NEW YORK CITY: The Shubert Organization (TSO) has announced the members of its 2025 Artistic Circle, an initiative to provide assistance to BIPOC theatre producers with projects geared toward the commercial arenas of Broadway and Off-Broadway. Since its inception in 2021, the program has supported eight outstanding producers developing an impressive range of work. This year’s cohort will comprise Miranda Gohh, George Strus, and Cynthia J. Tong.
Named a “2022 Woman to Watch on Broadway” by the Broadway Women’s Fund, Miranda Gohh is a Tony-nominated producer originally from Providence, R.I. She is the founder of Theatre Producers of Color (TPOC), a nonprofit organization that empowers the next generation of BIPOC producers through education, training, and mentorship. She is also a co-founder of the Industry Standard Group (TISG), the first BIPOC-led commercial theatre investment and producing organization. A graduate of the Commercial Theatre Institute and an alumna of Wesleyan University, she is also a proud member of Gold House, a nonprofit organization advocating for Asian and Pacific Islander representation in media and business.
George Strus is a Tony-nominated and Obie-winning nonbinary Latine producer and dramaturg based in New York. They founded Breaking the Binary Theatre, a new-work development and community building hub for transgender, nonbinary, and two-spirit+ (TNB2S+) theatremakers. They are also the founding CEO of theatrical production company Benson Drive Productions, developing projects like Amber Ruffin’s Bigfoot and others to be announced.
Cynthia J. Tong is a Tony-nominated Asian American creative producer whose projects span Broadway, Off-Broadway, U.S. regional theatres, and the U.K. She is an adjunct professor at Montclair State University and a co-founder of the Industry Standard Group. Through the Broadway League, she was part of the Rising Stars Program (2022), received the Gatchell-Neufeld Grant (2023), and is currently a Broadway League fellow member (2023-2025). Cynthia is also a producing fellow alum of WP Theater’s 2020-22 Lab.
SOUTH NORWALK, CONN.: Thrown Stone has awarded its 2025 commission to Ramon Esquivel for his proposed play, Show Me the Gates of Heaven, which will continue Esquivel’s storytelling about humans engaging with science, spirituality, and the environment. This is Thrown Stone’s second full-length commission, following the 2023 world premiere of Seven Cousins for a Horse by Tammy Ryan.
Ramón Esquivel is a playwright, director, dramaturg, and educator. His plays have been produced in theatres, universities, and schools across North America. Other works of this ilk include Watching for Sasquatch: An Environmental Play of Plays, commissioned by California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo; ¡O Cascadia!, featured at the Seven Devils Playwrights Conference; and The Dress With the Crooked Collar, developed at the New Harmony Playwrights Conference. He has an MFA in creative writing from the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, an MA in educational theatre from New York University, and a BA in History from Yale University. Ramón is currently assistant professor of theatre, playwriting, at Cal Poly.
From 150 submissions, a select group of playwrights emerged as finalists. Their work stood out in a highly competitive field. Finalists included Cris Eli Blak, Jillian Blevins, Katie Duggan, Yussef El Guindi, Susan Lily Jackson, Amy Merrill, Jerry Montoya, Brian James Polak, and SEVAN.
ALAMEDA, CALIF.: Clear-Com has announced Annabelle Gauthier as the recipient of the 2025 USITT Stage Management Award, which Clear-Com sponsors yearly. This prestigious honor, presented annually at the USITT Conference & Stage Expo, recognizes an outstanding student stage manager for their dedication, leadership, and excellence in stage management. The award was presented on March 6 at the USITT Mainstage at the Columbus Convention Center.
Annabelle Gauthier, a fourth-year design & technology and psychology major at Colorado State University, has an impressive portfolio of stage management credits, including stage managing Everybody and The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. She has also served as assistant stage manager for productions such as The Wolves and The Tender Land. Beyond her work at CSU, Annabelle completed a technical apprenticeship at the Santa Fe Opera, further honing her skills in the field.
