BroadwayWorld Announces Exciting Plans for 20th Anniversary Celebration

BroadwayWorld, the #1 online destination for Broadway, theatre and live entertainment news around the world, has announced the first round of plans to celebrate their 20th Anniversary on the Internet, including a refreshed website and a special concert featuring marquee talent.

BroadwayWorld.com officially launched on May 5, 2003 and has steadily grown over the past two decades - reaching over 6 million people in 45 countries each month. The site was founded by tech geek meets Broadway aficionado Robert Diamond, a Syracuse University graduate who got his start in tech publishing while simultaneously appreciating theatre and building a website for original The Phantom of the Opera star Michael Crawford. BroadwayWorld began as a place for theatre fans to gather at a time when local news began to cut back on arts coverage and platforms supporting theatre began to quickly fade. Today, the news hub remains a leader in the live entertainment news industry and has transformed the theatre dialogue across generations and across the globe.

"If you asked me 20 years ago what my vision was for BroadwayWorld, never in my wildest dreams would I have predicted our growth nor the rapid constant changes of the industry and technology that it took to get there; I was just a young website developer who also happened to love the world of theatre," said Diamond. "I'm not one to spend much time looking backwards, but when I do so, I do it mostly with pride and it makes me even more excited for all the things we're cooking up to celebrate this epic 20th year. Even more important to me, we will work nonstop to make the next 20 as innovative, impactful, inclusive and exciting as we possibly can. None of this would have been possible without our great teams over the years, devoted readers and industry professionals around the world, all of whom have my deepest thanks, appreciation and respect."

The BroadwayWorld 20th Anniversary Celebration Concert will take place in May 2023 at midtown's iconic Sony Hall (235 W 46th St, NY, NY) in the heart of Broadway's theatre district. The concert will be helmed by longtime friend and occasional BroadwayWorld contributor Richard Jay-Alexander, last on Broadway as director of Kristin Chenoweth: For The Girls and commonly referred to as the 'Diva Whisperer' having helmed concerts for legendary greats such as Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, Bernadette Peters, Kristin Chenoweth, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Norm Lewis, Ricky Martin, etc. Kevin Stites will serve as musical director (Hollywood Bowl Guys and Dolls, Radio City Christmas Spectacular, The Color Purple, Les Misérables, Titanic, On the 20th Century, Nine, Kristin Chenoweth, Fiddler on the Roof, Nine, etc). Additional details, including the starry line-up and how to get tickets, will be released in the coming months.

"When Rob reached out and told me that BroadwayWorld was headed into its 20th anniversary year, there was 'no way in hell' that we weren't going to put on a show to end all shows and to celebrate all the productions, stars and moments that have lit up the web site over these last 20 years" said director Richard Jay-Alexander "Rob and I have collaborated on many fundraisers and BroadwayWorld-themed shows in the past and each one had so many highlights that I am imagining this one will be no different and a true cause for celebration, laughter and some 'punch-you-in-the-gut' tears as to why we're in this business and 'what we did for love'. I'm so looking forward to it!"

As part of its 20th Anniversary celebration, BroadwayWorld will launch a refreshed site utilizing the latest in cutting edge technology embracing Web3, updating the site's design with a continued eye towards personalization, performance and showcasing our ever-increasing plethora of top quality content, our greatest pride. Ahead of the exciting plans for the site, BroadwayWorld has already begun implementing a set of front and back-end improvements that kicked off in early September with a newly distributed, fully cloud-based platform.

In the coming months, BroadwayWorld will be announcing additional anniversary events and special activities. To learn more about upcoming events and 20th Anniversary updates or to find out how you can be a part of it all, follow along via social and at broadwayworld.com.

About BroadwayWorld

Based in New York City, BroadwayWorld launched in 2003 and is now the largest theatre site on the Internet covering Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional and international theatre, including the West End. Reaching over six million monthly visitors in 100 US cities and 45 countries, BroadwayWorld delivers complete up-to-the-minute theatre news, in-depth interviews, extraordinary photo coverage, entertaining video features, lively message boards, ticket discounts, reviews, and more.

As an industry leader in all things live entertainment, the site's coverage includes TV, Film, Streaming, Movies, Music, Concerts, Opera, Dance, Classical Music and more with exclusive features for industry professionals and ticket-buyers.

For the latest updates and news, follow BroadwayWorld on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.