CREATIVE PRODUCING & DIRECTIng
WEST SIDE STORY film
ASSISTANT VOCAL PRODUCER
Darren collaborated with the director, lyricist, scriptwriter, and vocal producers at the recording sessions, documenting input from the creative team and working with the producers and engineers on the creation and dissemination of each track. Released in December of 2021, the film was directed by Steven Spielberg, written by Tony Kushner, and produced by Twentieth Century Fox & Amblin Entertainment. The album was nominated for a 2023 Grammy Award.
idina menzel world tour
CO- CREATIVE DIRECTOR
Darren and collaborator Torya Beard worked with Idina to curate the desired feel of the show, the set list, and aesthetic components. They collaborated with the production designer to establish powerful and cohesive video and lighting components. The production toured 53 Cities throughout the US, Europe, Canada, & Japan.
EVITA
PRODUCER
Darren collaborated with leadership at City Center and the Evita creative team to ensure that every aspect of the production ran smoothly. From casting to orchestral needs to educational components, he was thrilled to help bring the bold ideas from the creative team to fruition. Additionally, he brokered a partnership with Pace University’s Musical Theatre Department, who named City Center as their first ever ‘Institution in Residence.’
to feel a thing: a ritual for emergence
PRODUCER
Darren produced this work throughout development periods with workshops at The Shed and New York Live Arts, and then brought it to The Holland Festival in Amsterdam. It featured original music and text from adrienne maree brown and Troy Anthony, and direction from Charlotte Brathwaite. Rooted in gospel music and centered around caring for ourselves and our communities, it invited a local Queer choir into the process and sold-out performances.
Encores! Off-Center
SERIES PRODUCER
In 2013, Founding Artistic Director Jeanine Tesori recruited Darren to join the producing team of the inaugural season of Encores! Off-Center. Her vision was to festivalize the series and activate the building in a new way. They brainstormed myriad ways to engage intergenerational and interdisciplinary artists. As producer for four seasons, Darren managed several projects throughout the series, including overseeing an Artist Advisory Board, planning and producing the Lobby Project series, which invited spectators to engage with an array of unique and interactive events before each performance, and co-creating and managing a robust internship program for early career artists.
KIMBERLY AKIMBO ORIGINAL CAST ALBUM
ASSISTANT VOCAL PRODUCER
Darren collaborated with the composer and producers at the recording sessions, documenting input from the creative team and working with the producers and engineers on the creation of each track for the Tony Award-winning Best Musical.
‘The Lobby Project’ SERIES
PRODUCER
In collaboration with the Artist Board at City Center, Darren curated sensory experiences that took place before each Off-Center performance in the City Center’s Grand Tier Lobby. They ranged from interactive to performative; from installations to tastings. The goal was to challenge the expectation that the audience’s role was a passive one. In 40 unique events over the course of four summers, he sought to invite audiences to engage in an energy exchange, in the hopes that they would enter each performance already leaning forward, activated and primed for discourse.
Diary of a Tap Dancer, vol. 6
CREATIVE PRODUCER
Darren worked with each cast member to ideate themes and hone language for this 7 episode virtual series with City Center. Over the course of several conversations and writing sessions, he collaborated with the directors and dancers to curate a thoughtful and impactful representation of their collected stories.
Read the NYTimes article here.
While I Have the Floor
CREATIVE PRODUCER
Rooted in the legacy of forgotten Black female hoofers, and in Ayodele’s determination to share their stories, Darren collaborated with Ayodele to reveal her journey of claiming her own identity and finding agency through her artistry. They developed the piece for a year in advance of its world premiere at the Spoleto Arts Festival in Charleston, SC.