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Broadway Stars Shine in Naperville

Broadway Stars Shine in Naperville

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What if a future Broadway star lives right next door?

The western suburbs could the training ground for the next generation of musicians, artists, and performers. That’s the dream Dylan Ladd, cofounder of the Illinois Conservatory for the Arts, has been working toward. To help with the creating such an academy, he’s bringing some of Broadway’s top names to Naperville for a benefit concert that will give students a taste of just what’s possible. “Our mission is all about bringing a high level of arts training to the community,” he says. “We figured that for this event, we want to showcase who we are as an organization and try to bring the biggest and best to perform for us. It’s really a testament to the musical theater community that they travel here to support children and their passion to do the same thing they’ve done as a career.”

The third annual A Night of Broadway gala will take place February 21 at Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville, bringing together several Tony winners and a 20-piece orchestra to perform selections from musical theater. Those in the all-star lineup include: J. Harrison Ghee, winner of the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for Some Like it Hot; Miles Frost, winner of the 2022 Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical for his role as Michael Jackson in MJ the Musical; Amber Iman, a 2024 Tony nominee for Lempicka; Aisha Jackson, who’s played Anna in Frozen and is currently starring in The Notebook on Broadway: and Karen Mason, a native of Arlington Heights who originated the role of Tanya in Mamma Mia! The orchestra will be led by Valerie Gebert, a veteran musical director who has a long list of Broadway credits, most recently The Who’s Tommy.

“It’s a tremendous opportunity to see these performers with a 20-piece orchestra,” Ladd says. “We’re putting together a show with the stylings of musical theater, all under a Broadway conductor leading the orchestra. It really ties a lot of what we believe in together in a really unique way.”

It’s rewarding for the gala’s headliners as well.

“This is an exciting thing that Dylan has put together,” says Mason, who has spent a career performing on stages in New York and all over the world. “Who doesn’t want to help kids find their way in the arts? I’m very proud to be asked to be a part of something like this.”

Such support from Broadway veterans is critical for those looking to make a living in the arts, which often doesn’t follow a typical career path.

“A career in any of the arts can be scary for some, especially when they don’t understand what that career can look like,” Ladd says. “What we try to do, at the very least, is showcase people who are successful in this industry. Yes, it is possible to make a living, and we can learn from their stories and their experiences on how they’ve done it, and they will be there as mentors for students as they continue to grow.”

Ladd cofounded the Illinois Conservancy for the Arts in 2020 as a nonprofit educational institution to provide instruction for adolescents and teens. It currently offers year-round classes in music, dance, and theater in addition to weeklong intensive seminars. This fall it aims to start a pilot program for a grade-6-to-12 day school that combines academics with arts training.

“That’s the ultimate goal, to create an arts-focused school curriculum at our own facility in the area,” Ladd says. While the current focus is primarily on musical theater education, Ladd hopes to continue to expand that into additional artistic areas as well as classes for adults.

“It’s an exciting time for us, that’s for sure,” Ladd says. “A career in the arts isn’t necessarily easy, but it’s incredibly rewarding. This is an event that shows our students and the community just what can be achieved.”

By 

Naperville Magazine

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Justice Moore / Dance

JUSTICE MOORE is a New York based performer and choreographer. Growing up in Dallas, Texas, she trained in all styles at Next Step Dance Performing Arts Center. Upon graduating from Allen High School, she had the amazing opportunity to open Hamilton in Chicago as ‘The Bullet.’ She then went on to open the second national tour of the show and join the Broadway production. Moore had the honor to work on projects by Keone and Mari Madrid such as Once Upon a One More Time on Broadway and The Karate Kid: The Musical in St. Louis. She worked on seasons four and five of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” with choreographer Marguerite Derricks. She made her movie debut in Disney+’ Better Nate Than Ever, directed by Tim Federle and choreographed by Zach Woodlee, and her television choreographic debut in CBS’ “East New York.” She was the associate choreographer for London’s Fangirls (under Ebony Williams) and New York City Center’s production of Jelly’s Last Jam (under Edgar Godineaux). Never limiting herself to one side of the dance industry, she continues to keep expanding her community, training, and possibilities. She performed with Doja Cat for MTV’s VMAs, Tyla for “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” and Stray Kids for the 2024 Youtube Brandcast. She is currently in Broadway’s Sunset Boulevard starring Nicole Scherzinger. Moore has captivated audiences online and off through her story telling, choreography, and comedy. She hopes to continue exploring the many ways dance and storytelling can connect with humans of all avenues. Instagram: @justicemoore_.

Samantha Pauly / Voice

Samantha Pauly is a Grammy nominated and Drama Desk Award winning actress best known for originating the role of Katherine Howard in SIX the Musical on Broadway. She was most recently seen starring as Jordan Baker in the premiere of The Great Gatsby at Papermill Playhouse. In the summer of 2019, Samantha was hand picked by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Jamie Lloyd to play Eva Peron in Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre’s critically acclaimed revival of Evita on the West End. The production went on to receive nominations and wins at The Evening Standard Theatre Awards, the WhatsOnStage Awards, and the Oliviers. After returning to the U.S., Samantha went on to tour with SIX the Musical and made stops at The Citadel Theatre, The Ordway Center for the Performing Arts before landing on Broadway in the early spring of 2020. She has starred in many regional productions including Mimi inRENT, Betsy in Honeymoon in Vegas, Eva Peron in Evita, Jovie in Elf the Musical, and Amber von Tussle in Hairspray, to name a few. In 2018, Samantha joined the first national tour of Jim Steinman’s Bat Out Of Hell as Valkyrie, before an abrupt cancellation. Soon after, she was cast as Katherine Howard in the US premiere of SIX the Musical at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre for which she received a Joseph Jefferson Award. She also tours and performs her solo cabaret An Evening with Samantha Pauly, and has performed in NYC, LA, Chicago, and more. Samantha’s TV credits include: Chicago PD (NBC), and ads for Mike’s Hard Lemonade, Purina, and T-Mobile. Since her journey with SIX began, Samantha has also been seen and reviewed in The New York Times, Vogue Magazine, The New York Post, The Associated Press, andthe Washington Post.

Kara Lindsay / Acting

KARA LINDSAY Broadway: Wicked (Glinda), Beautiful (Cynthia Weil), Newsies (Katherine Plumber) Original Cast/ Fathom Events Film, Once Upon a Mattress (Winnifred Standby for Sutton Foster). National Tour: Wicked (Glinda), Little House on the Prairie (originated role of Laura). Paper Mill Playhouse: Newsies, Jolly Holiday, Little House…Prairie. Sacramento Music Circus: Singin in the Rain (Kathy Selden). NCT: Mary Poppins (Mary Poppins). Kansas City Starlight: Cinderella (Cinderella). Kansas City Rep: Cabaret (Sally Bowles). 5th Avenue: Lone Star Love (Miss Ann Page). Geva: A Christmas Carol(Belle). Film: Wicked Movie Part One ensemble vocals. TV: “Murphy Brown”, ABC’s “Schoolhouse Rock! 50th Anniversary Singalong”, ABC’s “The Disney Family Singalong: Volume II”, Tony Awards, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. BFA Carnegie Mellon University. Huge thanks and LOVE to my family and to Stewart Talent/ Amplified. @karalindsay1

Maggie Spanuello / Casting

MAGGIE SPANUELLO (she/her/hers) works at Gray Talent Group as an Associate Agent on the Chicago On-Camera and Voiceover team after working as a director and music theatre educator for ten years in Chicago, Off-Broadway, regionally, and internationally. Selected credits include work at Chicago Shakespeare Theatre, Windy City Playhouse, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, Brightside Theatre, and Hope Summer Repertory. She was the Associate Director on the award-winning Off-Broadway Production of THE WOMAN IN BLACK (“Best Play Revival”-Off-Broadway Alliance Awards, “Critic’s Pick”-NY Times) and the US Tour (Royal George Theatre, Cleveland Play House, Pasadena Playhouse, Seattle Rep, American Conservatory Theatre) directed by Robin Herford.

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JULY 28 - AUGUST 1, 2025

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