Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) announces Essentials of Successful Self-Producing on Sunday, November 8, 2026 from 12PM through 6PM. Tickets start at $55 and can be purchased at https://truonline.org/events/essentials-of-self-producing-2026/.

“Gee, I’m just an artist” no longer cuts it when you make the move from page to paying audience – you are now the CEO of your brand! In this game-changing workshop we will look at how artists can successfully take on the challenging role of “producer” to generate their own opportunities. The ones who are most successful have to master a range of business skills, don a variety of hats, and learn to be expert jugglers.

Come learn to view your creative work from a business perspective and understand the need to think differently. Make smarter choices, not only now but also for the future of your show. It all seems a little overwhelming at times, but we will break it down into easily digestible bites. When you know what you’re doing, it can actually be fun and fulfilling!

Led by TRU executive director and writer-producer Bob Ost. Guest speakers will include:

Victoria Cairl, marketing expert, founder and CEO of Table 7 Strategy;
Cate Cammarata, dramaturg/director, founder of CreateTheater, producer (off-Broadway: The Assignment, My Father’s Daughter; regional: My Life Is a Musical (Bay Street Theater), Bran Castle(Porchlight Theater). In development: Atlantis (book by Ken Cerniglia & Scott Morris, music & lyrics by Matthew Robinson), The Falling Season, a new hip hop musical by international hip hop legend Masta Ace;
Jane Dubin, (Broadway: Is This a Room, Dana H., The Prom, Ann, Tony winner The Norman Conquests, Farinelli and the King, Bandstand, Peter and the Starcatcher, An American in Paris; off-Broadway: Still, Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, The 39 Steps; upcoming: Village of Vale) and leaxder of TRU’s Producing Master Class;
Eric Goldman, entertainment attorney;
Emileena Pedigo, CEO/founder of The Show Goes On, building supportive environments to develop, incubate, showcase and launch creative expression using #AnotherWay;
Blair Russell, production advisor/strategist, founder of Show Shepherd, a strategic theatrical development company, and producer (Slave Play, off-Broadway’s long-running immersive Sweeney Todd; Still off-Broadway; Lizard Boy, Jackie! and Pop Off, Michelangelo at the Edinburgh Fringe) and the leader of TRU’s producer development program’s Foundations of Producing. www.blairrussell.net
Bailie Slevin, financial advisor and recovering stage manager.

Curriculum (subject to change)

11:45 check-in

12:00-12:30 Intro and “Why Are You Doing This?” with Bob Ost/Emileena Pedigo

If you don’t know where you’re going, you can’t know how to get there.
Setting goals, and how your goals affect your choices.
Understanding your property and identifying your audience.
Wearing many hats, but one at a time.
12:30-1:15 “Legal Pitfalls and Protections” with attorney Eric Goldman

Agreements: collaborator, options, contracts, and more.
What you need to know when you ask for money. And what your responsibilities are.
Underlying rights, intellectual property protections, licenses.
1:15-2:00 “Let’s Talk about Money, and How to Ask for It.” with Bailie Slevin

Banishing the myth of the starving artist.
Understanding how money works.
What you believe is what you get.
Understanding the investor’s perspective, and learning to talk the same language.
“Selling” is just talking with a purpose.
2:00-2:30 LUNCH BREAK

2:30-3:30 “A Brief Overview of Marketing” with Victoria Cairl

Branding: The 4 most important brand assets for your show.
Audience: Identifying your ideal audience.
Digital Marketing: Finding your ideal audience online.
Budgeting: The marketing mix and how to spend your lean budget.
Partnerships: Using their audience to build yours.
3:30-4:15 “Finding & Creating Opportunities” with Cate Cammarata

Producing virtually: platforms, unions, and international reach.
Getting your plays out there in the world: licensing, and getting the most out of it.
Researching and booking tours.
Fringes and festivals.
4:15-4:45 “Planning Ahead and Making It Happen” with Blair Russell

Having a vision of what this play could be and how far it can go.
Thinking and planning beyond your current production.
Finding your team. It’s never a one-man show (even if it sometimes feels like it).
Developing leadership and management skills.
How much do things really cost? How much should you pay people? How to have those conversations and more.
4:45-5:25 “Self-Producing in the 21st Century: Using Technology to Work Globally” with Blair Russell

Making markets: New York is not the only place to produce theater, get your show produced in the UK, Germany, Mexico, and around the world.
Software and hardware tools all self-producers need.
AI as a tool for production, not a replacement for art.
Virtual development and production
Best practices for social media
5:25-5:30 Break

5:30-6:15 “Successful Self-Producers Share Their Secrets” – moderated by producer Jane Dubin, with writers Kipp Koenig (The Glitch) and Coolidge Harris II (Golden Wings, Greenwood), solo performers Karen Eterovich (Cheers from Chawton) and Jessica Sher (Bette Davis Ain’t for Sissies)

How to capitalize on this production in order to plant the seeds for the next step.
Long-term strategies and sources of support.
How to get help when you think you can’t afford it.
Persistence, persistence, persistence. (And how to best focus your energy while you persist.)

Panelists:

VICTORIA CAIRL has worked in the industry for over twenty years and brings her knowledge of advertising, marketing, sales, ticketing, and tourism to the table. She has held positions at Serino Coyne, TMG, Disney Theatrical, The Met Museum, Lincoln Center, and Show-Score. She has successfully run Table 7 independently since 2019.

CATE CAMMARATA is an Off-Broadway producer, director and dramaturg in NYC specializing in the development of new plays and musicals, and was the Literary Manager for Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) for over ten years. She is the Founder and Executive Producer of CreateTheater’s New Works Festival and Artistic Director of The Experts Theater Company. Her company CreateTheater.com has developed and produced dozens of new plays and musicals since its founding in 2016. Off-Broadway: The Assignment, My Father’s Daughter. Regional: My Life Is a Musical (Bay Street Theater), Bran Castle (Porchlight Theater). In development: Atlantis (book by Ken Cerniglia & Scott Morris, music & lyrics by Matthew Robinson), The Falling Season, a new hip hop musical by international hip hop legend Masta Ace,. During the shutdown of 2020-2022 CreateTheater developed and/or produced more than 70 shows with online readings, workshops and dramaturgical guidance. For this work Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) honored her with the TRU Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2022. Cate holds a BFA in Acting/Directing from Syracuse University and an MFA in Dramaturgy at SUNY Stony Brook, and is Associate Professor of Theatre Arts at CUNY Baruch College. Her book, “Contemporary Monologues for a New Theater,” published by Applause Books, was listed as one of the Top Ten Books for theater lovers by BroadwayDirect in 2018. www.CateCammarata.com www.CreateTheater.com

JANE DUBIN is a Tony, Drama Desk and Drama League Award-winning producer and the President of Double Play Connections, a theatrical production company committed to supporting the development of new work. Jane is a graduate of the CTI 14-week (NYC) and O’Neill (CT) Producing Workshops and Director of TRU’s Producer Development Master Class. Ms. Dubin is co-Chair of the Board of Houses on the Moon Theater Company, a past Board member of the League of Professional Theatre Women and was a Tony voter for seven years. She is a member of the Broadway Women’s Alliance, Off-Broadway Alliance, LPTW and Off-Broadway League. She serves as an evaluator for Bethany Arts Community’s residency program. She is a frequent panelist and guest lecturer on theater-related matters. Jane serves on the advisory boards of Elizabeth Mascia Child Care Center, Axial Theatre and Dirty Laundry Theatre. Jane has an MBA in Finance from NYU and was a partner in an investment advisory firm prior to her theater career. Productions: Recent: The Village of Vale – an original fantasy musical (Adirondack Theatre Festival), Still, starring Melissa Gilbert and Mark Moses. Broadway: Is This A Room, Dana H., The Prom(Drama Desk Best Musical), Farinelli and the King (Mark Rylance), An American in Paris (4 TONY Awards, London, National Tour), Ann, (Holland Taylor) (Lincoln Center), Bandstand, Peter and the Starcatcher (5 TONY Awards), The Norman Conquests (TONY). Other: Absolute Brightness of Leonard Pelkey, Beebo Brinker Chronicles (GLAAD Media Award), Groundswell, The 39 Steps, The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (London). Film: Radium Girls.

ERIC GOLDMAN For over 25 years, Eric has provided legal services to Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony award winning talent, and to technology and internet entrepreneurs. Recent projects include representing the writers of the Broadway smash hit Come from Away and the producers of the highly successful Off-Broadway musical parody of the television show Friends. Before launching his own firm in 2011, Eric worked for 15 years as a Senior Associate for entertainment attorney Mark Sendroff of Sendroff & Baruch LLP. Eric also served as in-house counsel for St. Martin’s Press and Hertz Computer. His first job out of law school was working as an associate for copyright guru Stanley Rothenberg. Eric is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and New York University School of Law.

EMILEENA PEDIGO Emileena’s work focuses on building sustainable careers #AnotherWay, using entrepreneurial strategies that prioritize the artist over their art. Her company, The Show Goes On Productions provides coaching and artist management, as well as produces workshops, showcases, and events. Before that Emileena was managing producer of the Midtown International Theater Festival. She helped expand the annual festival into seven venues, presenting up to 60 shows in one month during her seven-year tenure. Emileena also general-managed for several nonprofits, assisted Stewart F. Lane on four Broadway shows, including the Off-Broadway transfer of The 39 Steps, and worked on various film and music festivals. She toured theaters, music arenas, and schools across the country, working with artists from all artistic disciplines. Emileena has served on the board of Conscious Capitalism NYC, and helped to build Arts programming within the Chelsea Greenwich Village Chelsea Chamber of Commerce. She is a graduate of the Commercial Theatre Institute, SUNY/Kaufmann’s Fasttrac program for entrepreneurs, and a Purdue University alum.

BLAIR RUSSELL is a producer who specializes in developing new works for the theatre. Recent projects include the off-Broadway play Still with Melissa Gilbert which he found at a TRU Speed Date, new musical Lizard Boywhich has been performed in 4 countries including Off-Broadway, For Tonight, which premiered in concert on the West End at the Adelphi Theatre, DIVA: Live From Hell! (Edinburgh, Off West End), and Pop Off, Michelangelo!(Edinburgh, Off West End). He was a producer on Slave Play which held the record for most Tony-nominated play in history, is developing the new musical Salem which has over 50k followers on social media, and executive produced the first two concept albums in the EPIC series which have over 150 million streams globally. Other projects as co-producer / investor include The Wiz (National Tour/Broadway 2024), Sweeney Todd (Immersive Off-Broadway 2017), and Gypsy with Imelda Staunton (West End 2014). Blair is Co-Chair of the Board of The New Harmony Project and a member of the Board of Trustees of Goodspeed Musicals and SPACE. He is a graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University with a BFA in Technical Theatre/Stage Management.

BAILIE SLEVIN is the founder of Financial Wellness Companion, Entertaining Finance, and is the current Sales Trainer at MediaRadar. She has made a study of language and how people communicate value, be it screenwriting, playwriting, sculpting, performing, painting, or commercial sales. Bailie helps to translate the creator’s passions to others in a business setting. With her15 years in the personal financial planning industry, Bailie developed a niche in the arts and freelance communities, specializing in working with people with an uneven income. She has also spent significant time in the theatre industry as a stage manager, general manager, and producer. She is a Life Purpose Life Coach and a New York Mental Health Peer Specialist. She lives in New York City with her rescue pup, Lorelai.

Theater Resources Unlimited (TRU) is the leading network for developing theater professionals, a thirty-three-year-old 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization created to help producers produce, emerging theater companies to emerge healthily and all theater professionals to understand and navigate the business of the arts. Membership includes self-producing artists as well as career producers and theater companies.

TRU publishes an email community newsletter of services, opportunities and productions; presents weekly Community Gatherings about the arts, and monthly Town Halls about current social issues; offers a Producer Development & Mentorship Program taught by prominent producers and general managers in New York theater; and presents Producer Boot Camp workshops to help aspirants develop business skills. TRU serves writers through the TRU Voices Play Reading Series, TRUSpeak: Hear Our Voices (adapting short plays into films), Writer-Producer Speed Date, a Practical Playwriting Workshop, How to Write a Musical That Works and a Director-Writer Communications Lab.

Programs of Theater Resources Unlimited are supported in part by the Leibowitz Greenway Foundation, Stewart F. Lane & Bonnie Comley, Merrie L. Davis, Dunbar Hofmann Productions and the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

For more information about TRU membership and programs, visit www.truonline.org.

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