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[0:00] Diana Moran Macuil: I hope that I can continue to inspire the next generation because there's no need to remain quiet. There's no need to stay silent, there's no need to walk in all little, you know, meek and like quiet. No, take your space, create that space for you and be proud and own it and walk into a room with it.

[0:21] Janine Scott: Welcome to the Black Business of Broadway, a podcast brought to you by the Broadway League and Black to Broadway. Here we highlight the stories, how-tos and successes of the Black professionals and legends of Broadway. I'm your host, Janine Scott.

[0:45] Janine Scott: Today I would like to welcome our guest, Director of Membership Services and Professional Development at the Broadway League, Diana Moran Macuil. Diana is an alum of Adelphi University in New York City with over six years of experience working in arts administration. Welcome, Diana.

[1:08] Diana Moran Macuil: Thanks so much for inviting me. It is such an honor and privilege to be here.

[1:14] Janine Scott: Yay. So for those of you who don't know, okay, what is the director of membership services and professional development? Can you kind of give a summary of what your role is?

[1:31] Diana Moran Macuil: Sure. So as a director of membership services at the Broadway League, I oversee a lot of our membership initiatives and programs, as well as the application process for joining the Broadway League. So we have different categories of membership, each tied to a specific service or an area of expertise for the individual. And so as director, I oversee and vet all of the applications that come in with the help of the membership committee. And so there is a membership chair, and we meet every month to review and make sure that people are fulfilling the requirements necessary for that specific category. So right now we have over 750 members, and we are seeing those numbers grow. So in my day-to-day, I am dealing with a lot of prospective and interested people in applying or people who want to learn more about what the Broadway League is and how to get involved.

And then as soon as members officially join and are approved, I get to meet with them one-on-one and talk about possible committee or task force involvement. What are they interested in? What do they want to learn more of, and then serve as liaison for connecting them with the respective departments? So just a little bit of what we do in addition to the professional development side, which is all of the conferences and forums and different services or programs we offer existing members and their staff. So there's a lot of conference planning. We host between the well in the membership department, we host three different forums throughout the year, in addition to the two major industry conferences where people get to network, mingle, some of them get to see shows and different things like that.

[3:15] Janine Scott: So membership, what are the type of members that we have? Like who would be a member of the Broadway League?

[3:23] Diana Moran Macuil: So basically, a short answer is anyone involved with commercial theater in some sort of way. We have the go-tos, which are obviously the well-known members, which are the producers, general managers, theater owners, operators, booking agents, but then we also have a lot of the affiliate type of members, so people affiliated with the industry in some sort of way. We have the marketing agencies, we have the press teams, they are also members of the league, in addition to trucking companies or suppliers that take the different shows throughout the road. So they are also members, so anyone who is involved in some sort of way with commercial theater is basically eligible for membership at the league.

[4:08] Janine Scott: So Diana, there is one level of membership that you and I get to work together on. And I think it started maybe about almost three years ago, and within your department, and it's the Broadway League Fellowship Program. And I think it's something that would interest our listeners. Can you talk a little bit about that and why you all saw the need to develop this?

[4:38] Diana Moran Macuil: Sure. And it's a growing program. So you are correct that we are about to induct the third cohort of members this coming in the next week or so. So the fellow member category actually stemmed out of a conversation started during the pandemic where our president Charlotte St. Martin, our membership chair David Stone, and I were able to chat with a couple of prospective members at the time that were interested in joining the league, but there were conversations surrounding the barriers to entry. So we all know Broadway is expensive, and Broadway is becoming more expensive. And part of membership is that obviously with the membership, there are fees associated with each category. Story short, it is a barrier to entry for a lot of people who might not be in the right financial position to remit annual dues, especially at the associate level.

So we had this conversation. We were talking about the financial barrier to entry within the Broadway League, and out of that, it was birthed this new category of membership. So it's not just a fellow program, it's a category of membership itself within the league that is available to all emerging professionals, whether they are producers, general managers, booking agents, or in the operations there are eligible to apply for this two-year program or membership category. The category comes with all of the benefits of associate membership, which is one of our categories of membership, and all of the benefits afforded with that except for the remittance of annual dues. So it's a great program to get the foot inside the Broadway League door, start the networking and the connections and building those relationships that it will eventually take these emerging producers, co-producers, general managers to the next level and becoming lead producers or lead GMs.

And we have had a great journey. So our first cohort that was ever inducted back in 2021 just completed their two-year commitment to the program and have actually what some of them have even moved up to full membership, which is the Tony voting status. Others are now about to become lead producers in their shows this fall. So definitely the connection and the importance of building that program was crucial, and now we are seeing the fruit of that labor from two years ago, and we're thrilled. I mean it's working, it's slowly starting to move the needle but I think that's exactly what it was intended to do and we are slowly getting there but we're really excited we're about to induct the third class or the third cohort this fall and applications are getting tougher because people are really committed and people are already so invested in the industry already so it's not for entry level I do want to clarify it's not for entry level applicants or emergency like it's for people who are already in the industry that want to continue to evolve to grow whatever it is they're doing and to continue to build those relationships and this program targets you know people of color.

[7:14] Diana Moran Macuil: Oh absolutely yes so yes because unfortunately with the financial burdens and those barriers to entry are you know associated with IPOC our intention was for this to be part of a EDI program but because it is so focused on membership itself like that's what we're striving for.

[8:25] Janine Scott: Right exactly and it helps us to diversify the membership base. It helps us to diversify the producers I mean the one individual who's in your first cohort who was also a guest in our second season Rashad you know now has a Tony and exactly and the another individual who what Sammy has something coming out on this season as a lead producer producer how to dance in Ohio. So with Amy Lopez. So we are diversifying the membership base, diversifying the producers, and hence diversifying the works that are put out on Broadway.

[9:07] Diana Moran Macuil: Yeah, and amplifying those voices at the table, Janine. I think that little by little, part of another benefit of being a fellow member of the league is that you get to serve on committees and task forces, and for a really long time, I want to say we kind of the league, and I think a lot of our leadership will agree is we kind of lived in these silos, and little by little we are starting to see those silos fall down, break apart, and the emerging voices at the table, always bringing a fresh perspective, always bringing new ideas is so crucial now to this industry post-pandemic. And I am so thrilled that I'm able to be a part of it and able to see it grow and eager to continue to make it bigger and evolve even further.

[9:53] Janine Scott: Yeah, I'm excited to see the next cohort because I'm just like ah we and we've had some amazing, amazing individuals, and this is just such a wonderful program that I'm glad we can you know shed light on that.

[10:09] Diana Moran Macuil: You know, so speaking of just of not just diversifying Broadway, you know, from the producer side or the business side, can you talk about what made you like, you know what? I think I really want to do this because you were also a part of a program through the league as an intern.

[10:30] Diana Moran Macuil: Yeah, so um my history with the league actually begins back in high school. So I went to a performing arts high school here at the city and always went to public school. So thank God for public school because that is how I was introduced to theater. And I remember being in elementary school, fourth or fifth grade, and we got to see Fiddler on the Roof when it was at the Minskov. We got to see a lot of different shows. Um and that's how I was introduced, and I absolutely fell in love with it. Uh, but a little bit of my background, so I went to a performing arts high school, but I was involved with the I wasn't even involved with like acting or all of any of that. I was a um musician. So I grew up playing the cello and the violin, uh, was classically trained for almost all of elementary and middle school, and when it came to time for high school, I auditioned for all of these specialized um high schools here in the city, and I did not get in. So there was that.

[11:30] Diana Moran Macuil: Um, but I found this high school in 14th Street Union Square, uh, what is now known as the Washington Irving campus was the Washington Irving High School back then. And um I auditioned for their band and I got in. So I was like, okay, so I'm gonna I'm gonna do this performing arts. Okay, that's fine. Um flat like a few months uh forward or or starting in high school, I actually realized it was a jazz band and I was classically trained and I never actually made the transition. It was just like my I remember my um my music teacher would just say, Oh yeah, come on, just you know, do a little solo, do a little riff. And I was like, um, I don't know how to do that. I need to see the like the sheet music in front of me.

And um, and you know, God bless his whole, he had a lot of patience with me, but I never fully made the transition. So I dropped out of the jazz band and I had to find this sort of new major um so so that I could continue the performing arts side of stuff, and I was introduced to stage management and I absolutely fell in love with it.

[12:33] Diana Moran Macuil: I mean, we put on some pretty amazing shows while in high school. We did Sweet Charity. Wow. We did Hair, we did Once on This Island, and then we wrapped up what was my senior year with Nine. Wow. Um I was not I did not invite my parents to to Nine because why not? I so I made a deal with the musical theater teacher, and um she said, You always do stage management, you're really good at it, but I think for closing out your high school years, you actually you actually have to be in the show in some sort of way. And I agreed to it. So I I was I ended up being cast as part of the ensemble in Nine, and um that included wearing a leotard and fishnet stockings and on stage and dancing and doing all of the stuff, and I was like, um, I'm not bringing my parents to see this, and I did not. I brought all of my friends and my siblings, but I did not bring my parents to see me in that show. Um, but it was my introduction to everything that is um, you know, that is Broadway.

[13:34] Diana Moran Macuil: Uh I mean it furthered my education into everything that is Broadway. I've been sort of involved and learned all about the stage management and shadowing, and so while in high school, there was another program that allowed you to connect with um the commercial theater industry or sector, and that's how I was introduced to the Broadway League. I got to shadow um Rachel Reiner when she was in the membership department. Wow. And a few others. So and um Ed Sandler, who was the head of membership at that time, and what came out of that is I always stayed connected. Um I walked into the league office as a high schooler, and I was like, this is so amazing. Like, this is the admin side of stuff. This is what I like. I don't, you know, I'm not, I'm not big on the spotlight. I don't need to, you know, be on stage. And being introduced to that administrative side just sort of sparked something in me.

[14:24] Diana Moran Macuil: Um, always kept in touch with Rachel afterwards. She would check in, I would respond. Um, and when I was wrapping up undergrad at Adelphi, I needed one more internship to complete out my um my semester. And I reached back out to Rachel and she's like, you know, we are in the process of interviewing. Um, you know, it's kind of late to send an application, but do it now, send it to me today. And I scrambled, I got my resume together, cover letter, and I sent it in. And the very next day I interviewed with um the membership department for that internship, and I and I got it for the spring.

[14:57] Diana Moran Macuil: Um, and I for me it was all about those connections and those relationships. And had I not uh had that, I don't think I would have ever gotten the undergrad internship and then eventually got in the full-time job. So for me, the introduction to that in high school was so was left such an impact, and that's what actually kind of led me to pursue business admin, and um that's where I started to get involved with HR and right out of college, I ended up getting a job in um in a construction firm, and I was doing administration and HR and OSHA compliance and like filing all of that paperwork.

[15:38] Diana Moran Macuil: And um I got a call from Ed, like they had just offered me my full-time position. I negotiated a salary, and then two weeks later, I got a call from Ed Sandler. He said, There's a position opening, it's yours if you want it, no interview, no nothing. And I I took it, I couldn't even give a two-weeks notice at the construction firm. I was just like, this is what I want to do, this is where I belong, and I haven't looked back since.

[16:03] Janine Scott: Oh my gosh. Okay, so you and I have had many conversations, and I knew you came as an intern. You know, you used you came from being an intern and and got here, but I had no idea.

[16:17] Diana Moran Macuil: Yeah. I mean, looking back, I'm just like, oh my God, everything truly happens for a reason. You know, um, but I think it it's just it's amazing. I mean, I for me that that's the biggest thing, relationship building, making sure those connections remain, like not, you know, um, not weaken those relationships, but always maintain them with life, give them like checking in with people, how are you doing? That was always really important to me.

[16:43] Diana Moran Macuil: And um, even in the membership department, uh, there are a lot of customer service skills that are needed, and it's just you know, I'm a people person, so I was just like, okay, this is the perfect trip for me, and seeing how everything has sort of fallen into uh into alignment has been so fulfilling and gratifying.

[17:01] Janine Scott: So, quick question, you know, as a as a person of color, as an Afro-Latino woman, uh what was it like, you know, going through this industry from well, even from like high school, because you know, my daughter attends a performing art school. I look at the kids there, she doesn't see a lot of folks who you know who look like her, and part of why the fellowship member level was created was also you know, to help to to to build a more inclusive environment. How have you found navigating these spaces of as an Afro-Latina?

[17:49] Diana Moran Macuil: Uh, you know something? In the very beginning, there's a lot of intimidation. And in the very beginning, you're like, wow, no one looks like me here. Um, no one, you know, can really understand where I'm coming from through relationships, through mentorships, through other people who have broken the barriers for a lot of the Afro-Latina uh women to emerge into the workforce. Listening to them and being inspired by them is what has built up my confidence through the years.

[18:20] Diana Moran Macuil: Um just even like the hair situation, like growing up, I have I have really curly hair, and growing up, it was like, oh, you had to get it blown out every weekend so that you had straight hair through the rest of the week. And like that was something that was so uh culturally rooted in us. And now, I mean, well, I actually blew out my hair for like for a little thing um just a few days ago, but now um it's I'm so proud to wear my curls. I'm so proud to like show who I am and walk into a space and walk into a room and not be afraid and and be confident and um and it's in the beginning it was rough for me. In the beginning I was intimidated and I was a little scared, but um being inspired to showcase who I am and to show the world that I can bring as great ideas as any other person can or any other man or woman can, um, that has really um allowed me to speak up and allowed me to make my presence known in a room.

[19:21] Diana Moran Macuil: And I hope that I can continue to inspire the next generation because uh there's no need, like there's no need to remain quiet, there's no need to stay silent, there's no need to walk in all little, you know, meek and like quiet. No, take your space, create that space for you and be proud and own it and walk into a room with it. So absolutely.

[19:41] Janine Scott: Who so you mentioned like mentors and and people in your life who have helped who've helped guide you. Is there anyone that you that you think of that had the most profound impact, whether in this industry or not, you know, who helped you to be secure in who you are and help you to show up as your authentic self, you know, every day?

[20:07] Diana Moran Macuil: You know something? So I know everyone usually speaks about their mom, so I I will say not related to the to the workforce or to the industry, but my mom has always been my number one.

[20:19] Diana Moran Macuil: So my mom has always been, she was a stay-at-home mom, so she had to make some sacrifices pretty early on when she had us to choose not to continue her education and then not, you know, to not even work so that she could raise us because, you know, raising three kids in New York City is kind of crazy, especially in the 90s. And there was an agreement that they made, my parents made. My father was like, you know what, don't worry about it. You take care of the kids. Like daycare was insane. And my mom didn't trust anyone. So that was, yeah, leaving her kids with anyone. But seeing the sacrifices that she made for us really early on inspired me because there was always the notion of everything that I do, I'm gonna do for you, and I don't want to let you down.

And I feel like I've carried that with me throughout my entire life, being the first generation American to go to college and get a college education. So there was a lot of that growing up. There was a lot of translating documents for my parents because I'm bilingual and my parents didn't know English at the time or were learning it, and coming back with official school documents and having to tell my mom what to fill in and what to write. So growing up, there was always that sense of responsibility, but I was so inspired by her to always be the best that I could and really be proud of who I am. So my mom, on my mom's side, she is from Colombia, but she is Afro-Latina; she doesn't have my hair.

And I remember growing up, seeing the way she had to go relax her hair, seeing all of the sacrifices or little things that she was doing to sort of fit in. I was just like, mmm, you're inspiring. Like I told her, you inspire me to break that box. You know, you inspire me to break that sort of generational, you know, rooted thing that has been sewn into us. And then on my father's side, my father is Mexican, but my father is very, like he's half Mayan and or Aztec. So there is the native or the Indian indigenous side of that. And my father, fair man, very black straight hair, so two very different cultures that I was surrounded and grew up in, but learning to create an identity out of that is what really, you know, inspired me, and that's what I look to my mom for.

And then going back to the commercial theater industry and seeing how I know everyone usually talks about Nina Lannon, the first chair who was a woman of the league, and seeing so many other emerging professionals. And now I'm inspired by them, not only as women, but also as moms. There's something to be said about the moms that are emerging in the industry and the sacrifices a lot of us have to make, including yourself, Janine. But we're doing it to inspire that next generation. Somebody else I'll also quickly mention is Christina Selby. So I met Christina while I was in high school and I was introduced to the league because she worked at the league at the time. And I just remember seeing her in the office.

I was like, oh my god, there is somebody else of color here. And that was like one of the first impressions, and a very good impression. And seeing how she has emerged into leadership roles over the last few years has just been so inspiring. And you know, being surrounded by so many other fearless women who are leaders, Lauren Reed, Amy Jacobs, Nina Esman, Marsha Goldberg, again, oh, Maggie Braun. Some women in this industry who are leaders and are also moms. I was really inspired also by Charlotte St. Martin. So Charlotte was at the league when I was first, when I came in as a high schooler, and to see how she has taken the industry and how she has grown the industry through her leadership and her charge.

She is fearless. She is a go-getter, and I'm truly inspired, especially post-pandemic or throughout the pandemic, to see everything that was going on. And only she could do it. I just, I have no idea how she did it, but she did it, and we are back. And hopefully, you know, there'll be no more pandemics because, oh my gosh, I can't, I'm knocking on everything right now.

[24:45] Diana Moran Macuil: So you attended Adelphi University, you studied business administration. How do you feel that supported you into your current role? How do you use what you learned there to inform you now? So being a business major or business admin management major, you get introduced to a lot of organizational aspects about how to manage a company and how to manage a business. But I think I have to say my selective courses within my business degree were the ones that really left a mark. And I'll say this, so there was a business course that I took, spirituality and business, which I had never ever seen in association with, but it was spiritual practices and everyday business and what different types of religions do or different principles that they apply to how they, you know, everything in Asia is a little different to how we do things here in the States.

But being introduced to that sort of led me to my own way of identifying business practices or what it is I wanted to do or how I wanted to do things, and I think within the membership department, I've been allowed to be able to sort of work with all of those different elements. And another course that really, I want to say this is the direct correlation, but the other course was organizational behavior, and seeing how or learning how different people behave within a business sphere or within a business diagram has sort of really, I've been able to directly apply that to the membership department because a lot of our members work in different ways. A lot of them communicate in different ways.

And so being able to pull those principles or those takeaways from those courses, I've been able to sort of navigate my relationship with different types of members. There are multiple personalities, and it's to be said about any business or any industry, there are different personalities involved. And being able to work with each type of personality in an amicable and peaceful way is really important to me. I don't think we're out to get anyone for being the way they are. No, but there are ways to work with people, and I think those two courses really helped me lay the foundation and identify within myself how it is I work with people, and being in the membership department, that's something I apply on a daily basis.

I was not an accountant; I hated accounting, I will say that I am not a math or number person. So when it comes time, and I know that we also struggle with within our internally, but when it comes time to budgets, and I'm like, oh, but it gets done because I know, you know, I know the principles and I know the foundation. So, but yes, numbers are not my forte, but we get it done. Hey, we do what we have to do, right? We do what we have to do.

[27:53] Janine Scott: So, Diana, our final question that we ask every guest is what is one piece of advice you like to share with the black future leaders of Broadway?

[28:05] Diana Moran Macuil: Check all that apply. And I'll explain. Yeah, but I was giving this some thought, and I remember, you know, when it came time to fill out applications, or now that I'm in the process of filling out my son's school stuff, but my college application, I remember there's always this box of check all that apply, whether you are black or Latino, like it's very confusing sometimes when you think about ethnicity and then you think about identity, and then it's a million boxes. But in the end, I've learned that I just check all of what I am, and I think that it's important to own that. I think that it's important that if you identify as BIPOC, you check everything that applies because you are the only person who is capable of owning those boxes, of owning that space.

And that is my one, you know, my one piece of recommendation. Your identity, create that space for yourself, and don't be afraid to take up space. Something I've learned just about posture recently is emerging leaders, they take up their space. They put the, you know, nobody's sitting in a corner like this, like hunched over, and you know. No, leaders take up their space, and emerging leaders should take up the space. Women need to take up their space, moms need to take up their space, and you know, we take up a lot of space when it comes to the kids. But owning that space, it is yours. It is a safe space; it's what you create and you check all that apply, and nobody is going to tell you different, nobody should tell you different. So that is my one piece of recommendation. Own your space, check all that apply, and go for it.

[29:50] Janine Scott: I love it. I love it. Thank you, Diana. I want to thank our guests and you, our listeners. You could have been doing anything else, but you chose to spend your time with me, and I am grateful. Be sure to subscribe at bpn.fm/bbb so you'll never miss an episode. While you're at it, tell a friend. I'm your host, Janine Scott, and we at the Broadway League hope you enjoyed this episode of the Black Business of Broadway.