Ever wonder what it’s like to have more than 10,000 people follow you? Sure, celebrities and large corporations might be used to that, but what if you were anonymous? Show Business chatted with BroadwaySpotted,the self-proclaimed “Gossip Girl of Broadway”, about the power of social media, being a role model, and, most importantly… free theater tickets.
How did the idea for BroadwaySpotted begin?
It started as a way to mess with my friends, actually. Terrible, right? I saw some Hair cast members walking around and I made a Gossip Girl joke. Then my friend and I decided to really try it—I wanted to see how long it would take information I posted on Spotted to get back to me by word of mouth. It didn't take long at all.
What is BroadwaySpace? How did you form an affiliation with them?
To put it simply, BroadwaySpace is MySpace for Broadway fans. It's a place for people who love Broadway to come together in a non-judgmental atmosphere. It seemed like a good way to legitimize what I was already doing. Ken Davenport got in touch with me about two years ago. He started following me, and I was so surprised. I had actors following me, sure, but a producer? I knew of him, so this was exciting. I messaged him on Twitter and told him how much I loved his work. He, shockingly, responded with, "I love your work!" I was floored. He was not only following, he was paying attention. He asked me to meet with him the next day and the rest is history.
Why Twitter? Why not Facebook?
It's quick, easy and only has one component, whereas facebook is a lot of work. Sometimes simpler is better.
Have you noticed a change in follower interaction?
Most definitely! Over the couple of years I've been doing this, it's grown and changed in ways I never imagined. Initially, it was just gossip and spottings. People would send in information and I, in turn, would post it. That was the basics of it. There were some very angry people when I started (fans, not performers) who didn't like what I was doing. Now, things are different. People talk to me; people working in the industry invite me to see their shows in hopes that I will mention them on my Twitter. People ask for recommendations about what they should see when they come to town, what they should sing for auditions, and so on. It's fascinating to me how I've developed into some kind of theater version of Dear Abby, instead of Gossip Girl.
A while back, you hosted a scavenger hunt and a Secret Santa-type gift exchange. Tell me more about those.
I love puzzles and games, so naturally I wanted to combine
my work with something that I love. Beyond that, I wanted people to get offline
and do something! Run around the city and have fun in teams. So many wonderful
performers, shows and companies have ALWAYS been supportive of what I do. You
wouldn't believe how many people offer to donate things to my contests and
scavenger hunts without me even asking. It's really wonderful. Makes me feel
good about my work.
The Secret Santa thing came about a little differently. I didn't grow up in New
York City. When I got here, I found a community of people just like me. It felt
like home, really. It felt like I belonged someplace and I could really make
something of myself. When you're in the middle of the country and you're one of
five people at your school that loves or even knows much about Broadway, or
maybe you're the ONLY person who actually knows what OBCR means… it gets
lonely. It was a way to connect people all over with other people just like
them. I did the whole thing by having a questionnaire. It worked beautifully. I
actually still get e-mails from people saying they met some great friends via
the Secret Santa, and they're still friends! Two girls even asked if they could
send me flowers to say thank you.
What inspired you to do " See.Spot!Sing."?
My deep appreciation and love for BC/EFA. I know a lot of people say that, but I have a real personal connection with what they do. When you have a friend living with disease, you find new appreciation for anything that can help people who don't have the support my friend does. Beyond that, I always look for ways to get my followers together offline. Ironically, I feel like we're all too caught up in the internet. I want people to get up and do things.
How did you manage to stay anonymous throughout the planning process?
It was VERY difficult. I did a lot of work via e-mail. I called a lot of people and pretended to be my own intern so I could ask the right questions and hear the answers first hand.
Why do you prefer to stay anonymous?
I don't want any personal attention. I don't like people in my business. Ironic, huh?
Do you ever wish you could reveal yourself?
I do, actually. It's really hard to write all these things, get all this acclaim for a lot pieces ...but no one knows it's me! When it comes to applying for other jobs, my anonymity makes it difficult. If I want to apply for a social media job somewhere, it would be lovely to be able to say “hey, look what I made! It's successful!” But instead, I have to just kind of point to my lesser works.
Do you think you'll still be doing this in a year? Three years? Where would you like to be in five years?
In a year, yes, I will most likely still be doing this. In three years, I hope not to be dependent on an anonymous Twitter for my free theater tickets. In five, I HOPE I will have moved on to bigger and better things – maybe I’ll write for a larger publication or something along those lines. Would I love for Ben Brantley to take me under his wing and let me succeed him? Yeah, totally. Hook a sista up. That's a dream, though. I just really can't imagine doing this forever because, believe it or not, it's actually a lot of work to keep up with whatever is going on in the Broadway world both on and off stage.
