Backstage Breakdown

Allison and Elizabeth chat with Cheryl Mintz about her decades long career in stage management. Cheryl has worked professionally on Broadway and with leading Theater, Ballet, and Opera companies and productions, while also being active on the Stage Managers Association Executive Board, producing the Del Hughes awards, and teaching at Montclair State University. 

Cheryl Mintz’s 42-year career as a Production Stage Manager spans Theater, Ballet and Opera. She is currently the Production Stage Manager for the two leading ballet companies in New Jersey; American Repertory Ballet and New Jersey Ballet, and an Adjunct Professor at Montclair State University. Cheryl continues her career-long 39 production collaboration with director/playwright Emily Mann most recently with the world premiere stage adaptation of Wladek Szpilman’s memoir, The Pianist, and the revival of Ms. Mann’s Execution of Justice. Cheryl celebrated 30 seasons at the Tony Award Winning McCarter Theatre Center, 25 as McCarter Theatre’s Resident Production Stage Manager, and has collaborated with America’s finest directors, playwrights, designers, actors, and theater-makers. Cheryl has enjoyed thirteen collaborations with Maestro Gian Carlo Menotti and the Spoleto Festivals in USA and Italy.  Cheryl spent five seasons at Lincoln Center with New York City Opera where she Stage Managed 40 operas and musicals, three tours and three PBS telecasts, and has six Broadway/Production Contract shows to her credit. Cheryl has mentored hundreds of emerging theater-makers through teaching and supervising assistantships. She has written for The New York Times, Yale School of Drama Alumni Magazine, and is a contributor to Sound and Music for the Theatre: The Art & Technique of Design and Dance Production; Design and Technology. Publications include Acting Editions of Athol Fugard’s The Road to Mecca and A Place with the Pigs. Cheryl received her MFA from Yale School of Drama, Management Development Certificate from Princeton University, BA from SUNY Stony Brook, SUNY Scholarship at University of Loughborough, England, and named a SUNY Notable Alumni in the Arts. For the Stage Managers’ Association, she was an Executive Board Member for 21 years, and produces The Del Hughes Awards Event for the past 8 years. Cheryl is a recipient of the Award of Excellence at the 2020 New Jersey Theatre Alliance Curtain Call, and 2010 Applause Award. Cheryl is a founder and partner of princetonVIRTUAL, which through creative virtual and live events brought communities together during the pandemic. Cheryl lives in Princeton, New Jersey with her husband Harris Richter and son Jake.

Topic #1: Schooling / Early Career

Topic #2: Stage Managing Opera and Dance

Topic #3: Career at McCarter Theatre

Topic 4: The Stage Management Association (SMA) 

Theme music by Barrett Riggins.

BARRETT RIGGINS is a composer and lyricist based in Brooklyn. He won the 2025 Richard Rodgers Award for HELSINKI (Upcoming; The New Group, Selection; NAMT). He is represented by UTA and the Hybrid Agency.

Evangeline is a seasoned stage manager who has worked on and off Broadway, on national tours, regionally, and currently teaches future stage managers at Webster University how to thrive in the theater world. 

BIO: Evangeline has worked on and off Broadway, in regional theatres across the country, on international and national tours, with ballet and contemporary dance companies, and with large-scale corporate and industrial events. In her current hometown, she has worked with the St. Louis Rep, the Muny, and the St. Louis Ballet. She has been a professor of stage management at Webster University since 2020 and holds an MFA in stage management from UC San Diego. In her non-theatre life Evangeline is a competitive figure skater and skates on an adult synchronized skating team in St. Louis. She enjoys reading, writing, hiking, cycling, and hanging out with friends and family!

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

Jay Sheehan sits down with Allison & Elizabeth and has a candid conversation about mental health in both the classroom and the workplace.  Jay talks about his own challenges while encouraging others.  A multi hyphenate creative with an impressive resume who reminds us that no matter how far your career takes you, it’s important to never lose your belief in yourself and your compassion for others.  

Jay Sheehan (he/him)

Jay has been overseeing the production management and stage management areas for the School of Theatre, Television and Film at San Diego State University where he leads the Certificate in Entertainment Management Program for the School. In addition to leading the production management area, Jay teaches stage management, production management, event planning, and live concert production.

A published author, Jay co-wrote the first textbook about production management in the United States. The Production Manager’s Toolkit has been an international best seller in the Routledge Press Toolkit series. The Second Edition was released on March 14th, 2023

Jay is a 20-year member of the United States Institute for Theatre Technology and was the recipient of the USITT Wally Russel Award for Outstanding Mentorship in 2022.

He is a 30-year member of Actors Equity Association and spent his early career at the Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. Jay’s resume is extensive.  

He is also the owner of his own production company, Cue One Productions, whose event list includes the NFL Super Bowl, and Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game Special Events. He also produces many charity galas and corporate events across the United States.

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

Backstage Banter The Podcast 

Bryan Runion and Jay Sheehan 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/backstage-banter/id1778487958 

Production Managers Tool Kit 

Second Edition 

Cary Gillett and Jay Sheehan

https://a.co/d/01r3BVSv 

Let Go It Will All Get Done 

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5cTakAaXNlsNAhZJGM2p6i

Donna D’Cruz

The Four Agreements 

https://www.amazon.com/Four-Agreements-Practical-Personal-Freedom/dp/1878424319

by Don Miguel Ruiz (Author), Janet Mills

Jamie Torres (He/They) is a multi-hyphenate theater creative who thrives during the chaos and doesn’t back down from their beliefs. 

BIO: Jaime is a theatre artist born and raised in NYC, growing up in the Bronx, Jaime starting dancing at the age of 7 and then singing in middle school, it wasn’t long until they were in love with theatre. Unfortunately college for theatre wasn’t an option so they had to pivot. Jaime attended The Fashion Institute of Technology or FIT and graduated with a BFA in Fashion Design. Merging the worlds of theatre and fashion quickly set them on the path of Costume Design and Wardrobe. It allowed them to establish themselves in the theatre community earlier than most of their contemporaries and gain experience as a theatre professional. Jaime worked steadily in Theatre, Opera, and Concert Dance up until the pandemic, and has been fortunate to continue working steadily post, most notably as the original wardrobe supervisor for the hit Off Broadway Show TITANIQUE which opened in 2022 At The Asylum Theatre and moved to the The Daryl Roth. 

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

Instagram/TikTok: @jaimester88

Dance with Jamie: 

Steps on Broadway (“Lastic Stretch”) 

Monday’s @ 1:30pm 

Online or In Person 

Dance with Jamie: 

Broadway Dance Center 

Thursday’s @ 12:15pm 

Friday’s @ 10:45am

Theme music by Barrett Riggins.

Priscilla is a managerial mastermind. She is an AEA Stage Manager and an ATPAM Company Manager who has a plethora of experience in managerial roles on various levels of theatre in New York City and beyond. 

Bio: Priscilla Villanueva is a New York-based stage manager and AEA member. They have graduated from City College of New York with a B.A in Theatre. They have worked for The Bushwick Starr, Theatre for the New City, Signature Theatre, The Kraine Theatre, Playwrights Realm, and The Sappho Project. Off-Broadway credits include: The Siblings Play, Cullud Wattah, Neurosis, Locusts Have No King, and Play On! Shakespeare festival. Peace and Love… 

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

@villanueva.priscilla

Leon is an all around super human multi-hyphenate with professional experience as an actor, company manager, marketing manager,  general manager, and producer on the regional, Off-Broadway, and Broadway stages. 

BIO: An award-winning creative producer, artistic administrator, multi-hyphenate, Leon Jones (they/he) is committed to creating space for other BIPOC/LGBTQIA+ artists on stage and off. Leon began their professional career playing Macduff’s Child in Berkeley Rep’s Macbeth, starring Frances McDormand and Conelth Hill. They have worked with renowned regional companies such as Abingdon Theatre Company (Artistic Associate), California Shakespeare Theatre (Company Member), San Francisco Bay Area Theatre Company (Associate Producer), and Marin Shakespeare Company (Education Director). Most recent credits, PICTURES FROM HOME (Assistant Company Manager - Broadway debut), Associate Producer for the upcoming Off-Broadway production of TROPHY BOYS, Client Services Coordinator at AKA, and Associate General Manager and Company Manager positions for several Off-Broadway productions and a national tour of ON YOUR FEET. www.leonjonesjr.com | IG: @theleonjones

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

@theleonjones

Jen Ash is a phenomenal stage manager who has worked extensively as a Stage Manager in New York, on Tour, and beyond. She talks openly with us about the professional world, friendships, and how to balance business and pleasure.   

Bio: Broadway: A  Wonderful World, Days of Wine and Roses, SIX, POTUS, Dear Evan Hansen, Wicked  Tours: Come From Away, Hadestown, Wicked, IF/THEN, Off-Broadway: CATS: The Jellicle Ball, Everything’s Fine, FuerzaBrutaWAYRA, Peter and the Starcatcher, Satchmo at the Waldorf, Bill W. And Dr. Bob. Regional: Goodspeed, Paper Mill Playhouse. Originally from El Paso, TX.

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

Instagram: @jendashash

Kyra Bowie is a performer turned amazing stage manager who has worked extensively in the new york city theatre world. She talks with us about her journey to being “behind the table" and  

Kyra Bowie is a NY based Stage Manager and co-founder of Transcend Streaming. Projects that excite Kyra are new works, technically challenging productions, and stories that bring up questions that might not always be something easy to grapple with. Select credits: SEE WHAT I WANNA SEE (PSM | Out of the Box Theatrics), OUR CLASS (PSM | MART Foundation), BASEMENT, IL (PSM | NYSAF), HOUSE OF TELESCOPES (PSM | Pipeline Theatre Co), BABY FOOT (PSM | Walkerspace), JUST TELL NO ONE (SM | Lincoln Center), THE ORCHARD with Jessica Hecht & Mikhail Baryshnikov (BA-RISH-NIH-KOF) (PSM | Arlekin Players Theatre) HAPPY LIFE (PSM | Walkerspace). www.KyraBowie.com

Backstage Breakdown answers questions like:

Instagram: @kyrabowie

Amanda Spooner is an accomplished stage manager and educator.  Amanda talks with us about all things backstage.  She is now working on Purple Rain The Musical, a dream come-true that she manifested years before.  

Amanda Spooner is an AEA Stage Manager and Educator, who came to Ithaca from New York City. She has worked on and off-Broadway, regionally, on tour, in events, on immersive experiences, on opera, dance, countless readings and workshops, and in television. Her specialty is in the development of new works and their world premieres, including Rebecca Tyke-min and Paula Vogel's Indecent as well as the musical Sing Street. Amanda has stage-managed for Producer Daryl Roth, Lincoln Center Theater, Berkeley Rep, Playwrights Horizons, Signature Theatre, Soho Rep, BAM, Ars Nova, Sundance Theatre Lab, The Public Theatre, American Repertory Theater, La Jolla Playhouse, Yale Repertory Theatre, Actors Theatre of Louisville, and Westport Country Playhouse among others. She is the founder of both the Year of the Stage Manager campaign and Tandem, a peer-to-peer education program for theatre makers, in addition to serving on the Board of Directors for the Stage Managers' Association. Amanda is a former TONY voter and works closely with Actors’ Equity Association -- she was recently the youngest stage management AEA councillor in the nation. She advocates for economic equality in professional theatre, for families in the arts, and for greater visibility for Stage Managers and spends a great deal of time on research and in discussion regarding these topics. Amanda was named an American Theatre Magazine “Person to Watch” and was featured on the cover of Equity News with her son, among countless other articles and interviews. She received her MFA from the Yale School of Drama, her BA from San Francisco State University, and her AA from Las Positas College. 

Backstage Breakdown answers those big questions like:

@spoonforbetter on Instagram

@sminsta2020 on Instagram  

Theme music by Barrett Riggins.

BARRETT RIGGINS is a composer and lyricist based in Brooklyn. He won the 2025 Richard Rodgers Award for HELSINKI (Upcoming; The New Group, Selection; NAMT). He is represented by UTA and the Hybrid Agency.

Rian talks to us about their life on and off-broadway and breaks down what a child guardian actually does. Rian explains how hard young artists work and the trials and tribulations of advocating for them. 

Rian Buksbazen is a multi-hyphenate creative and theatrical specialist. Their work as a child guardian can be seen on shows like Leopoldstadt, Trevor the Musical off-Broadway and on Disney+, Into the Woods at Encores!, American Ballet Theater, EVIL on CBS, and many many more. They are the only transgender child guardian working on Broadway, and are a proud member of IATSE Local 764 TWU. 

Backstage Breakdown answers those big questions like:

Instagram: @rbuksbazen

Theme music by Barrett Riggins.

BARRETT RIGGINS is a composer and lyricist based in Brooklyn. He won the 2025 Richard Rodgers Award for HELSINKI (Upcoming; The New Group, Selection; NAMT). He is represented by UTA and the Hybrid Agency.