Was It Chance?

“Grizabella was the wrong cat to die. Welcome to my Ted Talk.” Mike Abrams, a fellow Broadway Podcast Network member, never imagined his life would revolve around the musical … CATS! Born and raised in Indianapolis, Mike is an avid sports fan who spends the majority of his free time watching early 2000’s sitcoms. In 2016, he moved to New York and made the decision to embrace every unique opportuni...

José Rolón calls himself a “nuptial maestro” which, as a recovering wedding planner, our host Heather thinks is hilarious!! For almost a decade, José has made a name for himself with his chill vibe and generous command in wedding planning and design. Making him one of the top wedding planners in NYC. Now, where this story takes an unexpected and delightful turn is that during pandemic quarantine,...

Denise Duffield-Thomas is THE money mentor for the new wave of online entrepreneurs who want to make money and change the world. She helps women charge premium prices, release the fear of money and create First Class lives. Her books, Lucky Bitch, Get Rich, Lucky Bitch, and Chillpreneur give a fresh and funny roadmap to living a life of abundance without burnout.  She describes herself as a lazy i...

This week you get to enjoy the soothing sounds of a tropical rainstorm whenever Alan speaks and … yes … we really DO talk about anatomically correct Vagina plushies and so much else. WOW! We had way, way too much fun in this interview. It’s one of those conversations where the laughter can’t help but make you laugh.  Christina Ray-Lynn Connelly AKA Danger bot is a voice-over artist, comedian, anim...

Unexpected tragedy may have led Jenny to her amazing successful theatrical producing career. After losing her brother in her late 20s, she founded Ars Nova to honor him and continue his legacy in the arts.  Jenny is a Tony Award winner who started in “the biz” as an entry level intern and is now a producing powerhouse. She’s worked alongside some of the greatest in our industry including Tina Fey,...

How do you take a $10,000 fantasy and make it feel like reality? Well, we have no idea but Alison Burns and Lulu Picart, hosts of 10KDollarDay do! This hilarious and creative podcast came to life because Alison and Lulu embraced chance over and over again.  In this episode, Heather and Alan chat with Alison and Lulu about the crazy, winding road of chance and manifestation they kept putting them t...

Who’s excited to hear our theme song, “STFU Alan" sung as an Aria!? Well, tune in because this week's guest, Lauren “Nightingale” Jelencovich does it and it’s ah-maz-ing. She gives previous “STFU Alan” composers, James Harkness, Drew Gasparini, and Josh Breckenridge a run for their money, that’s for sure!  The incredible list of achievements Lauren Jelencovich has under her belt is, quite frankly,...

Sometimes our dreams take decades to manifest. And while this is completely true, we can also have several different successes on the way to what is most meant for us. This week's guest, Xochitl Gonzalez, has worn many hats in her professional life but none so rewarding as finally becoming a published author. Her debut novel was a New York Times bestseller months before its release and they also m...

There are no words to describe how honored and excited Alan and Heather were to sit down with the incredibly brilliant, Jim Jimirro (except these words we just used). But when the opportunity to interview the founder of The Disney Channel presents itself, you ask no questions and just get it on the schedule.  Jim Jimirro is the creator and founding President of The Disney Channel and Walt Disney H...

Art brings us hope. This week’s guest, Rain Ross, has embraced an artistic approach to life in every possible way. She uses dance as a way to create community connections. Rain helps people find themselves through movement as a dance professor at Stockton University. In 2011, she participated in the first annual International Dance Day Festival in Lebanon and then became the Guest Artist Coordinat...

When chance met the thirst trap that is Josh Breckenridge the angels began to sing... Ok. Maybe not, but our hosts Heather and Alan fell in love with Josh and we’re pretty sure you will also! Josh Breckenridge is a Broadway superhero - otherwise known as a swing and standby. He’s currently working in Come From Away on Broadway and serving as a super hero for several different roles as well as the...

Meet Drew “Fuckin’” Gasparini. Get ready to be greatly entertained in this hilarious episode with composer and lyricist Drew Gasparini. Honestly, these show notes are hard to write because we had so much fun and talked about such a vast array of topics. You’re gonna have to listen to the entire thing folks, it’s just that good. From meeting his childhood hero, Marc Summers, and becoming BFFs, to p...

A chance encounter with Burt Bacharach led Steven Sater to collaborate on a decade-long project to produce a full-length musical concept album featuring some of the industry's biggest artists. Now 93, Burt hasn't written anything for the stage since Promises, Promises in 1968. Steven felt drawn to Burt, this project, and their mission to explore what it's like to write love songs for couples after...

The broadway actress and lead violinist for The Eagles, Erica Swindell, gets straight to the heart of the matter of how taking a massive chance opened doors she actively tried to previously keep closed. She first picked up a violin at the age of three but after joining her high school theater program decided to pursue acting rather than music. That’s not, however, what fate had in store for Erica....

Actor James Harkness made his Broadway debut in Aida back in 2001 before moving on to productions such as Chicago, The Color Purple, Guys and Dolls, the Dreamgirls tour, and Beautiful. Now that Broadway has returned he resumed his role as Paul Williams in Ain’t Too Proud on Broadway. A navy veteran, James seized an unexpected opportunity and took a chance when he walked into a dance studio while o...

People talk about manifestation as a thing that you can just think into existence. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. When it comes to making your creative dreams come true, what really matters is putting yourself in a position to thoughtfully and intelligently take advantage of the opportunities presented to you. And sometimes these opportunities show up in very unexpected ways. We’re Heather Vic...