Women to Watch on Broadway

To spotlight women in leadership, the Broadway Women’s Fund — Broadway’s first impact investment fund — is proud to announce the fourth annual Women to Watch on Broadway.

These extraordinarily talented women are excelling in their careers in regional theaters, Off-Broadway, as Broadway Associates, and in Broadway offices. Although they have already achieved significant success — many are winners of prestigious grants, scholarships, and commissions — they may still be considered “emerging.” But each person on this list has emerged ready to take her place at the very top of the industry and shake up the status quo on Broadway.

This list, curated by Broadway Women’s Fund leadership based on nominations by advisory board members, is by no means comprehensive. In fact, no list would do justice to the amount of capable and talented women in our industry. But we look forward to spotlighting additional future leaders in the years to come, and we hope that this initiative encourages Broadway industry members to look outside of their networks when hiring, and to empower the many women ready to step up into top roles.

We cannot expect the dynamics of this industry to change without the support of our whole community — so please: share this list, hire these women, and invest in their careers, because they are the future of Broadway. And if you’re inspired to do more, ask us about how you can be a part of the Broadway Women’s Fund.

Deborah Abramson

Composer/Music Director/Pianist/Conductor

Deborah was Associate Music Director of the original Spring Awakening and the first Children’s Music Director on Broadway (Matilda); she was the Music Director of Maybe Happy Ending at the Alliance; as composer, her shows include Old Older Oldest (with William Finn), Young Marco Polo (with Peter Mills), and The History of War (with Amanda Yesnowitz and Chip Zien).

Marjuan Canady

Producer/Arts Consultant/Educator

Marjuan is a Caribbean-American artist, entrepreneur, educator, and literacy advocate whose work spans theater, film, television, children’s media and literature; she was a Co-Producer on Death of a Salesman and is the inaugural Front Row Productions Fellow/Adjunct Research Scholar at Columbia’s Theatre Management and Producing Program.

Tatyana-Marie Carlo

Director/Artistic Director

Tatyana-Marie is a Puerto Rican Director; she was previously Artistic Director of Micro Theater Miami and Associate Director of Seminole Theatre in Florida; she holds an MFA in Directing from Brown and BFA in Acting from New World.

Bee Carrozzini

Producer

Bee is a Producer for ATG Productions, whose Broadway shows include David Byrne’s American Utopia and Plaza Suite; she is currently a Producer of Parade and previously produced Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag Off Broadway. 

Heather Christian

Composer/Performer

Obie Award-winner Heather’s shows include Broadway-bound Oratorio for Living Things (previously at Ars Nova), Prime: A Practical Breviary at Playwrights Horizons, Animal Wisdom at Bushwick Starr, and The World Is Round at BAM.

Ari Conte

Producer/Performer

Ari is Executive Producer of the SheNYC Theater Festival and produces events for New York Civil Liberty Union’s Artist Ambassador program; she is currently producing a high profile feminist adaptation of Pippin.

Miranda Gohh

Producer

Miranda is the Founder of Theatre Producers of Color and a Co-Founding Member of The Industry Standard Group; she is Associate Producer at Davenport Theatrical, where productions include A Beautiful Noise; her Co-Producer credits include K-Pop, Macbeth, Is This A Room and Dana H, and the upcoming Here Lies Love. 

Sarah Harris

Stage Manager

Sarah’s Broadway Stage Manager credits include Parade, A Christmas Carol, Once on This Island, and Come From Away. 

Sarah Hutton

Sales and Ticketing Executive

Sarah is Senior Director of Client Development at Ticketmaster; she is on the Board of Directors for The Drama League and Co-Chair of the Associate Board for CO/LAB Theater Group.

Ola Ince

Director

London-based Ola is the International Associate Director of TINA; she recently directed Heart at the Minetta Lane; awards include the BBC Performing Arts Fellow Award, Genesis Future Director Award, Elle’s ‘50 Game Changers of Now’; she has worked at the Royal Opera House, Donmar Warehouse, Young Vic, Royal Court, National Theatre, Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, and St. Ann’s.

Nico Juber

Composer/Lyricist/Librettist/Brand Strategist

Millennials Are Killing Musicals, with book, music, and lyrics by Nico, is premiering Off Broadway this spring; her show Winner, co-written with Joe Barros, is being developed by New York Theatre Barn and New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts; she runs a marketing and brand strategy consulting firm and previously worked at Adobe. 

Emily Maltby

Director/Choreographer/Writer

Emily was Co-Choreographer and Co-Director of the TikTok musical For You, Paige; she co-choreographed Evita at New York City Center, co-wrote and directed Allegory at the La Jolla Playhouse WOW Festival, and directed Penelope and a reimagining of Lerner and Barry’s Lolita, My Love at the York.

Ashley Brooke Monroe

Director

Ashley is Resident Director of the first national tour of Hamilton; recent shows under her direction include Death Cruise (Access Theater), Fun Home (Cape Rep), The Goree All-Girl String Band (NYMF), and Julius Caesar (CSC); she has been Assistant or Associate Director for Sam Gold, Rebecca Taichman, Alex Timbers, and Tommy Kail.

Ana Nogueira

Playwright/Performer

Ana’s play Which Way to the Stage was presented at MCC and Signature Theatre; she is developing her play Empathitrax into a feature film with Berlanti Productions; she has an overall deal with DC as a screenwriter and she has a recurring role as Donna on the Starz crime drama “Hightown.”

Haley Parcher

Sound Designer

Haley is a Sound Designer with extensive experience at regional theatres including The Kennedy Center, 5th Avenue Theatre, and A.R.T.

Jamila Ponton Bragg

Producer

A 2022 Prince Fellow Award-winner and Board member of Harlem Stage, Jamila is the founder of JamRock Productions, a theatre production company committed to works for, about, and by women; she was a Co-Producer of Death of a Salesman and Associate Producer of Pass Over on Broadway.

Julia Riew

Composer/Lyricist/Librettist

Julia is a Harvard graduate whose numerous awards and fellowships include the 2022 Fred Ebb Award and the 2022 Harvardwood Artist Launch Fellowship; previous and current shows include Dive, Jack and the Beanstalk: A Musical Adventure (A.R.T.’s 2020 Family Musical), and Thumbelina: A Little Musical (A.R.T.’s 2019 Family Musical).

Lindsey Roller

Carpenter

Lindsey is the Head Carpenter on The Lion King‘s Rafiki tour; she is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

Mona Seyed-Bolorforosh

Conductor/Music Director/Pianist/Orchestrator

Mona is the Music Consultant of the current Annie tour; she was a sub Conductor on Come From Away, and currently serves as Orchestra Manager and Associate Music Director of Heartbeat Opera. 

Ashley Soliman

Costume Designer

Ashley has been the Costume Designer for productions at the Santa Fe Opera, Bay Street Theater, and Teatro Grattacielo, as well as for the web series “In Character”; she won Best Costumes for her shows at NYC Fringe Festival and Frigid Fest; she is an Adjunct Instructor at NYU Tisch.

Mandy Tate

Box Office Treasurer

Mandy is the Box Office Treasurer at Circle in the Square; she was previously Assistant Treasurer at The Helen Hayes; she has General Manager and Assistant Company Manager credits on Broadway, and is a member of IATSE.

Jennifer Werner

Director/Choreographer

In addition to serving as the worldwide Associate Director of Book of Mormon, Jennifer directed Joe Iconis’ Broadway Bounty Hunter Off Broadway and will be directing the upcoming Punk Rock Girl.

Marion Williams

Set Designer/Costume Designer

Marion’s credits include Primary Stages, MCC, Juilliard, Limón Dance Company, Manhattan School of Music, McCarter, Center Stage, The Guthrie, Alliance, Actors Theatre of Louisville, South Coast Repertory, Barrington Stage, Folger, Louisville Ballet, Cincinnati Playhouse, Two River, Cincinnati Ballet, and more; she is a Princess Grace Award-winner.

Alex Wolfe

General Manager

Alex is an Associate General Manager at Foresight; she was the Company Manager of Harry Connick Jr. – A Celebration of Cole Porter, Thoughts of a Colored Man, and Girl From the North Country. 

Kristina Wong

Playwright/Performer

Kristina’s solo show Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord had a highly acclaimed premiere at NYTW, was a New York Times Critic’s Pick, and won the Drama Desk, Lortel, and The Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding Solo Performance; she is a Doris Duke Artist Award winner and a Pulitzer Prize finalist in Drama.

To nominate women for the 2024 Women to Watch on Broadway, please email [email protected]

Women to Watch on Broadway 2022

To spotlight women in leadership, the Broadway Women’s Fund — Broadway’s first impact investment fund — is proud to announce the third annual Women to Watch on Broadway.

While the industry is starting to rebound from the worst of the Coronavirus pandemic, and there is certainly reason to celebrate, recent data around women returning to the workplace is disappointing. According to an analysis by the National Women’s Law Center in January 2022, men have completely recouped pandemic employment losses, while 1.1 million fewer women are participating in the labor force than in February 2020. 39,000 women over age 20 joined the workforce this past January, compared to 1 million men. As Broadway begins to bounce back, we must make sure women make up for lost ground in order to achieve our goal of gender parity among industry leadership.

Elevating the women on this list would be a great place to start. These extraordinarily talented women are excelling in their careers in regional theaters, Off-Broadway, as Broadway associates, and in Broadway offices. Although they have already achieved significant success — many are winners of prestigious grants, scholarships, and commissions — they may still be considered “emerging.” But each person on this list has emerged ready to take her place at the very top of the industry and shake up the status quo on Broadway.

This list, curated by Broadway Women’s Fund leadership based on nominations by advisory board members, is by no means comprehensive. In fact, no list would do justice to the amount of capable and talented women in our industry. But we look forward to spotlighting additional future leaders in the years to come, and we hope that this initiative encourages Broadway industry members to look outside of their networks when hiring, and to empower the many women ready to step up into top roles.

We cannot expect the dynamics of this industry to change without the support of our whole community — so please: share this list, hire these women, and invest in their careers, because they are the future of Broadway. And if you’re inspired to do more, ask us about how you can be a part of the Broadway Women’s Fund.

Alyson Ahrns

Director of Communications/Public Relations

Alyson is currently Director of Communications at the Dramatists Guild Foundation; she was previously Senior Public Relations Manager at TodayTix and an Account Executive at Slate PR; she has managed communications campaigns for the Tonys, the O’Neill, 24 Hour Plays, Steinberg Playwright Awards, and has worked on fundraising for amfAR, ASCPA, and GLAAD.

Melis Aker

Playwright/Bookwriter/Composer

Melis has developed work at the Atlantic, Ars Nova (Play Group member), NYTW (2050 fellow), New Group, Dramatists Guild Foundation (DGF Fellow), Roundabout Space Jam, LaMaMa, The Lark, The Flea, Noor, Golden Thread Productions, 24 Hour Plays, Corkscrew Festival and BRIC; she has been on the Kilroys List, and made it to the final round of Sundance, Berkeley Rep Ground Floor, and Playwrights Realm.

Cristina Angeles

Director/Playwright/Producer/Artistic Director

Cristina is an Associate Artist at Roundabout and the FoundingArtistic Director of Checkmark Productions; she is directing upcoming workshops at MTC and Second Stage; she was Assistant Director of A Soldier’s Play on Broadway.

Ngozi Anyanwu

Playwright/Bookwriter

Ngozi’s play Good Grief ran Off-Broadway at the Vineyard and at CTG, where it won their Humanitas Award and was on the Kilroys List; she has commissions with NYU, The Old Globe, Atlantic, Two Rivers Theatre, and Steppenwolf; she has had residencies at LCT3, Space on Ryder Farm, NYSAF, and Page 73.

Julie Boardman

Producer/Entrepreneur

Julie is Co-Founder of the Museum of Broadway; she conceived and produced the film I’m Still Here for the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts; her Broadway Co-Producer credits include Company, Funny Girl, and The Inheritance.

Adrienne Campbell-Holt

Director/Choreographer

Adrienne, the founding artistic director of Colt Coeur and recipient of the 2018 Lucille Lortel Visionary Director Award, has developed work at most Off-Broadway and regional theaters in America, and is currently helming the world premiere of Other World at Delaware Theatre Company.

November Christine

Composer/Lyricist/Bookwriter

November is a BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop lyricist, 2021 Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award winner, and co-chair of the NYCLU Artist Ambassador Program; her musical LEGACY won Best of Fest at the 2018 New York Musical Festival.

Andrea Daly

Composer/Lyricist/Bookwriter

Andrea is currently writing the score for the Broadway adaptation of a major motion picture with Rick Elice (book) and Sara Cooper (lyrics); she wrote music, book, and lyrics for NEXT, commissioned by Barbara Whitman Productions and Grove Entertainment.

Victoria Deiorio

Sound Designer

Victoria is the head of Sound Design at DePaul University; her numerous regional and Off-Broadway credits include Primary Stages, the Sheen Center, Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The Goodman, Steppenwolf, Hartford Stage, Long Wharf, Syracuse Stage, Maltz Jupiter Theatre, and Florida Stage.

Sarah Gancher

Playwright/Bookwriter

Sarah is the bookwriter of The Bengsons’ Hundred Days and The Lucky Ones, which garnered her several Lortel, Drama League, and Drama Desk nominations and wins; she teaches graduate and undergraduate playwriting at The New School and NYU Tisch.

Erica Hemminger

Set Designer

Erica is a veteran Associate Set Designer working with Derek McLane, credits include MJ The Musical, A Soldier’s Play, Moulin Rouge!, Burn This, American Son, Children of a Lesser God, and many, many more; she was Art Director of Hairspray Live!, The Sound of Music Live!, and The Wiz Live! on NBC.

Marlo Hunter

Director/Choreographer

Marlo is the Director of Ever After and Saved by the Bell musical adaptations; she has directed and/or choreographed work at Second Stage, Long Wharf, Williamstown, Roundabout, Playwrights Horizons, Pittsburgh CLO, Bay Street, and more.

Aja M. Jackson

Lighting Designer

Aja was the Lighting Designer of Off-Broadway’s A Commercial Jingle for Regina Comet; regional theater credits include American Repertory Theatre, New Rep, Strand Theatre, and Boston Center of Performing Arts; Aja is Resident Lighting Designer for interdisciplinary, site-specific movement company Nourishment.

Nicole Johnson

Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Director

Nicole is the Founder and Creative Director of the Harriet Tubman Effect Institute for Participatory Action Research, whose Broadway clients include Pass Over, Is This a Room, Dana H, A Christmas Carol, Freestyle Love Supreme, and A Strange Loop.

Candis C. Jones

Director

Candis is the Director of cullud wattah at The Public; previous credits include Celebrating The Black Radical Imagination (Williamstown Theater Festival), 53% Of (The Alliance Theater), Detroit 67′ (DC Signature Theater), Everybody (NYU Tisch), and Morning in America (Primary Stages); she is an Associate Director with Dear Evan Hansen.

Lawryn Lacroix

Producer/Playwright

Lawryn is the most recent recipient of The Prince Fellowship, a current member of The Leadership Project, and a resident producer for The Shubert Organization’s Artistic Circle; her producing company Pinkhouse Productions has many notable film and theater projects in development.

Twi McCallum

Sound Designer

Twi was the Sound Designer of Chicken & Biscuits on Broadway, other credits include Kansas City Rep, National Black Theatre, MCC Theater, Goodman Theater, and Baltimore Center Stage.

Cynthia Meng

Music Director

Cynthia is the Associate Music Director of Suffs at The Public; she played keyboard for Company and Radio City Christmas Spectacular; Cynthia was the Music Assistant on Frozen on Broadway, and the Hadestown, Lempicka, and Moulin Rouge! workshops.

Rebecca J Michelson

Photographer/Videographer

Rebecca’s photography has been featured in Playbill, BroadwayBox, and BroadwayWorld, as well as on many Broadway stars’ social media pages.

Madeline Myers

Composer/Lyricist

A 2022 Kleban Prize finalist for lyric writing, Madeline is the winner of the 2021 Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award, a 2020/2019/2018/2017 Jonathan Larson Grant finalist, 2019 York Theatre Company NEO Writer, a 2021/2020/2019/2018/2017 ASCAP Plus Award recipient, and a 2016-2017 Dramatists Guild Fellow.

Cambra Overend

Producer

Cambra is producer and co-founder of SRO Productions with Bartlett Sher and JT Rogers; as a stage manager, Broadway credits include Oslo, This Is Our Youth, Of Mice and Men, Lucky Guy, That Championship Season, and August: Osage County.

Ming Peiffer 

Playwright

Ming’s play Usual Girls at Roundabout Underground in 2018 made her the first Asian woman to be nominated for a Drama Desk Award for Best Play in history, it was also a NY Times Critic’s Pick; she was commissioned by The New York Times to write Finish the Fight.

Maya Phillips

Theatre Critic

Maya is a New York Times critic at large, recipient of a Hodder Grant from Princeton’s Lewis Center for the Arts, and a PEN Open Book Award nominee; her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Vulture, The Week, Mashable, Slate, and others.

Diana Salameh

Director of Marketing and Communications

Diana is the Director of Marketing and Communications at Serino Coyne, a co-founder of The Broadway Women’s Alliance, and a mentor for NYU Tisch’s Women’s Mentorship Program.

Angela Sclafani

Composer/Lyricist

Angela is a 2019 Fred Ebb award winner, 2018 Jonathan Larson Grant finalist, and 2017 Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award semifinalist; her musical The Other Side of Paradise premiered at Ars Nova’s Ant Fest.

Melissa Shakun

Set Designer

A multiple Emmy Award-winner, Melissa was Art Director of Jesus Christ Superstar Live! for NBC; she is a Designer and Art Director for Saturday Night Live, frequently designing sets for the musical numbers.

Heather Shields

Producer/General Manager

Heather produced Bandstand and A Christmas Carol on Broadway and Puffs! Off-Broadway; she is General Manager of the long-running show BATSU! and a Co-Founder of The Business of Broadway.

Yuvika Tolani

Producer

Yuvika is Director of Producing at The Public; she studied Theater Studies at Yale and sits on the Alumni Board of the Yale Dramatic Association.

Siani Woods

General Manager

Siani is Assistant General Manager at RCI Theatricals; she was previously the Interim Managing Director of Children’s Theatre Company and chair of Front Row Theatre Company; she is a graduate of Wharton.

Jeanette Yew

Lighting Designer/Projection Designer

Jeanette either won or was nominated for a Henry Hewes Award, LIT Design Award, Lortel, and Drama Desk Award for her design of K-POP at Ars Nova; projection design work includes Top Girls, Relevance (Lortel nomination), and Informed Consent with Liesl Tommy; Jeanette is Assistant Arts Professor and Head of Lighting Design Training at NYU’s Department of Drama Production & Design Studio.

To nominate women for the 2023 Women to Watch on Broadway, please email [email protected]

Women to Watch on Broadway 2021

To spotlight women in leadership, the Broadway Women’s Fund — Broadway’s first impact investment fund — is proud to announce the second annual Women to Watch on Broadway.

Covid-19 and its economic implications have devastated the entire theater industry, but research studies show women in the United States — particularly women of color — being disproportionately affected. Women are more likely than men to have left the job force, have reduced work hours, and to delay reentering the workforce. As Broadway rebuilds for a bright future ahead, it is now more important than ever to include women in leadership roles across the industry.

The extraordinarily talented women on this list are excelling in their careers in regional theaters, Off-Broadway, as Broadway associates, and in Broadway offices. Although they have already achieved significant success — many are winners of prestigious grants, scholarships, and commissions — they are still considered “emerging.” But each person on this list has emerged ready to take her place at the very top of the industry and shake up the status quo on Broadway.

This list, curated by Broadway Women’s Fund leadership and advisory board members, is by no means comprehensive. In fact, no list would do justice to the amount of capable and talented women in our industry. But we look forward to spotlighting additional future leaders in the years to come, and we hope that this initiative encourages Broadway industry members to look outside of their networks when hiring, and to empower the many women ready to step up into leadership positions.

We cannot expect the dynamics of this industry to change without the support of our whole community — so please: share this list, hire these women, and invest in their careers, because they are the future of Broadway.

And if you’re inspired to do more, ask us about how you can be a part of the Broadway Women’s Fund.

Sadie Alisa

Production Manager

Sadie is a Production Manager at Juniper Street Productions, she has most recently worked on TINA – the Tina Turner Musical, Dear Evan Hansen (Broadway and First National Tour), Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, and Margaritaville.

Masi Asare

Composer/Lyricist/Bookwriter

Masi is the winner of the Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award, the Holof Lyricist Award, an Emerging Artist Grant from the Theater Hall of Fame, and the Haupt Composition Prize from the O’Neill; she has commissions with Theatre Royal Stratford East, Barbara Whitman/Grove Entertainment, Victory Gardens, and more.

Barlow & Bear

Songwriting Duo

Barlow & Bear are pioneers of the TikTok musical, their viral “Bridgerton” musical has a TikTok following larger than any Broadway show; Abigail Barlow is a pop singer/songwriter and Emily Bear is a singer/songwriter and accomplished classical and jazz composer and pianist.

Haley Bennett

Music Director/Conductor/Arranger/Album Coordinator

Haley’s recent Broadway credits include Associate Music Director and Alternate Conductor of Diana: A True Musical Story, Sub Conductor of Come From Away, Assistant Vocal Arranger/Additional Orchestrations on Once on This Island, and Music Coordinator for the upcoming NBCU / Apple TV show, Schmigadoon!. 

Valentina Berger

Producer/Entrepreneur

Valentina is the Founder of Go Broadway, an international educational program and travel company for Broadway; she is a Co-Producer of Broadway’s Company and The Minutes.

Carmel Dean

Composer/Arranger/Musical Director

Carmel’s first musical, Renascence, won the 2018 Off-Broadway Alliance Award for Best Musical, and her song cycle Well-Behaved Women will soon be available for licensing; Carmel’s Broadway credits as Musical Supervisor, Musical Director, and/or Arranger include If/Then, Hands on a Hardbody, and American Idiot.

Chesray Dolpha

Artistic Director

Chesray is the newly appointed Artistic Director of the Broadway Advocacy Coalition; she has worked with TDF, St. Ann’s Warehouse, and The Dream Center in Harlem; she serves as co-chair of the Taskforce on Equity and Inclusion for the New York City Arts in Education Roundtable.

nicHi Douglas

Writer/Choreographer/Director/Actor

nicHi is the Head of the Movement Department at Playwrights Horizons; she was the Associate Choreographer of Girl from the North Country at The Public; as Playwright, Director and Choreographer, she has commissions with Ars Nova and The Shed.

Jenny Gorelick

Producer

Jenny has been running Operations at The Tony Awards for the past six years; she is the Staff Producer for the American Theatre Wing and the Executive Producer of Nightdrive, a theater company with an Ars Nova Makers Lab Residency.

Lauren Gunderson

Playwright/Bookwriter

Lauren has been one of the most produced playwrights in America since 2015; she is a two-time winner of the Steinberg/ATCA New Play Award, the winner of the Lanford Wilson Award, and a finalist for the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize.

Miranda Haymon

Director/Playwright

Miranda is a Princess Grace Award/Honoraria winner, she is a Resident Director at Roundabout and The Tank, a member of both the Devised Theater Working Group at The Public and the Lincoln Center Theatre Directors Lab, and a Manhattan Theatre Club Directing Fellow; Miranda co-taught Contemporary Theater at Dartmouth College.

Carolina Ortiz Herrera

Lighting Designer

Carolina was the Associate Lighting Designer of Slave Play on Broadway, she has designed shows at Arizona Theater Company, the Apollo, Queens Theater, and Oregon Shakespeare Festival.

Jessica Huang

Playwright/Bookwriter/Lyricist/Producer

Jessica was a 2018 MacDowell Fellow, the inaugural recipient of the 4 Seasons Residency, and a three-time Playwrights’ Center Fellow; she has commissions with Manhattan Theatre Club, TimeLine Theatre Company, Audible, Theater Masters, History Theatre, and Theater Mu.

Chika Ike

Director/Dramaturg

Chika has directed shows at The Public, Berkeley Rep, Playmakers Rep Theatre Company, The Goodman, Victory Gardens, and more; she has Assistant Directed for many notable directors including Daniel Sullivan, Liesl Tommy, Eric Ting, and Rachel Chavkin.

Amber Iman

Actor

Amber is a founding member of the Broadway Advocacy Coalition and Black Women On Broadway; she is a well known Broadway actor who serves as a trusted advocate and voice for actors within the industry.

Jenny Koons

Director

Jenny has developed work at Steppenwolf, Ars Nova, The Playwrights Realm, the Atlantic, Denver Center, Huntington Theatre Company, Roundabout, The Lark, New Black Fest, and more; she was Associate/Resident Director of Off Broadway’s immersive Queen of the Night.

Sarah Lozoff

Intimacy Director

Sarah is the resident intimacy director at Oregon Shakespeare Festival and RudduR Dance, and she has worked with American Ballet Theatre; she is a certified intimacy director and teacher at Intimacy Directors and Coordinators.

Patricia McGregor

Director

Patricia has directed work at the Geffen, CTG, the Guthrie, The Public, Roundabout, Lincoln Center, Dallas Theater Center and Signature Theatre; she directs the 24 Hour Plays on Broadway, is a Usual Suspect at NYTW, and a Paul & Daisy Soros Fellow at Yale School of Drama, where she also served as Artistic Director of the Yale Cabaret.

Grace McLean

Composer/Lyricist/Actor

Grace is an Artist in Residence at Lincoln Center, where her first original musical In The Green debuted at LCT3, won the Richard Rodgers Award for Musical Theater, and was nominated for seven Lucille Lortel Awards.

Mayte Natalio

Choreographer

Mayte has been Associate to Sam Pinkleton and Assistant to Camille A. Brown on many productions including NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live; she has choreographed at Dallas Theater Center, is a member of Lubdub Physical Theatre Co. and is a founding member of the immersive events production company Minute Zero.

Shakina Nayfack

Playwright/Bookwriter/Artistic Director/Director/Actor

Shakina is the Founding Artistic Director of the Musical Theatre Factory and playwright/director of Chonburi International Hotel & Butterfly Club on Audible; recognitions include a Lilly Award, the TRU Humanitarian Award, The Drama League Musical Directing Fellowship, and the Beatrice Terry Residency for women playwright/directors.

Jesca Prudencio

Director/Choreographer

Jesca has developed new work at The Kennedy Center, La Jolla Playhouse, East West Players, The Lark, NAMT, EST, Space on Ryder Farm, La MaMa, Clubbed Thumb, and Joe’s Pub; she is the recipient of the TS Eliot US/UK Exchange at the Old Vic, The Drama League Fall Fellowship, and the inaugural Julie Taymor World Theater Fellowship.

Macy Schmidt

Orchestrator/Arranger/Music Director

Macy was the Orchestrator and co-Music Coordinator of Ratatouille: The TikTok Musical, Music Supervisor of She Persisted at the Atlantic, and on the music team of Broadway’s TINA: The Tina Turner Musical and upcoming Aida; she is the founder of The Broadway Sinfonietta, an all female-identifying, majority women-of-color orchestral collective.

Jane Shaw

Sound Designer

Jane has designed work at Playwrights Horizons, Manhattan Theatre Club, Theatre for a New Audience, Mint Theater, National Black Theatre, Rattlestick, Hartford Stage, Cleveland Play House, The Old Globe, and many more; she is a Drama Desk Award-winner for Outstanding Music in a Play and two-time nominee for Outstanding Sound Design.

Sarah Shutt

Box Office Treasurer

Sarah is the Assistant Treasurer at the Belasco, she was previously the Assistant Box Office Treasurer at the Circle in the Square for seven years, and she worked in the box office at Off Broadway’s Westside Theatre and Daryl Roth Theatre.

Charly Evon Simpson

Playwright

Charly, who recently signed an overall deal with HBO, was the 2019-20 recipient of the Paula Vogel Playwriting Award, her play Behind The Sheet was nominated for the Outer Critics Circle John Gassner Award and received a NY Times’ Critics’ Pick, and she had two plays on the 2019 Kilroys List.

Katie Spelman

Choreographer

A winner of the SDCF Agnes de Mille Commission and nominee of Helen Hayes and Connecticut Critics Awards, Katie has choreographed at Goodspeed, Denver Center, Lookingglass, Shakespeare Theatre Company, Asolo Rep, Chicago Shakes, and more; she was Associate Choreographer of Moulin Rouge and Rent Live! on Fox.

Joanna Lynne Staub

Sound Designer

Joanna is a go-to Sound Designer at Seattle Rep, 5th Ave, The Goodman, WP Theatre, and many more; she is a frequent Associate Sound Designer on Broadway, recent shows include Angels in America, Sweat, and The Color Purple.

Cherie B. Tay

Stage Manager

Cherie (she/they) is the Assistant Stage Manager of Hadestown, previous Broadway credits include Assistant Stage Manager of Gettin’ the Band Back Together, Amélie, In The Heights (National Tour), and War Horse (National Tour); they are also a photographer, videographer (Hadestown), and ukulele teacher (Margaritaville).

Cynthia J. Tong

Producer

Cynthia is the Producing Associate for Tom Kirdahy Productions, Line Producer for 600 Highwaymen, a Fellow of WP Theater’s 2020-2022 Lab, and a founding member of The Industry Standard Group, the first BIPOC commercial theatre investment and producing organization.

To nominate women for the 2022 Women to Watch on Broadway, please email [email protected]

Women to Watch on Broadway 2020

To spotlight emerging leaders in professional theater, the Broadway Women’s Fund is proud to announce the inaugural Women to Watch on Broadway.

Presented by the Broadway Women’s Fund — Broadway’s first-ever impact investment fund — this list celebrates the achievements of a diverse group of women working hard to make an impact on our industry. They are excelling in their careers in regional theaters, Off-Broadway, as Broadway associates and in Broadway offices. Although they have already achieved extraordinary success — many are the winners of prestigious grants, scholarships and commissions — they are still considered “emerging.” But each person on this list of 50 Women to Watch on Broadway is ready to take her place at the very top of the industry and shake up the status quo on Broadway.

This list, selected by Broadway Women’s Fund leadership and advisory board, is by no means comprehensive. In fact, no list would do justice to the amount of capable and talented women in our industry. But we look forward to spotlighting additional future leaders in the years to come, and we hope that this initiative encourages Broadway industry members to look outside of their networks when hiring, and to empower the many women ready to step up into leadership positions.

We cannot expect the dynamics of this industry to change without the support of our whole community — so please: share this list, hire these women, and invest in their careers, because they are the future of Broadway.

And if you’re inspired to do more, ask us about how you can be a part of the Broadway Women’s Fund.

In her 2019 Tony Award acceptance speech for Best Direction of a Musical, Rachel Chavkin (Broadway Women’s Fund advisory board member) said,
“[Gender parity on Broadway] is not a pipeline issue…” 

Here is the pipeline:

Clare Barron

Playwright

Clare’s play Dance Nation was a Pulitzer Prize finalist, and her adaptation of Three Sisters will have a starry production at NYTW later this year.

Jen Bender

Producer

Previously Resident and Associate Director of numerous Broadway shows, Jen started Quick Brown Fox Productions to develop and produce several high-profile musicals.

Lileana Blain-Cruz

Director

Lileana is a recipient of the Lincoln Center Emerging Artist Award, an Obie Award-winner for Marys Seacole and The Death of the Last Black Man…; other previous projects include Red Speedo, Anatomy of a Suicide, and Fefu and Her Friends.

Jhanaë Bonnick

Stage Manager

Jhanaë was the Production Stage Manager for several high-profile workshops at New York Stage and Film and was most recently a Stage Manager of Slave Play on Broadway.

Maggie Burrows

Director

Maggie has previously worked at Playwrights Horizons, NYTW, Williamstown, EST, The Tank, and The Geffen; she was also the Associate Director of My Fair Lady, Sylvia, and Constellations on Broadway.

Sammi Cannold

Director

Sammi’s work has been making waves since she directed Violet on a moving bus at A.R.T., and she has since directed Ragtime on Ellis Island, Evita at Encores!, and Endlings.

Katherine Carter

Director

Katherine’s work has been seen at Santa Fe Opera, Houston Grand Opera, Westport Country Playhouse, Playwrights Horizons, On Site Opera, American Academy of Dramatic Art, NYMF and more; she is also Co-Founder of The MITTEN Lab.

Jiyoun Chang

Lighting Designer

Jiyoun is a Drama Desk nominee for Slave Play and Obie Award-winner for The World is Round; her work has been seen at BAM, Roundabout, Berkeley Rep, The Guthrie, The Old Globe, and more.

Anika Chapin

Dramaturg

Anika is a trusted dramaturg of new work in NYC, and has taken her skills out of town as the Literary Manager at Two River Theater and as Artistic Associate at Goodspeed.

Melissa Crespo

Director/Playwright/Producer

Melissa is Tisch’s Stage Artist in Residence; as a director, her play ¡Figaro! (90210) premiered at LA Opera and was produced twice Off-Broadway; as a writer, she co-wrote Egress (Cleveland Playhouse).

Chanel DaSilva

Choreographer

The choreographer of Moby Dick at A.R.T., Chanel is Co-Founder/Artistic Director of Move [NYC]; previous commissions include Gibney, Joffrey, Harvard Dance Project, and Juilliard.

Michelle Dorrance

Choreographer

A prolific tap dancer and choreographer, Michelle is a MacArthur Genius Grant winner, Princess Grace Award winner, Founder/Artistic Director of Dorrance Dance, 2017 Choreographic Fellow at City Center and an Artist in Residence at the American Tap Dance Foundation.

Emily Feldman

Playwright/Bookwriter

The list of Emily’s regional and nonprofit awards, fellowships, and commissions is long; upcoming shows include The Best We Could (a family tragedy) Off-Broadway at MTC.

Selina Fillinger

Playwright

Selina is an actress and playwright whose work has been heralded by Chris Jones in the Chicago Tribune; her play Faceless received a Jeff Award nomination, and her play Something Clean received a NY Times Critic’s Pick.

Madeleine Foster Bersin

Producer

In addition to being a Co-Producer on What the Constitution Means to Me and The Inheritance on Broadway, Maddy’s creative producing includes House Plant at Next Door @ NYTW and Adrienne Truscott’s (Still) Asking For It at Joe’s Pub; she was also The TEAM’s Associate Producer & Interim Producing Director.

Katie Gamelli

Agent

Katie is a Theatrical Literary Agent at A3 Artists Agency, and she has an impressive list of clients including Grace McLean and Shakina Nayfack.

Tilly Grimes

Costume Designer

Tilly has two Lortel Award nominations (Underground Railroad Game at Ars Nova and The Government Inspector at Redbull Theater); previous work includes Seared, Small Mouth Sounds and Skypony’s The Wildness.

Jenna Grossano

Producer

Jenna’s work as a creative producer includes F*ck Marry Kill (New Ohio), Independents (Best Musical FringeNYC), Pussy Sludge, and Outlaws; she is also a founding member and Producing Director of Less Than Rent Theatre.

Ellie Heyman

Director

Ellie is the Director in Residence of Joe’s Pub; her show The Traveling Imaginary was rated in the “top five shows of the year” by NPR and given a Time Out Critic’s Pick; she is currently directing a ship-wide immersive show for the Virgin Voyage cruise line.

Elisheba Ittoop

Sound Designer

Elisheba is a go-to Sound Designer of original plays at the top NYC nonprofits including Playwrights Horizons, NYTW, Roundabout, and more.

Britta Johnson

Composer/Lyricist/Bookwriter

Hailing from Toronto, Britta wrote book/music/lyrics for Life After at The Old Globe, and previous credits include the libretto for The Kreutzer Sonata with Ballet Moscow.

Danielle Karliner Naish

General Manager

Dani is a General Manager at RCI Theatricals, serving as point person for several Broadway shows this year, and is very active in the Off-Broadway League.

Lauren Lovette

Choreographer

Lauren has choreographed two shows for New York City Ballet, where she is also a principal dancer, and is Artist in Residence at Vail Dance Festival.

Kate Lumpkin

Casting Director

Kate is well known for her work in the New York reading scene, as well as Off-Broadway, at The Kennedy Center, The Actors Theatre of Louisville, A.R.T., and more.

Taibi Magar

Director

Taibi is an Obie Award-winner for Is God Is who focuses on new work in New York and regionally.

Caroline Maroney

Producer

Caroline focuses on theater in Lorne Michaels’ office and is an Associate Producer of Mean Girls.

Kate Marvin

Sound Designer

Kate has designed sound for plays and musicals at A.R.T., Actors Theatre of Louisville, Trinity Shakespeare Festival, Heartbeat Opera, The New School, the Guthrie, WP Theatre, and more.

Anne McPherson

Stage Manager

Anne has several Broadway Assistant Stage Manager and Stage Manager credits to her name, most recently stepping into My Fair Lady and Once on This Island.

Kendra Moore

Company Manager

Kendra, the Company Manager of Blue at the Apollo, was previously with Disney Theatrical since 2003, starting off as Dance Captain for The Lion King and shifting into the role of Assistant Company Manager on the tour and on Broadway.

Kristy Norter

Music Coordinator

Although she is no stranger to the Broadway orchestra pit, Kristy is shifting gears and making her Music Coordinator debut with Six, making her the only female Music Coordinator on Broadway.

Olivia O’Connor

Dramaturg

Previously a member of the artistic staff at Roundabout, Olivia moved to Pittsburgh and has been developing the new work initiative at Pittsburgh CLO.

Helen Park

Composer/Lyricist/Orchestrator

Helen is the first Asian composer or lyricist to win a Lortel Award and is a three-time Drama Desk Award Nominee for her work on the Ars Nova immersive musical KPOP.

Taylor Reynolds

Director

Taylor received a Drama Desk nomination last year for Plano, and is one of the Producing Artistic Leaders of Obie Award-winning The Movement Theatre Company in Harlem.

Meredith Ries

Set Designer

Meredith has many Broadway Associate Scenic Designer credits to her name; previous Scenic Design credits include Love in Hate Nation and Dancepartyshowthing.

Jalaina Ross

General Manager

Jalaina is Associate General Manager at Foresight Theatrical, and is the point person for several big Broadway musicals and their national tours; she previously worked as a theatrical booking agent.

Erica Rotstein

Producer

In addition to her role as Director of Production at JGO, Erica is Chairwoman of the Board for Colt Coeur, Drew Gasparini’s manager, an Adjunct Professor at Drexel University teaching The Business of Broadway, and she produced The Bengsons’ Hundred Days.

Sandy Rustin

Playwright/Bookwriter

Sandy is the bookwriter of the adaptions of Clue, Mystic Pizza, two original musicals for Disney, and recently co-rewrote I Married an Angel for City Center’s Encores.

Ellenore Scott

Choreographer

Ellenore is the choreographer of Off-Broadway’s Little Shop of Horrors, she has many Associate and Assistant Broadway credits to her name, is Artistic Director of ELSCO Dance, and was a finalist and All-Star on So You Think You Can Dance.

Jackie Sibblies Drury

Playwright

Jackie won the David Wickham Prize at Brown, and then went on to win the Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, Steinberg Playwright Award, and the Pulitzer Prize for Fairview.

Rona Siddiqui

Composer/Lyricist/Orchestrator/Music Director

Rona is a recent winner of the Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award, ASCAP Foundation Mary Rodgers/Lorenz Hart Award, ASCAP Foundation/Max Dreyfus scholarship, and the Larson grant.

Madeline Smith

Music Director/Arranger/Conductor

Madeline made history as the youngest woman to conduct in a Broadway pit (Waitress); she also adapted Frozen Jr. and Descendants for Disney.

Celine Song

Playwright

Celine’s play Endlings premiered at A.R.T. and quickly transferred to NYTW; she was named a finalist for the 2020 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize and was selected for the 2018 O’Neill Conference.

Danya Taymor

Director

Most recently, Danya directed Will Arbery’s Heroes of the Fourth Turning, Jeremy O. Harris’ Daddy, and Antoinette Nwandu’s Pass Over and Danai Gurira’s Familiar at Steppenwolf.

Awoye Timpo

Director

Awoye’s show Ndebele Funeral ran at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, the National Black Theatre, and had a South African tour; she has also directed shows at The Vineyard, 59E59, Columbia, Juilliard, La MaMa, and more.

Annie Tippe

Director

Annie is known for directing new work; recent directing credits include Dave Malloy’s Octet and Ghost Quartet; upcoming shows include National Lampoon’s Lemmings: 21st Century.

Chloe Treat

Director/Choreographer

Chloe has directed and choreographed at just about every New York area college, and frequently choreographs at opera houses across the country; she is a Drama League Directors Project Alumni.

Whitney White

Director

Whitney is a Susan Stroman Directing Award-winner and an Artistic Associate at Roundabout; recent productions include What To Send Up When It Goes Down and Our Dear Dead Drug Lord.

Julianne Wick Davis

Composer/Lyricist

Julianne is a Larson Award-winner and Billie Burke Ziegfeld Award-winner; her music for Southern Comfort at The Public garnered a NY Times Critic’s Pick and Lortel and Outer Critics Circle Nominations for Outstanding Musical; upcoming productions include Trevor Off-Broadway.

Emma Wilk

Sound Designer

Emma has sound designed in just about every midtown and downtown venue in NYC, and has also worked in regional theaters in White Plains, Vermont and Idaho.

Tamilla Woodard

Director

Tamilla is known for directing inventive, often immersive, new work; she is the Associate Director of Hadestown and the Associate Artistic Director of WP Theater.

To nominate women for the 2021 Women to Watch on Broadway, please email [email protected]