Mayor Eric Adams Convenes 1st Live Performance Industry Council Meeting
The 52-member council was created to support the live performance sector through collaboration between leaders in government and performance.
Eric Adams
Michaelah Reynolds
New York City Mayor Eric Adams convened the city’s first Live Performance Industry Council meeting September 18. The council assembled leaders in live performance and government to address challenges facing the industry.
The council’s goals include driving inclusive growth in the sector, supporting New York City’s creative economy, and ensuring the industry recovers beyond pre-COVID-19 pandemic levels.
The first meeting took place at Gracie Mansion and included Deputy Mayor for Housing, Economic Development, and Workforce Maria Torres Springer; Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) Commissioner Pat Swinney Kaufman; New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo; and NYC Tourism + Conventions President and CEO Fred Dixon, alongside council co-chairs Coco Killingworth, vice president of social impact at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM), and Ken Sunshine, founder of Sunshine Sachs.
“Live performance has long been the heart and soul of this city—that’s why we’re continuing to support the industry’s comeback and finding ways to uplift the creative New Yorkers who drive it,” says Mayor Adams. “By bringing together leaders from across the industry and city government, we are not only supporting the individuals who make the live performance industry great but also ensuring that New York City will always be a global creative capital. Let’s keep finding ways to help our theatre, music, and dance industries and all the exceptional people who entertain us with creative live performances.”
The 52-member council includes:
- Jessica Baker Vodoor, President and CEO, Snug Harbor (Staten Island)
- Joe Benincasa, President and CEO, The Entertainment Community Fund
- Steven Bensusan, Owner and Founder, Blue Note Entertainment Group
- Randi Berry, Co-Founder and Executive Director, IndieSpace/IndieTheater Fund
- Kristin Caskey, Executive Vice President of Theatrical Content and Creative, Ambassador Theatre Group; Chair-Elect, Broadway League, ATG North America
- Steve Cohen, Owner, Chairman, and CEO, Citi Field
- Richard Constable, Executive Vice President and Global Head of Government Affairs and Social Impact, Madison Square Garden Entertainment
- Talia Corren, Co-Executive Director, Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York
- Michelle Ebanks, President and CEO, The Apollo
- Erika Elliott, Artistic Director, Summerstage
- Charles Flateman, Executive Vice President, Shubert Organization; and Board Chair, NYC Tourism + Conventions
- Sonia Friedman, Theatre Producer, Sonia Friedman Productions
- Deeksha Gaur, Executive Director, Theatre Development Fund
- Peter Gelb, General Manager, Metropolitan Opera
- Clive Gillinson, Executive Artistic Director, Carnegie Hall
- Lisa Gold, Executive Director, Asian American Arts Alliance
- Tom Harris, President, Times Square Alliance
- Heather Hitchens, President and CEO, American Theatre Wing
- Wes Jackson, President, BRIC ARTS: Celebrate Brooklyn
- Laurie Jacoby, Chief Entertainment Officer, Barclay Center
- Leah Johnson, Executive Vice President and Chief Communications, Marketing, and Advocacy Officer, Lincoln Center
- Coco Killingworth, Vice President of Social Impact, BAM
- Randy Levine, President, New York Yankees
- Julia Levy, Consulting Interim Executive Director, Roundabout Theatre Company
- Matt Loeb, President, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees
- Jen Lyon, Board President, New York Independent Venue Association
- Sade Lythcott, CEO, National Black Theatre
- Kristin Marting, Founding Artistic Director, HERE Arts Center
- Luis A. Miranda Jr., Founding Partner, MirRam Group
- Jimmy Nederlander, President, Nederlander Organization
- Tim Oliver Reid, Co-Founder, Black Theatre Coalition
- Laura Penn, Co-Chair, Coalition of Broadway Unions and Guilds; and Executive Director, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society
- Bill Rauch, Inaugural Artistic Director, Perelman Performing Arts Center
- Lisa Richards Toney, President and CEO, Association of Professional Arts Presenters
- Rosalba Rolon Pregones, Founder and Artistic Director, Pregones/ Puerto Rican Traveling Theater
- Jordan Roth, Board Chair and Creative Director, Jujamcyn
- Daryl Roth, Theater Owner and Producer, The Daryl Roth Theatres
- Taryn Sacramone, Executive Director, Queens Theatre
- Thomas Schumacher, President, Disney Theatrical Group
- Jeffrey Seller, Theatre Producer and Co-Owner, Drama Bookshop
- Lucy Sexton, Executive Director, New Yorkers for Culture and Arts
- Linda Shelton, Executive Director, Joyce Theatre
- Charlotte St. Martin, President, The Broadway League
- Ken Sunshine, Founder, Sunshine Sachs
- Candace Thompson-Zachery, Director of Programming and Justice Initiatives, Dance/NYC
- Al Vincent, Executive Director, Actor’s Equity Association
- Bob Wankel, Chair and CEO, The Shubert Organization
- Patrick Willingham, Executive Director, The Public Theater
- Casey York, President, Off-Broadway League
- Madani Younis, Chief Executive Producer, The Shed
Additional recent initiatives to support New York City’s creative industry and workforce include the creation of Industry Councils for TV/film and digital games; the extension of the NYC Women’s Fund in Media, Music and Theatre; announcement of the Broadway Musicians Equity Partnership; release of the “Made in NY” Talks 2023 fall schedule; and ongoing support for the Broadway community via Broadway Week and Playbill and Prudential’s Curtain Up! Broadway Festival.
