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To keep up with my daily Ken-isms, you can follow me on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, & LinkedIn!

Irene Gandy has been working as a press agent and producer on Broadway for over 50 years.

Do you need more of an intro that than?

Well, how about this . . . she’s got hundreds of shows on her resume, from Glengarry Glen Ross (a couple of times) to All The Way, and even all the way back to Gemini, and was recently inducted into the Oral History Project in the Lincoln Center Library. She is still the only black female member of the Association of Theatrical Press Agents and Managers (ATPAM) so you can imagine what it was like breaking into this biz when she began.

Irene and I sat down BC (before Covid) and told-me-like-it-is on all things, including . . .

• Why you should never “believe your own press release” when promoting a show.  
• What your goal should be when trying to get attention from the media.
• Why being honest gets you more press, more sales . . . more everything.
• Is there such a thing as bad press?  If so, how to avoid it.
• Her favorite press stunts and how they came up with them.

I’ve always said that press can sell more tickets to a show than any advertising medium around.  So tune in to this masterclass and get actionable to-dos to help you sell tickets . . . or sell yourself!  (Yep, Directors, Actors, etc, all can get career boosts because of press.)

Enjoy the podcast!  

• Click above to listen!
• Listen to it on iTunes here. (And if you like the podcast, give it a great review while you’re there!)
• Download it here.

And this week’s #SongwriterOfTheWeek is Michael Sobie! If you enjoyed the outro song in this episode, go on over to www.michaelsobie.com or check him out on Facebook.

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Don’t forget! I’m going LIVE tonight (and every night) over on my Facebook at 8pm eastern. Tonight’s guest is Director/Choreographer Kathleen Marshall. To see the full schedule visit, www.theproducersperspective.com/LIVE.

You want a show to look glam?

Get William Ivey Long.

William has not only won six Tony Awards, but he has been nominated for 11 more and has already been inducted into the Theater Hall of Fame!

And he is still designing as much as he ever has, working in all the entertainment mediums, from opera to ballet to tv and film.  He has a whopping 76 (!) Broadway credits including Chicago, Beetlejuice, Tootsie, Cinderella, Grey Gardens, Hairspray, The Producers, Crazy For You, Nine, and the new musical Diana (which he was prepping to open when we recorded this podcast – BC – before Coronavirus).

William is always a joy to chat with and learn from and we discussed a variety of subjects including . . .

• What on earth is an “osmosis lair”?
• How can playwrights help costume designers?
• Why are costumes so damn expensive?
• The “special spark” that makes a show special . . . and succeed. 
• Developing new audiences for the theater in 2020.  

Enjoy the podcast!

• Click above to listen!
• Listen to it on iTunes here. (And if you like the podcast, give it a great review while you’re there!)
• Download it here.

And this week’s #SongwriterOfTheWeek is Nicholas Kaminski! If you enjoyed the outro song in this episode, go on over to https://kaminskimusic.com/.

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Are you watching our livestream? Tonight, Composer/Lyricist Andrew Lippa joins the lineup of guests to appear on The Producer’s Perspective LIVE! At 8pm EDT tonight, we’ll be talking about writing your way out of the crisis, Dramatist Guild Foundation, and more! Tune in.

You can also go back and watch all 15 other episodes including Stephen Schwartz, Jeanine Tesori, Alex Brightman, and more!

Some people camp out for tickets to their favorite shows. Diana DiMenna camps out to produce her favorite shows.

That’s right.  When she finds a project she wants to be a part of, she doesn’t stop until she finds a way to join the team.

It’s that drive and passion that has gotten her on the producing teams of shows like Girl From The North Country; What The Constitution Means to Me; Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812; and more.

In this episode (recorded before this whole virus thing came down), Diana shared just what it is about certain projects that compel her to produce them, as well as . . .

• Why Broadway needs to pay more attention to contracts
• Why passion is a double-edged sword
• How Broadway fails its audiences
• Why Broadway needs more women in leadership roles
• Why theatre needs to adjust its price points to make room for new demographics

It won’t take long into this podcast for you to understand why Diana isn’t going to have to work so hard to join projects in the future.  I can’t imagine anyone NOT wanting her on their team. 

Enjoy the podcast!

• Click above to listen!
• Listen to it on iTunes here. (And if you like the podcast, give it a great review while you’re there!)
• Download it here.

And this week’s #SongwriterOfTheWeek (or Songwriters in this case!) are Kinosian and Blair! If you enjoyed the outro song in this episode, go on over to kinosianandblair.com or check them out on Instagram & Twitter @JoeAndKellen.

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Looking for more content like this during the Broadway Shut Down?  Every night at 8pm EDT (INCLUDING TONIGHT!), I’m live streaming interviews on my Facebook page with Broadway greats like Stephen Schwartz, Alan Cumming, Sierra Boggess, Kenny Leon and more.  Click here for the full schedule!