Filling the Room: The Strategic Art of Reading Invitations

March 1, 2025

The first commandment of staged readings: Pack. The. House.

This isn't about ego. An empty room creates a vacuum that sucks energy from even the most talented actors. A full house crackles with attention. Equity rules prohibit charging admission, so the focus shifts entirely to curation.

My invitation strategy works in concentric circles:

The inner circle: Friends who've patiently endured my months-long obsession with these plays. They've listened to me wrestle with character arcs over coffee and watched me dictate dialogue notes into my phone. They've earned their seats.

The middle circle: Smart, theater-savvy friends who will give honest, constructive feedback without sugarcoating.

The outer circle—the golden ring (industry people): This is where the strategic hustle intensifies—Producers, Literary agents (still hunting for one), Publishers, Artistic directors, and Literary committee members. People who can move this play to its next life!

In New York, where there are probably dozens of readings on any given day, getting these busy professionals into seats requires persistence, personal connections, and sometimes a bit of luck.

Because let's be honest—a reading isn't the finish line. It's barely the starting gun. It's the launching pad for the real journey of this play's life.

And I'm just getting started.