Before we get into this week’s guest, can we take a moment to look at that magic number in the headline of this post?

We made it to 100!  (Throw confetti!  Drop Balloons!  Scream “Adrian” like Rocky at the end of Rocky!)

In all seriousness, when I said to myself two years ago (!), “I wonder if some of Broadway’s coolest movers and shakers will talk to me about their perspective,” I never imagined so many of them would jump at the chance to tell their stories in order to help educate all those Broadway theater lovers out there.  And in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I wanted to say thank you to all of them for sharing their time and wisdom with me and with all of you.  We’ve got 100 of these folks in the archives now . . . and to listen to them is like getting an online Ph.D. in the theater from the best professors around.

And I couldn’t think of a better Broadway Producing professor to be on our 100th episode than today’s guest.

David Stone was one of the first Producers I asked to appear on the podcast . . . since I’ve watched with great admiration his rise from Off Broadway Producer of shows like Family Secrets to The Vagina Monologues to one of the most successful Producers on Broadway today, with that big green monster also known as Wicked.

But in the middle, there is the triumphant story of Next to Normal, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee and more. Every show unique and every show requiring a unique producing path that David navigated so skillfully.

Hear the stories of those shows as well and a whole lot more including:

• Who he went to summer camp with (you’ll be amazed) and how they helped shape his theater career.
• What the theater must do in the face of the new administration (note – we recorded this podcast only two days after the election).
• How Next to Normal almost didn’t make it to Broadway, and why Dogfight heartbreakingly didn’t.
• The advice he got from the industry after his FIRST Broadway show closed in only one week (So many people would have given up right then and there).
• The moment he knew Wicked was going to be a hit (it was a lot later than you think).

It took me awhile to get David for this podcast . . . but as you’ll hear, it was well worth the wait.

Happy 100th!

Click here to listen.

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