Today we’d like to introduce you to Chryssie Whitehead. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Alexis & Chryssie are the co-founders & directors of Broadway Arts Community since 2017. They are both Broadway and TV veterans and long-time best friends who met performing on the 1st National Tour of Fosse in 2001. They have experienced it all working for 20 years on Broadway, film, and television and share a passion for teaching and passing on what they’ve learned. Alexis graduated from Yale University, Cum Laude, with a BA in Theatre Studies, and Chryssie graduated with a BA in Performing Arts from St. Mary’s College and earned a certificate in Musical Theatre Concentration at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York. Throughout their performing careers, they have taught dance, directed, choreographed, coached musical theatre performance, acting for the camera, and monologues for auditions across the globe. They have been on faculty at AMDA College and Conservatory for the Performing Arts in New York and Los Angeles. They practice the tools they teach which led them to create this community, a place for emerging artists to gain not only top-notch training but also a family. Knowing an artist has a community to lean on is essential in making it in this industry. We are Broadway Arts Community.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
As many people faced this past year, our company went through a massive transition to online as the pandemic hit. We recognized there was still a need for training despite the limitations. We also saw there were many financial strains in our communities so we began to find ways to work with artists on how to keep their tool kits sharp and growing, focusing on what each person could do doing this time where the arts felt like it was paused. So, we created our monthly Mentorship Program. It is a four weeks long, personalized training for each artist catered to their goals. We train our mentees in dance, musical theatre and acting for film and television. Because of this, we have broadened who we can reach training students in Japan and Australia.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
We are your one stop training ground in all things performing arts. Because we have worked across all forms of performing arts and taught on the collegiate level, we have a vast amount of knowledge and experience to pass on to the next generation. Both Alexis and Chryssie continue to work as actors, as well as “behind the table” on the creative side as directors and choreographers. Chryssie was in the middle of directing and choreographing HAIRSPRAY at a high school, and Alexis was in the middle of choreographing HAIR at the LGBTQ Center in LA when Covid hit. We aim to never stop learning and to instill that paradigm to our community of artists. Our mantras for our BAC artists are “The joy is in the work” and “Practice makes progress.” Through these outlooks, we give our students the tips that have helped us in our 20 years careers in the entertainment industry.
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
We envision a growth in the online training platform. We see it as a way to grow accessibility for artists all over the world and to give access to those who may not have the chance to train in person. We have worked hard to learn the best ways to connect on zoom and create an environment where we almost feel as though we are in the room with our students. It’s surreal and yet, comforting. We’ve made it work and we have loved the process of discovery. Always learning, always growing.
Pricing:
- Summer Roots Experience (NY 2021) TBA
- Private Lessons $150/hour (in person)
- Private lessons $125/hour (online)
- Private Lessons $75/half hour (online)
- Mentorship $499 (Online)
- Mentorship Premium $1599 (Online)
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.BroadwayArtsCommunity.com
- Instagram: Broadwayartscommunity
- Facebook: Broadway Arts Community
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UC-q5uT5Jkr6IO5Omzx99Q8A
Image Credits:
Lesley Bohm Photography on our professional shot together.
