TRU Producer Boot Camp - Raising Money for Theater 2023

A dependable haven for artists in isolation, Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) announces an upcoming Producer Boot Camp, Raising Money for Theater 2023: Who, How and When to Ask, reformatted and rethought for virtual presentation, on Saturday, January 28, 2023 from 12pm-7:00pm ET. Register before January 15 for access to an early bird discount: $160 for non-members and $125 for members (regular tuition is $200 for non-members and $165 for TRU members). To register for the virtual event, visit truonline.org/events/raising-money-for-theater-2023.

The world has been on hold since March 2020, but hope is on the horizon at last. So get ready to move ahead with passion and a plan, and an awareness of how to navigate our current virtual world to move your project forward. For producers, one important step is finding the money and resources to make it all happen. And with our new engagement in the virtual world, maybe it's time to think globally.

We invite you to acquire some basic tools and crucial information that will help you to overcome your money shyness (and virtual roadblocks) and effectively reach out to supporters. From pitching techniques and presentation skills to legal requirements and business planning, plus a wealth of first-hand experience from a half dozen producers who are currently active in the Broadway and off-Broadway worlds, we promise you an informative, empowering and inspiring day.

There are COVID-19 scholarships available for applicants with demonstrated financial need. To apply, fill out an online scholarship application at https://forms.gle/SQAZrFc3nXjduyPu9.

Workshop faculty will include:

Producer Jane Dubin (The Prom, Tony winning The Norman Conquests, An American in Paris, Farinelli and the King, Bandstand, Peter and the Starcatcher, Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, The 39 Steps, Ann)

Producer Sharon Fallon/Sharon Fallon Productions, executive producer, general manager and consultant (Indecent, Beautiful Broadway, London & National Tour, Matilda The Musical, Lysistrata Jones)

Producer R.K. Greene (Peter and the Starcatcher, The Lightning Thief tour, Farinelli and the King, A Time to Kill, Cougar the musical, Room Service)

Producer Jim Kierstead (Tony winner for Hadestown, Kinky Boots and Pippin; plus Ain't Too Proud, The Inheritance, Waitress, Indecent, Natasha Pierre..., Sunset Boulevard, Kinky Boots, Waitress, Yank!)

Producer Cody Lassen (How I Learned To Drive, A Commercial Jingle for Regina Comet, Indecent, Spring Awakening revival)

Producer Stephanie Rosenberg, Tony Award-Winning producer (Moulin Rouge!, Anastasia, Matilda, On The Town and now Santa's Sing-A-Long)

Entertainment attorneys Lee Feldshon and Eric Goldman

Financial advisor Bailie Slevin of Entertaining Finance

SCHEDULE AND SPEAKERS (subject to change)

11:45am-12:00pm: Registration and check-in

12:00pm-12:40pm: "Commercial and Not-for-Profit Asks: Defining the Differences" with attorney Eric Goldman. We will define terms, then focus on the not-for-profit side: the legal paperwork and structure that is necessary in order to ask for donations, and the responsibilities to your donors, plus the ways in which not-for-profits and commercial companies can work together, and new developments during the pandemic shutdown.

12:40pm-1:20pm: "Commercial Financing: Formalizing Your Ask" with attorney Lee Feldshon. The required paperwork and structures at every level of development, from front money agreements to private placement to Federal filings. The limitations placed on asking. New paths to take during COVID-19, the impact of force majeure, and other current developments.

1:20pm-1:30pm: Break

1:30pm-2:00pm: "Why Is This Show Likely to Succeed: Making Your Case with an Effective Business Plan" with R.K. Greene. Your business plan is your blueprint for success, and a compelling sales tool when approaching investors. It helps you understand your project and how best to pitch it. Will offer a flexible template covering all the basic areas of information you need to include, as well as offering guidance in creating a plan that is professional looking and appealing. 

2:00pm-2:45pm: "How to Present Yourself to Investors" with financial advisor Bailie Slevin of Entertaining Finance. We will take a look at a basic money raising pitch both from your side and the investor's side, learning how to speak the same financial language, exploring how to best communicate your proposal to your target audience. GETTING the money is what it is all about but HOW you go about the process makes all the difference. It takes simplicity, focus, structure, organization and follow through to make it happen. This section will concentrate on "winning language" and "successful steps" to get the support for your creative projects.

2:45pm-3:15pm: "The Investor Perspective" with James Simon. How an investor's interest in a project may differ from an associate producer's, why he invests, and best ways to make your ask so it maintains his interest.

3:15pm-3:45pm: Break

3:45pm-4:30pm: "Cultivating and Maintaining a Pool of Investors" with Jim Kierstead. Who to go to, what to talk about, how to present material, disclosures and much more. Identifying prospective investors is just the first step. How do you communicate your passion for a project, incentivize a prospect and close the deal? PLUS the business and hierarchy of theatrical producing: definitions of lead producer, co-producer, investors, and appropriate lingo, budgets, capitalization, and recoupment charts.

4:30pm-5:15pm: "Practical Tips and Money-Raising Secrets" with Cody Lassen. Practical tips, tricks, and tools you can use to raise money and manage investor relations. From initial investor research through closing night and beyond, you'll learn how to create a plan for managing the fundraising process that you can put to use right away. 

5:15pm-5:30pm: Break

5:30pm-6:30pm: "Where Do We Go from Here?" - an inter-active talkback moderated by Jane Dubin with Sharon Fallon, R.K. Greene, Stephanie Rosenberg. How do we plan for the future with so many unknown factors? What strategies make sense as we cautiously reopen, even while key audiences are still resistant? Panelists will share their current projects and plans, where they are now and how they are dealing with the current roadblocks. Followed by a Q&A with attendees.  

6:30pm-7:00pm: Breakout and networking

About the Faculty

Jane Dubin is a TONY Award-winning producer and the President of Double Play Connections, a theatrical production and management company committed to supporting emerging artists and playwrights in the creation and development of new works. Jane is a graduate of the Commercial Theatre Institute's 14-week (NYC) and O'Neill Center Intensive (CT) Producing Workshops and Director of Theater Resources Unlimited's Producer Development Program Master Class. Ms. Dubin is Chair of the Board of Directors of Houses on the Moon Theater Company. She is a member and recent Board member of the League of Professional Theatre Women. She is a member of the Broadway Women's Alliance and the Off-Broadway League. For two years she was co-curator of the Hudson Valley Writers' Center New Play Reading Series. She co-produced Hudson River Rising, presenting events in Westchester for One Billion Rising (V-Day). She was a strategic consultant to SPACE on Ryder Farm, an artists' residency in Brewster, NY and a member of the Grand Jury for New York Musical Festival's 2015 – 2019 seasons. She served as an evaluator for a NAMT innovation grant panel and is a juror for Bethany Arts Community residency program. She is a frequent panelist and guest lecturer on theater-related matters. Before embarking on her career in theater, Ms. Dubin spent over 20 years in the financial services industry. Productions: Upcoming: The Village of Vale. Recent: Is This A Room, Dana H., The Prom (Drama Desk Award Best Musical, now on Tour), Farinelli and the King (starring Mark Rylance, nominated for 5 Tony Awards), An American in Paris (4 TONY Awards, plus London and National Tour), Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey (Westside Theater and on Tour), Ann, starring Holland Taylor (Lincoln Center); Bandstand (Broadway), Beebo Brinker Chronicles (2008 GLAAD Media Award for Theatre); Groundswell (the New Group), Peter and the Starcatcher (Broadway, Off-Broadway, National Tour), winner of 5 TONY Awards; The Norman Conquests (TONY Award, Best Play Revival), The 39 Steps (OB, Tour); The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (London).  Film: Radium Girls.

Sharon Fallon, Sharon Fallon Productions is an independent Theatre Producer, General Manager, and Theatrical Consultant. Celebrating 20-plus years in the entertainment industry, working both in the commercial and non-profit theatre industry, Sharon brings a unique perspective to her work. In 2015 she created a boutique theatrical productions/ general management company with a mission to bridge the gap between art and business allowing productions to be financially viable and artistically satisfying. Taking a holistic approach – from page to stage and everything in between, she works directly with early-career producers and artist-driven niche projects (showcases, readings, early development workshops, etc.) as well as on larger union and non-union projects.  She has worked in the theatre as an actress, director, general manager, managing director, and producer. Broadway credits include Indecent, Beautiful, Matilda The Musical, and Lysistrata Jones. In addition to producing commercially, Sharon served as the Associate General Manager of both the Helen Hayes Theatre and Lyric Theatre in New York. Currently, she is the executive producer on a number of projects in development. Sharon is a Board Member-elect of NAMT, the National Association of Musical Theatres, co-chair of the Festival of New Musicals Committee, and a dedicated and lifelong supporter of social justice, cultural equity, diversity, and inclusion.

Lee A.G. Feldshon has over 25 years of experience in entertainment and corporate law. He launched his private practice, Feldshon Law PLLC, in 2018. He represents producers, co-producers, composers, bookwriters, lyricists, directors, and other creatives in the live theatrical industry. He represented the New York Musical Theatre Festival from its 2004 founding to its dissolution. He was production counsel for the Broadway revival of Pump Boys & Dinettes, and represented a Tony-award winning actor) in connection with the Tony-award winning Broadway musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. He represents the producers and/or authors of other live theatrical works including Stranger Sings! The Musical Parody, EPIC, Lizard Boy, Islander-A New Musical, Mozart-The New Musical, Dangerous-A New Musical, Who's Your Baghdaddy? Or How I Started the Iraq War, Desperate Measures (2018 Drama Desk Awards for Original Music and Original Lyrics), Rooms, and others. He is also co-producing Austen's Pride: A New Musical of Pride and Prejudice. He negotiates screenplay option/purchase agreements and financing documents for film producers, and has worked as film production counsel for Fly Away (SXSW Official Selection) and the documentary Darkon: An American Fantasy (2006 SXSW Audience Award). While Director of Legal Affairs and Business Development of the Radio City Entertainment division of Madison Square Garden, L.P., he worked on The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, A Christmas Carol, and Rockettes performances. As a Levine Plotkin & Menin associate, he worked on Rent (Broadway, touring), The Wild Party (Broadway), De La Guarda (Off Broadway), and other shows. He started his career as a corporate associate at White & Case. In addition, he handles trademark and copyright registrations for clients, and represents talent management companies. He received a B.A. from Columbia College in 1991 (magna cum laude, Rhodes Scholar State Finalist) and a J.D. from Columbia Law School in 1994 (Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar). Bar Admissions: New York.

For over 30 years, Eric Goldman has provided legal services to Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony award winning talent, and to technology and internet entrepreneurs. Recent projects include representing the writers of the Broadway-bound Rock and Roll Man, opening at New World Stages this June; and the producers of the Broadway-bound musical Americano! Other projects include representing the authors of the international smash hit Come From Away, YouTube sensation Blippi and graphic novelist Uru-Chan (author of unOrdinary). Before launching his own firm in 2011, Eric worked for 15 years as a Senior Associate at Sendroff & Baruch LLP. Eric also served as in-house counsel for St. Martin's Press and Hertz Computer Corporation. His first job out of law school was working as an associate for copyright guru Stanley Rothenberg. Eric is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and New York University School of Law.

RK Greene is a producer of the Tony Award winning Broadway and off-Broadway hit Peter & the Starcatcher as well as Farinelli and the King and A Time to Kill. As an entrepreneur, R.K. has started several businesses over the years. A theatre professional since 1978, he was a founding member of the Seattle Group Theatre, a multi-cultural ensemble that produced its own work. In 2000, he founded The StoryLine Project, LLC, a commercial theater production company, to develop new plays and musicals. SLP made its debut as an above line producer for the Off Broadway hit, Room Service, and went on to produce Love Child, by Daniel Jenkins and Robert Stanton, Cougar The Musical, and Terms of Endearment with Molly Ringwald.  In the non-profit world, R.K. is the Marketing Director at The Directors Company and helped to transfer Irena's Vow to Broadway and produced several shows at 59E59 Theaters. Currently in development is the new musical Beau by Douglas Lyons and Ethan D. Pakchar. The world premiere album is available on the Sony Masterworks label, http://www.StoryLineProject.com.  

Jim Kierstead is an Emmy, Olivier, and three-time Tony Award-winning producer of the Broadway, is a Grammy-nominated, Emmy, Olivier, and six-time Tony Award-winning producer of the Broadway, touring, Toronto, and London productions of Kinky Boots, Pippin, Hadestown, The Inheritance, The Lehman Trilogy and Company. In addition, he has been a co-producer of 25 Broadway productions including Ain't Too Proud, The Minutes, Frankie and Johnny in the Clair de Lune, Waitress, The Visit, You Can't Take It With You, Indecent, The Great Comet (all Tony nominated), Mrs. Doubtfire, Be More Chill, Pretty Woman, Side Show, It Shoulda Been You, M. Butterfly, Rocky, among others. Off-Broadway projects include Unexpected Joy, Yank! (Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel Nominees), Bright Colors and Bold Patterns, and Thrill Me - The Leopold & Loeb Story (Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle Nominees). He has produced London productions including Waitress, Dreamgirls, Pretty Woman, Be More Chill, Unexpected Joy, Yank!, Thrill Me, Night of the Living Dead and Aspects of Love. Film/TV projects include the Emmy winning TV series The Bay, we well as Indoor Boys, Emmy-nominated After Forever and Wakefield starring Bryan Cranston and Jennifer Garner. Along with his Broadway Factor partners, Jim produced the hit immersive show Amparo in downtown Miami for Bacardi. Jim is on the Board of Directors of The York Theatre Company, The Abingdon Theatre Company and is the founder of the digital theatre content creation company Broadway Virtual. 

Cody Lassen is a Tony-nominated theatre producer and live entertainment consultant. Broadway productions include Indecent, the Deaf West Theatre revival of Spring Awakening, and the upcoming revival of Paula Vogel's How I Learned to Drive. Currently running off-Broadway A Commercial Jingle for Regina Comet, the first new musical to open since the pandemic began. He has been part of the producing team for other Broadway productions including Tootsie, What the Constitution Means to Me, Torch Song, The Band's Visit, Macbeth and Significant Other. Upcoming: the first revival of Titanic, The Flamingo Kid, Steven Sater & Duncan' Sheik's Alice By Heart and Burt Bacharach's Some Lovers. In addition to producing his own projects, Cody consults for producers, theaters and agencies to help them discover how they should market their shows for the best chance of financial and critical success. Previously, he was the director of marketing for Los Angeles' Center Theatre Group and its three theaters: the Ahmanson Theatre, Mark Taper Forum and Kirk Douglas Theatre. He is an active member of the Broadway League, the National Association of Musical Theatre, and serves on the Board of NY's Vineyard Theatre. More info at codylassen.com

Stephanie L. Rosenberg is a Tony Award Winning Broadway Producer currently producing the Broadway smash hit Moulin Rouge! The Musical. She's been producing on Broadway since 2012, the same year she was named the Fredric B. Vogel Scholar by Commercial Theater Institute, and soon after became the only Associate Producer on Gore Vidal's The Best Man. The following year, she would be a guest lecturer at Wharton Business School for a FAP specializing in Broadway. She brings compassion and a strong business sense to the table. From there, Stephanie's career skyrocketed to such productions as Matilda, Anastasia, On The Town, and Moulin Rouge! The Musical (Broadway, US Tour, West End, and Australia). In 2013 Stephanie founded The Empress Productions LLC, with a commitment to developing high-quality theatrical productions. Our goal is that these productions will bring people together for an experience that will last a lifetime – while being fiscally responsible. From there, she has been developing new work such as Santa's Sing-A-Long, and Easter Bunny HOP! LIVE, among other productions. Stephanie is a graduate of the Neighborhood Playhouse School of Theatre; has a BFA in Theater from Adelphi University; apprenticed at Williamstown Theatre Festival, and has performed and directed Off-Broadway as well as directed national tours including the National Tour of Atlantic City Blues Brothers. Her background as an Actor, Director, Writer, and Tony Award Winning Producer helps her to know what's needed on and off stage to both get the job and get the job done. Stephanie upholds the belief that Theater is a collaborative art form. All of this resulting in theatre that can change the world. theempressproductions.com/

inst: @StephanieLRosenberg   & @EmpressOfBroadway  TikTok @EmpressOfBroadway

Bailie Slevin is the founder of Financial Wellness Companion, Entertaining Finance, and is the current Sales Trainer at MediaRadar. She has made a study of language and how people communicate value, be it screenwriting, playwriting, sculpting, performing, painting, or commercial sales. Bailie helps to translate the creator's passions to others in a business setting. With her15 years in the personal financial planning industry, Bailie developed a niche in the arts and freelance communities, specializing in working with people with an uneven income. She has also spent significant time in the theatre industry as a stage manager, general manager, and producer. She is a Life Purpose Life Coach and a New York Mental Health Peer Specialist. She lives in New York City with her rescue pup, Lorelai. TRU publishes an email community newsletter of services, opportunities and productions; presents weekly Community Gatherings; offers a Producer Development & Mentorship Program taught by prominent producers and general managers in New York theater, and also presents Producer Boot Camp workshops to help aspirants develop business skills. TRU serves writers through the TRU Voices Play Reading Series, Writer-Producer Speed Date, a Practical Playwriting Workshop, How to Write a Musical That Works and a Director-Writer Communications Lab. Programs of Theater Resources Unlimited are supported in part by the Montage Foundation, The Storyline Project and the Leibowitz Greenway Foundation. For more information about TRU membership and programs, visit truonline.org.