Producer Jennifer Ashley Tepper (on Backstage’s Future Broadway Power List last year!) is director of programming at New York City’s fabulous cabaret venue 54 Below, and author of “The Untold Stories of Broadway, Volume 2.”
What does running 54 Below entail?We do about 16 shows a week, which is a large amount. My job is essentially managing everything that gets onto our stage: who we want to have perform, what kinds of shows we want to do, and how we want to make them happen using our staff and the artists we get to work with. All the New York cabaret and concert venues are different but what we do is pretty impressive in that basically the owners are all Broadway producers. And there’s a lot we do in-house with each artist that other venues might not necessarily have the same support team to back up. We have a great tech team and the room was designed by Broadway sound, lighting, and scenic designers. There are a lot of pieces of the puzzle that come with every show we do. And of course we have a full-service restaurant and bar so it’s kind of like running a theater and a restaurant at the same time—with different shows every night!
What is 54 Below’s role in the NYC theater
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