Westport Country Playhouse Appoints Director Of Marketing And Audience Development

Katharine L. Mussio has joined Westport Country Playhouse as director of marketing and audience development, leading the historic theater's marketing, public relations, communications, and audience development efforts for its season productions and programs.

"Katie brings to the Playhouse outstanding and diverse marketing credentials," said Michael Barker, Westport Country Playhouse managing director. "She has substantial experience in media, as well as B2B, B2C, and digital marketing, most recently with Time Inc. She has also worked in both commercial and nonprofit theater. We welcome Katie and her dynamic talents to the Playhouse team."

Mussio comes from a 10-year tenure with Time Inc., most recently, as account director of client partnerships at The Foundry, Time Inc.'s creative lab and content studio. For top agency accounts, including Bank of America, Merrill Lynch, and Unilever, she produced and managed custom content programs. She helped expand the Merrill Lynch account from a quarterly magazine to an award-winning, digital/print branded content program with websites, interactive graphics, e-newsletters, videos, and social media promotion.

In the theatrical realm, Mussio has a wide range of experience. She was a Broadway theatrical agent for Columbia Artists Theatricals, where she booked touring Broadway/off-Broadway shows into North American venues. She represented over 35 national tours including "Cats," "Chicago," "Stomp," "Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk," starring Savion Glover, "Copenhagen," Barbara Cook in "Mostly Sondheim," and "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels." As president of Show Property NY, she headed merchandise for the Tony Award-winning musical, "Rent," including product development/purchasing, marketing, and sales and distribution. Also for "Rent," she worked at The Booking Office as marketing and producing associate, assisting producers before and after the musical's transfer to Broadway. Other responsibilities at The Booking Office included serving as marketing associate for "Crazy for You," and tour marketing and press representative for a 15-week, 50-city tour of "Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella." She was announcer for "Compact Broadway," a public radio series pilot about Broadway theater; box office sales and customer service agent at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park; and production assistant at The Public Eye Productions for the film, "The Public Eye," starring Joe Pesci.

Mussio holds an MBA and MA in Arts Administration from the University of Cincinnati, earning both degrees on a full, three-year merit scholarship. She completed her undergraduate degree in French Language and Literature at the University of Michigan, spending her junior year overseas study at L'Université de Provence. She also participated in Boston University's journalism/communications summer internship program in London.

For Westport Country Playhouse information and to buy tickets, visit www.westportplayhouse.org or call the box office at (203) 227-4177, toll-free at 1-888-927-7529, or visit Westport Country Playhouse, 25 Powers Court, off Route 1, Westport. Stay connected to the Playhouse on Facebook (Westport Country Playhouse), follow on Twitter (@WCPlayhouse), and on YouTube (WestportPlayhouse).