Drew Cohen is a lawyer that works in theatrical licensing who in the President of Music Theatre International, having previously worked as a lawyer with the firm Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld; and as the General Manager of GlassNote Records. Music Theatre International (MTI) is one of the world's leading theatrical licensing agencies, granting schools as well as amateur and professional theatres from around the world the rights to perform the largest selection of great musicals from Broadway and beyond.
Since the licensing industry isn’t one that gets talked about a lot, I was thrilled that Drew invited me into his office for this candid talk on everything from:
- Can a show get licensed if it is never produced in New York City?
- What do high schools look for when choosing a show to do?
- How has technology changed licensing?
- When should the rights to a show be released . . . after a show closes or (GASP) before?
- What you can do to get your show licensed by a company like MTI.
One of Drew’s greatest assets is that he loves the theater, but he didn’t grow up in it. So he tackles it with the same passion we all have, but he’s got a pure business background. That’s good for all of us, since he’s distributing content to our future actors, authors . . . and audience. The more he distributes today, the healthier Broadway will be tomorrow.
Keep up with me: @KenDavenportBway