· Playwright Jonathan Rand (Check Please)

· Costume & Scenic Designer Clint Ramos (Eclipsed)

· Disabled Director, Educator, and Advocate Ben Raanan

· Producer & Director Megan Ann Rasmussen (Joy)

· Stage Manager Cody Renard Richard (Pass Over)

· Producer Larry Rogowsky (Company)

· Producer Daryl Roth (Kinky Boots)

· Social media strategist Annie Schiffman (CEO of Downstage Media)

· Director of Equity, Diversity & Inclusion, Gennean Scott

· Director John Simpkins (Love in Hate Nation)

· Composer/Lyricist, Music director & Music Producer Georgia Stitt (Snow Child)

· Producer Jacob Stuckelman (site-specific Little Shop Of Horrors, Ithaca, NY)

· Founder & Principal Desiree L. Talley (Talley Law Group PLLC)

· Executive Creative Director Steven Tartick (RPM)

· Interim Associate Program Head of BFA Musical Theater Alexander Tom (Pace University)

· Director & Writer Joe Wielosinski (Final Draft)

· Playwright Bess Wohl (Grand Horizons)

· Actress, Singer, TikToker Anna-Lee Wright (Miss Saigon)

Moderators include:

· Actress and podcaster Grace Aki ("Tell Me On A Sunday with Grace Aki")

· Journalist Jeryl Bruner (Forbes, Parade)

· Director of Musical Theatre and Jazz Patrick Cook (BMI)

· Journalist Charlie Cooper (Broadway.com)

· Director of PLAYBILLder Operations and Community Engagement Logan Culwell-Block (Playbill)

All events will be ASL sign language interpreted.

In addition to this year's panel discussions and networking session, this year's TheaterMakers Summit will offer attendees two new elements. Annie Schiffman of Downstage Media will host break-out room conversations after each event. The weekend will also offer Summit attendees 10-minute opportunities to pitch their show at the virtual "Pitching Booth." Among the guest producers, investors and artistic directors who will receive pitches throughout the weekend: Judith Manocherian (The Great Society), Kate Maguire (Berkshire Theatre Group), Elliott Massie (The Prom), Larry Rogowsky (Company), Neil Gooding (Macbeth), Megan Ann Rasmussen (Joy: The Musical), Dean Roth (The Play That Goes Wrong), Ron Simons (Thoughts of a Colored Man), Dan Stone (Company), and Cynthia J. Tong (The Inheritance).

Last year, due to the pandemic, for the first time The TheaterMakers Summit took place 100% online. Streaming the event in 2020 allowed for the participation of attendees from all over the globe to interact with some of the world's leading TheaterMakers. With the number of attendees having tripled from 2019, last year's event was the biggest and most exciting TheaterMakers Summit to date. So this year's event will again be streamed online via Whova, Streamyard and Zoom.

Events and seminar topics at this year's TheaterMakers Summit will include:

"How You Get Me To Produce Your Show": Award-winning Lead Producers Tell All

Creating the World of Your Show: Award-winning Directors Tell You How They Do It

Designing Your Story: Designing Broadway, Off- Broadway, and Virtual Theater

Getting Your Work Produced Across the Country: The Untapped Potential of Universities

Maintaining Momentum: Advancing Equity for BIPOC TheaterMakers Onstage And Off

The Next Generation of Broadway Producers: Paving The Way On The New Broadway

4 Niches That Have Found Their Audience & Thrive (Faith, TYA, High School, & Queer Theatre

The Future of Regional Theatres: Artistic Directors and Managing Directors Tell You What They're Looking For In Your Show

How I Got "Discovered": The TheaterMaker's Journey Getting Produced to Broadway

The Future Is Female: How These Women Shaped Their Careers on Broadway and How You Can Too

A "How It Got To Broadway" Case Study: Thoughts of a Colored Man

Getting Repped: When and How to Find the Right Agents,

Why Broadway Investors Invest: A Frank Conversation with Three Broadway Investors

The Non-Negotiable MUST-Knows on Access & Inclusion in Theater

Getting Your Show Produced on the BEST Unconventional Platforms

Accessing Your Creativity and Productivity Through Self-Care

Going Viral: Level Up Your Social Media For You And Your Show

Musical Theater TikTok: How Shows Have Found A Digital Audience

Out-of-The-Black-Box: Making Theatre Not In a Theatre

Actors as Collaborators: Creating the World with Actors and Using Their Voices to Shape Your Story

Getting To The Next Stage: A TheaterMaker Case Study

Reimagining Equitable Productions

Facebook Ad Strategies for Building Massive Audiences on Autopilot

Submitting and Presenting Your Work: How to Get Them to Read It and Avoid a Bad First Impression

10 Hacks For Final Draft & Formatting Like An Award-Winning Playwright

BroadwayWorld is the Premiere Sponsor of the 2021 TheaterMakers Summit.

Register today and www.TheaterMakersSummit.com will buy a ticket to send a New York City public high school student to see a Broadway show through a partnership with Broadway Bridges®.

General admission tickets are $497. In addition to the virtual conference programming, registrants who purchase VIP admission for $697 attend VIP virtual networking events and exclusive add-on events like the Bonus Day on November 8, with participating panelists and topics to be announced. To purchase tickets and for further details, visit TheaterMakersSummit.com.

For a complete schedule of events and participants and to secure your seat, visit TheaterMakersSummit.com. All speakers and schedules are subject to change.

· Editor-In-Chief Robert Diamond (BroadwayWorld)

· Associate Director Matt DiCarlo (Moulin Rouge! The Musical)

· Dramaturg Jenna Clark Embrey (The Hot Wing King)

· Arts journalist and Podcaster Ruthie Fierberg (Why We Theater)

· Marketing Director Monica Hammond (Big Leap Brands)

· Clinical Psychologist Dr. Alisa Hurwitz (a.k.a. Dr. Drama)

· Caitlin Huston (Broadway News)

· Julie James (Sirius XM Radio)

· Writer & Actor J. Quinton Johnson (Hamilton)

· Playwright & lyricist Kait Kerrigan (Henry & Mudge)

· Actress Ilana Levine (Friends With Kids)

· Arts Journalist, Commentator and Author Patrick Pacheco (The New York Times, L.A. Times)

· Actor and Life Coach Bret Shuford (Wicked)

· Executive Creative Director Steven Tartick (RPM)

· Founder and Director Marc Tumminelli (Broadway Workshop)

...and many more to be announced.







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