The Broadway League Launches Viva Broadway Initiative; Raśl Esparza, Karen Olivo, Chita Rivera Among Advisory Board

By Michael Gioia
11 May 2012

Raśl Esparza
Raśl Esparza

The Broadway League has announced the launch of Viva Broadway, a new audience development partnership with the Hispanic community, to help bridge the world of Broadway with Latino audiences around the country.

The long-term initiative, according to press notes, "aims to increase awareness about Broadway while culturally enriching lives, bringing families together, and building new careers in the theatre. A National Advisory Board of industry and cultural notables has been formed to help strategize and spread the word about all that Broadway has to offer this growing and vibrant community."

The Viva Broadway advisory board includes Jack Rico (editor-in-chief of ShowBizCafe.com), Luis Alvarez (founder of The Wonderland Group), Lucie Arnaz (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, board member of American Theatre Wing), Rosie Berrido, Carolina Casares (editor-in-chief of Yahoo! Hispanic Americas), Felix Cisneros, Raúl Esparza (Leap of Faith), C. Raúl Espinoza, Gabriela Garcia, Marcela Gómez, Maria Cristina Gonzalez Noguera, Linda Guerrero, Jackie Hernández, Leon Ichaso, Mari Rodriguez Ichaso, John Leguizamo (Ghetto Klown), Monique Manso, Bianca Marroquin (In the Heights), Luis Miranda,Lou Moreno (artistic director of INTAR Theatre), Noelia Rodriguez, Karen Olivo (In the Heights), Chita Rivera (West Side Story), Luis Salgado, Carlos Sanchez, musician Gustavo Santaolalla, Jamie-Lynn Sigler (Beauty and the Beast), choreographer Sergio Trujillo (Leap of Faith), Yul Vasquez (artistic director of the LAByrinth Theater Company), Carmen Wong Ulrich, Gabriela Zabalúa and Marco Zunino (Chicago).

"Our mission of attracting more people to Broadway is particularly applicable to a community whose culture appreciates and values family activities shared by multiple generations together," said Charlotte St. Martin, executive director of the Broadway League, in a statement.

The goal of Viva Broadway is to make Broadway more relevant to Hispanic families and their lifestyles. The company will work with Hispanic media outlets in their coverage of Broadway to increase awareness and awaken a desire to attend shows. Viva Broadway will also create Broadway Speakers Bureaus and workshops in order to expand awareness of jobs in the theatre to high schools and colleges.

Upcoming goals include national test pilot programs in Los Angeles, Nashville, Miami, Dallas/Ft. Worth; Broadway Speakers Panel and education initiatives; media partnerships; sponsorship opportunities and corporate support; brand ambassadors; and the launch of a Viva Broadway Week.

For more information on the Broadway League, visit BroadwayLeague.com.