ATW - Working In The Theatre

The design panel - lighting designer Beverly Emmons, costume designer Ann Hould-Ward, and scenic designers David Schulder and Tony Walton - and co-moderater lighting designer Jules Fisher talk about where they studied their craft, how the props can overlap with costuming, how lighting design has evolved, the Ridiculous Theatrical Company's production of "Movieland", and a demonstration of Gary Beach's costume from "Beauty and the Beast".

The panel of performers - Mary Alice ("Having Our Say"), Matthew Broderick ("How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying"), Alan Campbell ("Sunset Boulevard"), Gloria Foster ("Having Our Say"), John Glover ("Love! Valour! Compassion!"), Robert Sean Leonard ("Arcadia"), and Helen Mirren ("A Month In The Country") - talk about how they got started performing, what lessons and training they had, the challenges of working on their current productions, and the playwright's involvement in a production.

Our guests - John Barlow, Damian Bazadona, Nancy Coyne and Drew Hodges - discuss what is involved in marketing, advertising and publicizing a Broadway show; how they work one-on-one with producers and creative teams; the marketing obstacles they face; who their target audience is; how they handle a show that isn't a hit, or that they don't like; the internet's influence on sales; whether or not a known title helps sell a show; how to sustain the buzz after a show opens; and whether "Broadway" can be sold as a brand.

The panel - playwright/actor Dan Butler ("The Only Thing Worse You Could Have Told Me"), playwright Tom Dulack ("Breaking Legs"), director Scott Ellis ("A Month In The Country"), playwright Keith Glover ("Dancing On Moonlight"), director Sean Mathias ("Indiscretions"), director Gregory Mosher (Cryptogram), director Lisa Peterson ("Slavs"), and literary agent Jack Tantleff - talk about where they began their careers, playwrights who direct their own work, funding for non-profit and regional theatres, and the role of casting directors.

The production team of "Love! Valour! Compassion!" - general manager Victoria Bailey, press representative Helene Davis, managing director Barry Grove, director Joe Mantello, playwright Terrence McNally, and artistic director Lynne Meadow - discuss giving playwrights a home at Manhattan Theatre Club, director and playwright working together for the first time, transferring to a Broadway production, ticket pricing, and participating in the Broadway Alliance.

Goodspeed Opera House's team - director/lyricist Martin Charnin ("Annie"), press representative Max Eisen, associate producer Sue Frost, musical supervisor Michael O'Flaherty, director Charles Repole ("Gentleman Prefer Blondes"), and general manager Howard Sherman - discuss Goodspeed's history and focus on the American musical, the business aspects of a regional theatre, being a part of the community, and the advantages of developing production at a distance from New York.

The panel of performers - Betty Buckley ("Sunset Blvd"), Liz Callaway ("Cats"), Valerie Harper ("Death Defying Acts"), Brian Murray ("Racing Demon"), Roger Rees (Tom Stoppard's "Indiscretions"), Frances Sternhagen ("The Heiress") - talk about the different ways they started in the business, training at the Royal Shakespeare Company, notable acting teachers, how to prepare for auditions, replacing in a show with an abbreviated rehearsal period, and how to keep performances fresh during a long run.

The multi-disciplined panelists -- director/choreographer Jeff Calhoun ("Busker Alley"), director/playwright Michael Leeds ("Swinging on a Star"), actor/playwright Anne Meara ("After-Play"), director Mike Ockrent ("Big, Crazy For You, Me and My Girl"), director/choreographer Lee Roy Reams ("Hello, Dolly!" revival), director Lloyd Richards ("Fences"), and director John Tillinger ("Deathtrap") -- discuss the director's role in relationship to the playwright, the differences in developing of musicals and plays, directing revivals, the challenges of auditions, and the pros and cons of workshops.

Five of the stage's most talented Directors - Thomas Kail, Moisés Kaufman, Bartlett Sher, Leigh Silverman and Kate Whoriskey - talk about how they work with, and interpret, the author's work; the relationship between directors and designers; managing change as the work evolves; why they feel actors should be more involved in the process; the different approach they take when working with classics as opposed to original works; how they work with casting directors and then work with the various actors and acting techniques; their desire to be a support system for each other; and whether they feel directing can be taught.

The "Moon Over Buffalo" production team -- press representative Adrian Bryan-Brown, designer/producer Heidi Landesman, producer Elizabeth Williams, general managers Wendy Orshan and Jeffrey M. Wilson of 101 Productions, and Serino Coyne advertising representative Ruth Rosenberg -- discuss the process of bringing Ken Ludwig's play to Broadway, from the first reading, casting Carol Burnett, finding a director, creating the $2.4 million budget including an out-of-town tryout, to advertising, press coverage and opening night reviews.

The design team of "The Heiress" -- scenic designer John Lee Beatty, lightning designer Beverly Emmons, costume designer Jane Greenwood, director Gerald Gutierrez and actor Cherry Jones -- discuss the interwoven details of their production, from natural period lighting for the enclosed sets, to background colors complementing the costumes, and the advantages of collaborating on previous works. Mask/puppet designer Ralph Lee demonstrates the large puppets worn by actors in "Heart Of The Earth: A Popul Vuh Story".

Beginning the discussion with the question of when, or if, work becomes fun, our guests, lead actors all--Jane Alexander, Bill Irwin, Angela Lansbury, Cynthia Nixon, and Geoffrey Rush--also talk about how they choose roles and whether they'd consider playing smaller roles on the stage today; what they feel from an audience and how they react as audience members; their relationship to, and the role of, the stage manager; how much they consciously set the tone for the company; how they balance the thoughts of the playwright and the director -- and how they handle it when the two don't agree; and whether they follow stage directions from the existing script.

The discussion panel - director Leonard Foglia ("Master Class"), director Michael Greif ("Rent"), playwright Betsy Howie ("Cowgirls"), lyricist Tom Jones ("The Fantasticks"), composer/lyricist Mary Murfitt ("Cowgirls"), and director George C. Wolfe ("Bring In 'Da Noise, Bring In 'Da Funk") - talk about how their pieces evolved from concept to production, the role of a dramaturg, casting performers with a range of experience, and bringing actors into the creative process.

Our guests -- Ted Chapin, Kurt Deutsch, Brian Drutman, and Thomas Z. Shepard -- take us inside the world of producing cast albums. Highlights of the discussion center on how these albums get made; the cost of producing them; where they fit in today's market; how technology has affected their production; how much collaboration there is - or isn't - with the shows' directors; changes to the production model; marketing and distribution; digital vs. traditional retail release of albums; and what they mean to the legacy of a musical.

The panel - playwright Allan Knee ("Late Night Comic"), director Ron Lagomarsino ("Driving Miss Daisy"), director Lloyd Richards ("Fences"), casting director Meg Simon ("Fences"), playwright Alfred Uhry ("Driving Miss Daisy"), and playwright August Wilson ("Fences") - discuss directing styles, collaboration between playwright and director, developing and casting their current productions, and the emergence of casting directors for the stage.