Welcome to Big Broadway Energy, the podcast with your host Steven Rudin. That's me. Thank you for being here, everybody. Now, if you're a first time listener because you are listening to lunchtime conversations, or maybe you just heard of it and you're thinking, who is this guy?

I'm Radio St. Pete's Broadway, guy. And I have a Broadway Hour of music on Sundays at 10:00 PM on Sunshine, 96.7 fm. Or you can listen to the replay for the non vampires at 4:00 PM on St. Pete sounds. Both of those stations can be found on radio st pete.com, and if you've already been listening and you love it and you know you want to hear more or you hate it and you have big feelings about it, I want you to email me.

I want. To do what you all want to hear, so please email me at Big Broadway energy@gmail.com. Okay. Speaking of big Broadway Energy, I have a really big energy guest today. He has been a guest on the pod before as the co-director of the very first Winter Pride here in St. Pete. And now he's back today, , to talk to us a little bit about his work as a big Broadway producer.

Welcome to my guest and fellow theater junkie, Gabe Alvez. Gabe, welcome. Hello. It's good to see you again. Big Broadway producer. That's what I'm calling you, girl. That's what I'm calling you from now on. You're the big Broadway producer, friend. I have big, I love it. , last time you were here, we had your fellow co-director of Winter Pride here with us as well, Rob Hall.

And , I want to talk a little bit, we'll get into the Broadway stuff 'cause that's like, you know, my meat and potatoes here. But before we do that, how was Winter Pride? How did it go? It was amazing.

And it kind of connected, like the whole thing happened in New York 'cause we brought a bunch of, , talent from the show in New York to Winter Pride.

We sure did. So it's kind of like a whole. All the worlds colliding, collided. Yeah. No, I, I was at

the drag race. It was so fun at Florida. It was right. It was so great. Yeah. Yeah. I just think it was so fun for all of us to have that same feeling that we feel in the summertime. In the wintertime, we weren't sweating our asses off.

We were having

like a really fun day. The drag queens were very happy. They bet they were. I bet they were.

, and I, it was really, really fun. But I gotta tell you, I've been to, I went to a few of the events. Uh huh. And the characters with the big heads haunted my dreams. They were the creepiest things I have ever seen at Pride.

And that's saying a lot. That's saying a lot. That's

saying a lot because there's some crazy things I would say during Pride. I know, right? It was funny though. It was my idea.

Oh my God. And they kept coming around the corner. I'm like, maybe, well, they're gone. Oh, they're back again. Oh my God. It was too funny.

Yeah, it was really fun. Well, okay, so we're here to talk theater here to talk just about everything that you know you're doing for the theater community in New York and also here. Um, you just came back from another theater trip. You go all the time. You see great theater. I love watching you and following you on Facebook because you always kind of remind us the things that you've seen.

, I wanna talk about drag to musical. Obviously we chatted about it, it briefly when you were here last time, but. Let's talk about where we're, where we're , at drag musical, and sort of what the next steps

are. So we opened in, , on September 30th last year. So we had an amazing run and, , we, and then we are closing, we're set to close at the end of April.

Okay. And now we are gonna, we're having plans to go. Go to London. The plans are in motion. The plans are in motion. It's just like, it was the same thing, like when we started talking about New York, I was like, there is no way. You know? And then, uh, and look where we are. So it's just like we know that there's a lot that's gonna happen.

We'll probably think like in about a year. We'll, probably there. I

mean, every single one of these ventures. Starts with the first. Yes. A first step, right? Yes. And you just have to like, believe in it. And I, I'm so excited. I thought about, , going to London with drag musical. I'm like, well, you know, they're short on Queens right now.

The last one, , the most famous queen of them all died a few years ago, or last year, whenever the Queen of England died. So we're like. We need to bring the queens over back to London. You know what I mean? Yes, absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you are a producer and I know that that is a big word for, you know, we were joking about it at the very top, but like, you know, I want people to know.

What a producer does does, because I was at my sister's house for dinner last night talking, I was gonna, , we were gonna chat today and she goes, you know, I don't know the difference between a director and a producer. And I was like, well, first of all, that's too long of a story. I mean, my god, if you don't know the difference between those two things, we got more to talk about.

But tell us about what a day in the life of a producer off Broadway. Okay,

so, uh, and I think I should say a little bit about like how we came around and how those opportunities, a lot of, and we were not aware how they. Rise. I, , when you are not like super involved in the theater community, they look at you like, I think the first thing is like they, every production that you see there needs a lot of money.

Sure. So the production, think about like , the first thing the pro producers will do, it's about the money. And when , you can be a producer in a show there, your job is pretty much like raising their money. So you get the title of producer and your job is to go in the community. Contacts, networking and everything.

So when we come in with the money, then we become part of that group. Like we are. A lot of the talk on the producing team, it's always about the money, like the, when you're talking about the director and the producer, the director leaves in the clouds and the beautiful like unicorn, the artistic, the light, and dreaming about the beautiful costumes, the visions, yes.

And then we get the bill and we're like, what the hell? Wow. Yeah. Wow. Yeah. So this is kind of like how it separates like the always on the other side, the creative part of it. Yeah. They always like thinking about, it's like the marketing, oh, we can do this, we can do that. Like, uh, setting like spaces, like in the, , in the lobby and then we are the ones that sometimes have to bring back to realities.

Like we don't have at the moment to do it. Because it costs a lot of, that's one thing that, um, we have been learning. It's like, it's everything. And there was a song in the show that says that drag is expensive. And every time when we are having the meetings and the, with the producer, everybody's like, yes, drag is expensive.

You know? Yeah. Because it's like the

glitter budget alone. My god. , that's the thing. Yeah. The way

there is this. Song. Then my husband keeps saying, he's like, we need to cut that song. Because every time we have to get a new wig and we see the price of the wig, it is like, how can a wig cost this much?

I know know, it's so

true. But it's like you, you know, we were, so, before we started recording, we were just talking about, just the sheer cost of a show a week in New York City. Right? Like it's, I don't know if we wanna talk exact numbers, but I think it would surprise people

so I want to talk about just a sheer number of what it costs to produce an off-Broadway show a week.

, I think people would be surprised by that number.

Yes. , so like. A week, our show on, , and it's a off-Broadway show, , 499 seats. Yep. And it costs every week, $200,000. That's how much it costs. So just to be open like this is, , paying everybody, paying more. And that's like, and that includes also any marketing strategies.

Sure. And that's one thing that's. It takes a lot of those budgets. It's , it's the money. Like, and that's to just stay even. So anything above that, that's when it starts making a profitable, making money.

Yeah, making money. Making a profit, exactly. And

just, , like our show, um, it's uh, it was a $6 million production show, so it's a very, in comparison to.

The big shows that people see on Broadway can be 20, $30 million of production. And um, and they are like in theaters that sit. 1600. Sure. Right. And that's what we were talking about, that , one of the realizations that I had is like, when I see the price of the ticket now mm-hmm. I'm like, I understand.

Yeah. I'm still gonna complain a little bit. It's like, why is this ticket $350? Yeah, exactly. And then, , but the end, it's just like, it costs, it's a lot of money. It's in a, in a lot of shows sometimes that you. My think is like, oh my gosh, these people are like, they are making so much money. They shouldn't be charging me.

Right. Trust me. Right. You know, it's too like some. Just having the, the theater full doesn't mean anything. Anything. Yeah, that's true. I remember

when I was in college, they used to what they call pay for the house a lot of times for like the shows that they were trying to get audiences to see. And of course it's hard to get people to see a show that's half full in the audience.

Right? Yes. So I went to theater school and I mean, I saw so many shows that way because producers were just give tickets away. Yeah, yeah. To get people in the seats. Yeah. But it doesn't always mean that it's making money. Right. That it doesn't mean that it's making money. Yeah. It's so true. It's so true. , and.

You, you briefly talked about , going to London, what that looks like for someone that maybe produced a show , in the United States. Could you maybe talk about like, what does a producer title look like for someone who either owns a part of a show and then it goes to another part of the world?

Like how does that work?

So usually like when, , the like directed musical, for example, we started. We came in into the fa, into the drag family in 2022, but they were already working on the music since 2015. Oh, okay. So the show, it's , like you said, it's , oh, it's gonna take a year for us to be in London.

It took . Seven years for them to see the show , on a stage. Sure. , so we were the first investors that did the first production , in la. We ran the show was the first time, the first stage production. So when you come , in a situation like that from the beginning and you keep putting money on it 'cause you wanna see the project through Sure.

, you are like, you're part of the mother company. That's , the company that's gonna hold now all the licensing to, if you's gonna go to a cruise ship, if somebody, and once it becomes a licensed show, like somebody's gonna be like, I'm gonna sell the show to other places. Like when schools want to do it, wanna local theater.

Sure. Then that's when the show starts making money. But then our production participation, like it diminishes because now we are just getting reports. So when it goes to London, we are gonna be here in the us. We are gonna have some input on the starting of the process, but then another production company takes over and then they are gonna do whatever they have to do in London to raise money to do all that stuff.

So this is how. It happens, but us from the beginning, we are the only people that will always be more involved than , the creators. Sure. Which are like Alaska, Thomas and Ash.

To be able to be in at the kind of the ground level is really how producers, , make their living because they are able to license that stuff and then it becomes Yes.

More of a. A revenue stream. Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure. , I worked at Roundabout Theater Company in New York, which is not-for-profit, but Broadway. And I also worked for classic stage company in New York, which is off Broadway, but they produced their own original things. Yeah. And it's, it is fascinating to watch a show go from like a notebook to like what it becomes, .

Because it becomes its own thing. Yes. Like , it's, and but you, to your point, without the producers. Who are really the ones that are writing the checks. And also, , when they're short, when you have $150,000 on a week where you need to make 200,000, the call's coming to you , to make that money up.

Yeah. And then it's always, and then, and one thing, like particular about drag, it's just like, it. It gives you that anxiety a little bit like Right. And now I understand, but it's part of the business. Yeah, for sure. It's part of the business. , but one thing that, we loved being part of this production and 'cause it was the first show on Broadway about drag queens.

Yeah. Like we had some shows with drag queens, but a show that's specifically about drag queens, that was the first time written by a. RuPaul's Drag Race girl. Yeah. So there was a lot of firsts. Sure. And so we just had that passion about it. , my husband said , this is either gonna be, make us a lot of money or is a very expensive way to hang out with drag queens, famous drag queens.

So we, you think Sunday brunch is expensive? Try producing, drag the musical. Yes. So, . But it, but it's beyond that. Yeah. It's like the message that the show has, like, and the time that we are leaving right now is just so important to have. It's necessary. Right? It's necessary and sometimes.

And that's the cool thing about drag. It's not preachy. It's not like right on your face. It's just bringing joy to people through queer art, you know? And I think that's what is, , that's what we have to have more and more visibility. Sometimes it's not just. Picking a sign. Those things are important to do, but , just by being yourself and being in a space that's usually occupied by, not by drag queens

without a doubt, , a reminder of what drag really is for.

Yes. And it's for the celebration, right? Yeah. It's really about that. And it's been weaponized in a way that's just so unfair because , of the true purpose of it and the art of it is joy. Yeah. And love. Yes. , and community.

Yeah.

And I think , it's such a. I dunno, testament to the, to, to that sort of like belief that those messages are important that you guys still continue to do it, right?

Absolutely. No matter how expensive and challenging it gets expensive. It's expensive, it's expensive, but it's worth it. Yes. Totally worth it. , okay, I, I want to talk a little bit about the shows. I, we want to, I think we should dish a little bit because I. I've been notorious for the last few months talking about, you know, I moved to New York City for the fourth time in my life during Covid and everything was closed.

, and it was very depressing. And I, and then when things started to open up slowly, I thought to myself, okay, it's the same old stuff. Like I'm not being really energized by anything. And it's because things weren't in workshop during Covid, so like. When the theaters opened back up, there was this like nothing to fill 'em.

Nothing. Yeah. But they had to fill 'em, so they just filled in with a bunch of stuff. That wasn't, in my opinion, that great. However, I do think things are changing. Yes, the tides are changing a bit. Tides changing. Things have been changing in workshop, things are coming back on Broadway that are exciting and I want to talk about a few shows, but two that are really special to me.

I think first one is boop, because yeah, boop is one of those shows that you weren't sure was gonna be something special. But I've heard, I have not seen it yet. I'm gonna see it hopefully in the next couple months. I've heard nothing but good things about it. It's great. Tell me about it.

Yeah,

the first act, I was like, I don't know about this. And this is the story of Betty Boop. Yes. The story of Betty Boop going from black and white, and she wants to have a voice and she comes into color in the real world. I'm not gonna tell a lot., thats kind, that's very Who frame

Roger Rabbit. I love it.

Yes. That's so cool. So

it's super cute the way that they did, like , the play with the black and white and the, and the colors in the show was just. There is a scene that you gotta see it to be surprised that it's just the way that they did it was just amazing. It's a big dance scene. But the first act was kind of like, I'm more, it was a little cheesy in the beginning.

Mm-hmm. And they were trying to give you a lot of information to set up the story. Sure. So like, oh my gosh. It was like they're running through, I need a notebook. Yeah. It's like what's happening is every, everything is happening at the same time, but then the second act just starts and then is a lot more.

, and the, there's a little bit of that women's , empowerment rights. Empowerment, and it is amazing. I just, I love the show. I was so excited and I, and we all, we were entertained. And it's one of those shows that you expect, like the Broadway shows to be with big, huge dance routines

And it, you know, the, it was David Foster wrote the music. Yes. And it was directed and choreographed by Jerry Mitchell. So like, it has some pretty big names Yes. Involved but. I love that the, you know, original cast and the Betty Boop is sort of, I don't wanna say unknown, but like, she's not really a star.

Yeah. That's

her, , her debut right now. This is her Broadway debut? Yes. Oh my gosh. Her name is Jasmine.

Amy Rogers amazing. I mean, I love when. Somebody comes out of the woodwork and makes themself a star on their Broadway debut. It just is such special moment.

She is a star. Oh, she, I love. It's absolutely amazing.

It's

so great. So that was one of the ones you saw. And I also want to talk a little bit about Buena Vista Social

Club. Oh my God.

So this was came out of, and Bonne Vista's Social Club. I don't know if it's based on the film. Is it based on, it's

based on the band. On the experience

of what the band is.

Yes. Yeah, yeah.

And , yes, it's the story of the people that left Cuba. Pre-revolution and the people that stayed and the Buena Vista Social Club and the people that stayed, that stayed right in Cuba. And , and it is amazing. And one of Amara, when we were there on the show, the lady, the main lady, I think her name is Amara, she wasn't the audience dude, and everybody went like insane bananas because the woman that was playing her on the show, she came out just is like.

She introduced her and she was just like sitting there in the middle of the party. It's just,

, and that show, , again, one of those things that's like a cultural zeitgeist, if you are a part, if you know the point of a social club or you understand like what they endured while they were in, , Cuba and like what, and what they became to the world like once we all knew about them.

Yeah. You know, like that is a thing where if you meet those people in real life , and that culture means something to you, it's like yeah. It's a, it's like blows your mind

right. In the show, it was just,, I'm a little biased because , I'm a Latin man and I love the beats and the, it's a, it's completely different of Brazilian music, but I just love, and the band, the live band and the dancers, the whole show is just like incredible.

I loved it. The one thing that., I saw it that I think it's almost impossible. 'cause you're always looking for , the person that can dance, sing, and act, right? Sure. But on, when it visa a social club, you gotta find somebody that can also play an instrument like, , those original bands. Sure. So you could tell that some of the actors there were musicians before they were actors, , which is Okay, listen.

Which is okay. That's 'cause I'm like now like sitting through auditions. People are super talented, but find all that and on top, like you can't play piano. Yeah. And it's like if you have a piano and if you have to

prioritize the skills, like I'd rather have somebody know how to play the instruments, right?

Like even

more of a Gu Vista social club. How are you gonna do that? You can't, phone that in. You have to,

you know, really do it authentically. And that, , also has got an amazing creative team, uh, Justin Peck and, and Musical Direction by David Yasbeck, of course, ju David Yasbeck, who. He did the band's visit, he did Tootsie, the Musical.

Like he is one of those guys that's like understated. But once he has a hit on his hands or once he has a passion project, it's , he's like a dog with a bone. Like he works so hard to get it right. Yeah.

And it, and it was a, like when you walk in the theater, like the production level of like the staging and everything, you can see it goes to.

There is not, it's all about the music. There is not a lot of special effects and you know, like the things I was like, oh my gosh. Like , how did that happen in front of my eyes? It's all about , the dancing, the music, the singing, the movement of the stage. It really feels like you are in somebody's backyard.

Like,

it's so exciting. Yes. I can't wait to see that too. And actually, I love that you went and saw it because I had friends who saw it who are not from the Latin community, and they were like, I couldn't, I want, I wanted to watch it over again as soon as it ended. Yes. Like they, they were so excited about it and it

goes fast.

That was one of the things like, yeah, you don't feel. There is no like, oh, I'm gonna fall asleep a little bit here. No, take a nap. No, it's a show. And then I would look, 'cause I love looking at people's reactions during the show and every, because the music every, everybody's had, like, they're always deep popping and boot poping.

I love it. You know, like, so great. You could see , the Latin people are moving way more. Totally. Was the whole body totally. My God, God. The other people are just like the little, like, can I move here on the theater? Should I dance? And they also like, am I gonna be made fun

of? And is this culturally appropriate for me to move?

Yeah, go ahead and move. Oh dude,

I know Latin people are not gonna care. Yeah, no, go do it. That's what it's for. Yeah. We love it'ss for everybody dancing. Yes. ,

okay. So anything you want see that you haven't seen that you're excited to check out? Uh, I wanna see SMASH for sure.

And, . What I was, oh, and I wanna see Pirates of Pythons.

Oh, yeah. With Jinx Monsoon. Yes. I mean, there's, I'm a, I'm going back on the 12. I think I'm gonna get tickets to see pirates.

There's so much stuff. There's so much stuff to see in the season. So much. It's what I mean, like it's finally The Broadway's feels alive again. Yes. And it, I remember when I moved there in the nineties, it was a, it was like a renaissance of Broadway.

There was so much new stuff, and then it just didn't really happen the last for a while.

Was that the Year The Mean Girls, there was one year that there was a bunch of like SpongeBob, mean Girls. Yeah.

That was like the early two thousands. I moved there when Titanic came out and Ragtime came out and like all these things that were like really just like classic Broadway musicals.

But , they were reminding people what brought it was capable of, I guess. Yes. Yeah. Yeah, and it was just fun to see. Those grand shows again, that weren't necessarily Disney shows

, and the cabaret. Like, oh, cabaret, my God. , I can see that for the third time. And it's, you know, it keeps reviving, but it's

like so necessary right now.

Oh my gosh. It's like, it is so necessary because it really shows like how it comes slowly. It doesn't, it comes slowly. It comes slowly. Yeah. And we are

hearing things today. I know people think , I'm overdoing it, but I'm not overdoing it. I mean, we're hearing things today that scare the hell out of me.

Yes. And because I worked on cabaret for so many years and I got to sneak in and watch it a bunch of times. I mean, my bells and whistles are going off all over the place. It's not great, but it's so necessary that it's back on Broadway. I

know. And then, and that's one thing that I, I felt like on the show is like seeing cabaret even boop and , and drag the musical.

And, , like so many of the shows are reminding like there's a little bit of. Undertone even in the shows that are like supposed just to be. This entertaining thing. Yeah. Give me a good laugh. Sure. You know, but everything, and I think that's so important. The arts like has a message there to remind people of minorities, of women's empowerment.

You know, it's like immigrants , and gay rights and all those things that kind of being slowly challenged and see going to New York. Seeing like, 'cause people don't, and you know, like it's a, sometimes it's the best way to teach people other Yeah. Other things. , I took my 16-year-old to see cabaret and he is, and I was like, I know it's gonna be a little, , it's a little crazy.

But, , the conversations that we had after the show. Like, he was asking me symbolisms in the show. Yeah. And I was able to talk with him. I was like, listen, but this what we're talking on this show is happening right now. Yeah. No. You know, it's,

it's an, it's important to have those conversations again with that generation too.

Gabe, this was so fun. We could do this for another hour, but we do have to go. , what are you working on, , locally? Anything you wanna plug? , so

locally. Well, , I'm also part of the free Fall Theater Board. Lovely. So come and see us show come and support free fall theater, free fall, please. It's a wonderful place right on Central Avenue.

It's amazing. Like a surprise. You're like, wait a minute, what is this? And it's so fun.

Yes. And I think the, , getting ready to open in April foreclosure. So, so this is one of the things that I'm always plugging. I love it away. I love it. And then we are working on Winter Pride, 2026.

Gabe never sleeps, but thank goodness.

, thank you so much for being here, friend. It's always a pleasure to see you, everybody. Thanks for joining me on Big Broadway Energy, the podcast. If you want to hear the music, a big Broadway Energy, listen to us at 10:00 PM on radio st pete.com, or 4:00 PM on St. Pete's. Sounds on Saturday, 10:00 PM on Sundays.

, until next time, friends, be kind, be curious. Keep creating. Bye everybody