Black Theatre Coalition Announces Inaugural Semester of Broadway Across America Fellows

The inaugural cohort of Fellows for the previously announced Black Theatre Coalition/Broadway Across America Fellowship, sponsored by John Gore Organization, has been revealed. Set to begin their appointments in ticketing, marketing, operations and finance this month, the BAA Fellows include Cris Blak in Louisville, Alison Currie in Fort Lauderdale, Je’Shaun Jackson in Cincinnati as well as Viraj S. Shriwardhankar, Rickey Orr and Jessica Augustave in New York City.

BTC-BAA Fellows will gain practical experience through on-the-job learning in Broadway Across America offices and learn the intricacies of the business through an education curriculum taught by John Gore Organization professionals as they embark in an offstage career in the business of Broadway. The 14-week paid fellowships will provide Fellows with an opportunity to develop the job skills, broad understanding and network connections necessary to begin a professional career in the commercial theater industry.

“To truly achieve equity in the American theater, we need to facilitate fair representation and access to opportunities at every level of our industry, from producing offices to venue operations, from marketing to ticketing, from accounting to analytics. We are proud to introduce the first Broadway fellowship program with a national footprint as many in our industry’s workforce get introduced to live theater in their own hometown," Lauren Reid, President of John Gore Organization, said in a statement. "That’s why we believe this initiative has the power to move the needle in ways big and small. We are very excited to launch this program and provide an introduction to our industry for fellows not only in our NYC office, but also in Cincinnati, Fort Lauderdale and Louisville and more cities to come. What a great partnership this is with BTC and its three founders. Our missions are aligned.”

Last year Black Theatre Coalition co-founders T. Oliver Reid, Warren Adams and Reginald “Reggie” Van Lee, along with Executive Director Olivia Jones and Program Director Lico Whitfield, partnered with John Gore Organization and Broadway Across America to create this comprehensive, paid fellowship program for college undergraduate juniors, seniors and recent college graduates interested in pursuing careers in theater administration. Watch Reid discuss the program on The Broadway Show below.