Tuesday May 22nd, networking at 7pm, panel at 7:30
The Playroom Theatre
151 W. 46th Street, 8th floor

With confirmed panelists Pippa Bexon, director of client services at Situation Interactive, a digital-first marketing agency; Themis Gomes CEO, Cennarium America, Inc.; Monica Hammond, director of marketing for Davenport Theatricals; Emily McGill, founder of Press Play and a press rep for Disney on Broadway.

The business has evolved, as has the world, and tried-and-true marketing efforts may not always be enough to break through in a crowded market dominated by mega-hits. In this panel, we will direct attention to and emphasize specialized marketing strategies and some of the specific ways each panelist approaches the task of putting butts in seats. One size does not fit all, and we'll discuss how to customize your strategy to your product. We'll touch upon basic marketing principals: advertising, public relations/publicity, special promotions, social media and how (and when) to integrate them; and explore basic branding for your show or your company, and how to build and/or expand that brand. New questions arise today. Are different methods needed to reach out to younger audiences as opposed to the usual theatergoer? How has the social media landscape changed in the last 5 years in terms of the entertainment industry, and how do you translate media presence into ticket sales? Are there methods used outside the theater industry that we might learn from and use ourselves?

Doors open at 7:00pm for networking and refreshments, roundtable introductions of everyone in the room will start at 7:30pm - come prepared with your best half-minute summary of who you are, and what you need. Free for TRU members; $15 for non-members ($12.50 in advance). Please call at least a day in advance (or much sooner) for reservations: 212-714-7628; or e-mail TRUStaff1@gmail.com

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  PIPPA BEXON

  is an advertising and marketing professional with 11 years of experience working across the advertising landscape in the both New York and London. Pippa graduated from Durham University in the UK, with a bachelor of sciences in Psychology, and minor in English Literature. Beginning her career in London at AKA, Pippa has overseen over 30 advertising campaigns for theater productions both in the West End and on Broadway. After three years in London, Pippa moved to NYC and joined the AKA NY team, specializing in account management, media and strategy. Following AKA NY, Pippa spent time at Sony Music working with their in-house branding agency on a variety of music projects and consumer products. Since 2015 Pippa has been at Situation Interactive, a digital first marketing agency which specializes in Entertainment. As Director of Client Services, Pippa leads digital strategy for many Broadway shows as well as working on arts and culture, TV and not for profit clients. Past and present clients include Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Wicked, Mean Girls, Spiderman Turn off The Dark, The Color Purple, On Your Feet, The National Theater London and RSC.
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  THEMIS GOMES

  is CEO of Cennarium, a producer, licensor and online platform for theatrical content, offering subscribers a wide selection of performances from around the world in high-definition encompassing a variety of genres including drama, dance, comedy, music and opera. Since establishing a U.S. presence for the Brazil-based company in 2016, Gomes has been responsible for all day-to-day operations, including licensing, marketing, distribution, business development, finance and revenue generation. Before joining Cennarium, Gomes was involved in the launch of several digital businesses in Latin America, including Chile, Argentina, Peru, Colombia and Brazil. Gomes founded Zuga.cl, a successful online diaper subscription service, after which she was a consultant for companies including L’Orèal, OLX and Verisure. Before founding Zuga, Gomes was CFO of Happyshop, a Chilean mobile startup with a shopping app focused on the omni-channel consumer and whose main customers were Santander, Cencosud and Falabella. 
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  MONICA HAMMOND

  is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Big Leap Brands LLC, working with clients to understand their business as well as we know our own, because small opportunities can be found in the most granular aspects of any business that will make a huge impact, including opportunities for clients in their marketing, systems and processes, expenses, and more. As a marketing professional, Monica has worked on numerous Broadway shows, including the Tony Award-winning Broadway revival of Once On This Island, Deaf West’s Spring Awakening, It’s Only A Play, Gettin’ The Band Back Together, as well as the National Tour of A Night With Janis Joplin. Off Broadway: That Bachelorette Show, The Awesome 80s Prom, Daddy Long Legs, A Better Place. She is also the Founder and Chief Coloring Officer of Curious Custom Coloring Books, and Founder of Broadway Murder Mysteries.
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  EMILY MCGILL

  is a publicist with nearly ten years of experience working in entertainment in New York City.  She has represented the Tony Award-winning productions of A Raisin in the Sun starring Denzel Washington, Memphis, and Billy Elliot, Andrew Lloyd Webber’s School of Rock and  CATS, George Takei’s Allegiance, This Is Our Youth, Rock of Ages, Ghost, Elf, and First Date. Since that start, she’s expanded out to other forms of entertainment, including music, film and television, and worked with companies large and small (from Disney, HBO, Amazon Studios, Fathom Events, Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and Westfield Corporation to boutique talent agencies, internet startups, non-profits and string quartets.  Plus male strippers.  Yes, male strippers).  Emily has successfully navigated relationships with the press on behalf of clients resulting in coverage from The New York Times, CBS Sunday Morning, the Associated Press, the Today Show,  Wall Street Journal, New York Post, USA Today, and Entertainment Weekly to name a few. Career highlights include the Obamas attending A Raisin in the Sun and having a literal ‘stop the presses’ moment with People Magazine for the exclusive photo, throwing an afternoon tea for Tony nominee LaTanya Richardson Jackson that was hosted by Julianne Moore (and included the reading of a congratulatory letter from First Lady Michelle Obama), producing a concert at the State Department for Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton starring cast members of Memphis and the show’s composer David Bryan (of Bon Jovi), and producing a benefit concert of Operation Smile to celebrate the cast album of First Date.