Nearly 40 years after its Broadway debut, La Chanze flipped the script by reinventing herself as one of New York’s most sought-after theater producers. His name is associated with some of this year’s hottest shows: “Here lies love” “Kimberly Akimbo” and “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding.”
In June, the Tony-winning actress added two more trophies to her haul for producing “Topdog/Underdog” and “Kimberly Akimbo,” which won for best revival of a play and best performance, respectively. musical comedy.
“I’m still flying high like I won it again yesterday,” LaChanze told the Daily News. She admitted that Kenny Leon’s recovery victory Suzan-Lori Parks“The tragedy of the black family took her by surprise.
“I’ll be honest, for ‘Kimberly,’ I felt really positive,” she confessed. “’Topdog,’ though, was surprising because of ‘The Piano Lesson,’ which I was so sure was going to win. Just the story of “Piano Lesson” made me think that this might be a revival. But with our production, the voters seemed to love it.
LaChanze, who became the president of Black Theater United in 2022, sees her position as producer as an opportunity to “diversify” her activity beyond appearing on the bill.
“I want to level the playing field a little bit,” she shared. “I want to make sure people see me at the table so that when it comes time to make deals and everything else, I can speak with authority on behalf of people who look like me and know the numbers.”
She added: “It’s important to me that people see that we are in leadership roles. »
Days after she became a Tony-winning producer, Theater Mania released a article about the “phenomenon” of celebrities getting producer credits on Broadway shows. Jennifer Hudson (“A Strange Loop”), John Legend (“Jitney”), Mariah Carey (“Some Like It Hot”) and “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star Kandi Burruss (“The Piano Lesson”) were scrutinized for what the outlet described as “a cheater’s shortcut for EGOT status.” .
Although LaChanze, 61, is mentioned in a favorable light in the article, she raises an eyebrow at its connotations, especially when most of the producers discussed in the article are black.
“Well, it’s interesting that this conversation is happening now when it’s been going on for decades,” she told The News. “And now that the demographics have changed a little bit and there are a lot of us sitting at the table, I think now people are paying attention because the system doesn’t work the way it used to, you know what I mean?
ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images
American actress and producer LaChanze, winner of the awards for best musical for “Kimberly Akimbo” and best revival of a play for “Topdog/Underdog”, poses with a trophy in the press room of the Radio Hotel during at the 76th Tony Awards, in New York City on June 11, 2023. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
LaChanze credits theater industry power broker David Pierrelead producer of “Wicked” among other Broadway hits, for opening her up to a new world.
“He’s my mentor,” she shared. “He literally, through COVID, sat me down once a week and taught me how to be an independent producer… he taught me everything. »
“[David] I spend so much time telling people that I’m a real producer. He’s so angry because people think I’m just lending my name, while I’m raising money. I’m here calling people, I’m in marketing meetings,” she explained. “And then, you know, there’s no money involved. For me at that level, you have to wait a good five years before producers really earn anything after having a few hits. So it’s a risky business and a lot of people think I’m crazy for going into it, but I’m personally motivated, because it’s my industry, you know.
LaChanze’s next big behind-the-scenes adventure is the first of Jocelyne Biohthe last play, “Jaja’s African Hair Braiding», to which Taraji P. Henson is also attached as producer. The show opens October 3 at the Samuel J. Friedman Theater.
“It’s a bit of a passion project for me because of Jocelyn,” she said of the award-winning Ghanaian-American. “And when a black woman comes along and makes her Broadway debut and makes a splash by tapping into a culture that black women have lived for decades, centuries, and how we Let’s beautify, I need to be at that table… where decisions are made.”
Although she’s been doing a lot of work behind the scenes, fans will have the chance to see LaChanze return to the stage for a rare concert on October 1 at the Perelman Performing Arts Center (PAC NYC).
Located on the site of the World Trade Center in Lower Manhattan, the new venue holds special significance for LaChanze, who lost her husband, Calvin J. Gooding, during the terrorist attacks of September 11. “I really want to do it because it’s really personal,” she said. “I feel like I have to give something more and the way I express myself through my art, my singing and my voice. And people, people find joy in what I do.