Chad Austin and JV Mercanti Launch New Collaborative Company 'The 29 Hour Venture'

Chad Austin and JV Mercanti have launched a new collaborative company The 29 Hour Venture, www.the29hourventure.com with the aim to provide an artistic space for writers to hear their work -- at whatever stage of the process - produced with the utmost professionalism. They can cover all needs from space rental to stage management to casting to directing. Whether it be a play, a musical, or a more experimental theatrical event, they guarantee a reading of the highest caliber.

Chad and JV met while working on NBC's Emmy and Grammy award winning production of Jesus Christ Superstar Live, starring John Legend, Sara Bareilles, and Brandon Victor-Dixon. They immediately developed a personal and professional rapport. The desire to continue working together birthed The 29 Hour Venture.

Chad Austin is the Artistic Director of Abingdon Theatre Company in New York City. Chad joined ATC in 2016 as the Associate Director and during that time helped to develop works such as the World Premiere of The Mother of Invention by Academy Award Winner, James Lecesne, Chess Match No. 5, directed by Ann Bogart and Eve Ensler's Fruit Trilogy. In 2018, Chad took over as Artistic Director of Abingdon and now continues to develop and produce brave, new American work by emerging and established artists. In his time as Artistic Director, Chad created Abingdon's One Night Only series which gave a stage to Wade Dooley's, The Prompter, starring Academy Award winner Estelle Parsons. In this series, Chad also shepherded a production of Steel Magnolias, featuring Tony Award Nominees, Brenda Braxon, Sandy Duncan and Nancy Opel. With Chad at the helm, Abingdon also co-produced the critically acclaimed off-Broadway run of Jacqueline Novak's, Get On Your Knees. In addition to all of his work at Abingdon, highlights of his career include, the Emmy award winning Jesus Christ Superstar Live In Concert on NBC, starring John Legend and Sara Bareilles; Love! Valour! Compassion! at Theatre 71; And the World Goes 'Round, honoring Bebe Neuwirth; Alone in the U.S.A at SUNY New Paltz; Who Are You? At the New York Music Theatre Festival; Rodgers and Hammerstein's Carousel and Chess both at A.T.A NYC and Peter and the Wolf with the Hampton Ballet Theatre. Chad also choreographed the musical movies Walk the Walk, Landed, and Winning New York (official section 2016 young film maker series).

JV Mercanti directed the initial 29 hour readings of Once Upon a One More Time (the Broadway-bound Britney Spears jukebox musical) as well as Greetings From Niagara Falls (Harvey Fierstein, book; Alan Menken, music; Jack Feldman, lyrics). His production of Songbird (Lauren Pritchard, music & lyrics) was named a New York Times Critic's Pick. JV is currently acting as the Associate Director on Once Upon a... and previous Associate credits include Jesus Christ Superstar Live (NBC) and the Broadway revival of Romeo & Juliet (starring Orlando Bloom). As a Casting Director, credits include Broadway's Romeo & Juliet and Cyrano de Bergerac. JV is an Associate Professor of Acting in the Musical Theater Program at Pace University and has over a decade's experience as an educator. In Performance, his four volume series of monologue books, is published by Rowan Littlefield.

For more information visit: www.the29hourventure.com

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