Grammy Award and Tony Award-winning producer Van Dean is launching his new record label, Center Stage Records. The new label already has over two dozen albums scheduled for the coming year, including exciting titles from Broadway, Off-Broadway, London’s West End, concept recordings and major Broadway solo artist recordings.
In addition to its New York headquarters, Center Stage Records is deeply committed to the West End/London theatre and is establishing a London office which will be led by Executive Director, London producer/GM, Jamie Chapman Dixon.
Broadway Records’ Robbie Rozelle will also be joining Center Stage Records as its A&R Director and will design the artwork/packaging for its new releases. He will also continue to conceive and produce albums with key artists.
Most recently, Van Dean has been running Broadway Records under the ownership of Cutting Edge Group, which acquired the premier label from Dean in early 2020. The intention is for Center Stage to collaborate with Broadway Records on selected releases in the future and for Dean to consult for Broadway Records/Cutting Edge to aid in the transition. As part of Dean’s new venture, Center Stage will take over the management and distribution of nearly two thirds of the Broadway Records back-catalog with the remaining one third of titles staying with Broadway Records.
Under Cutting Edge, Broadway Records will continue as a leader in the musical theater album space, supporting its valuable retained catalog of titles, and releasing select new frontline cast albums including with its existing production partners such as The National Theatre in London.
For more info on Center Stage Records please visit: www.centerstagerecords.com
Van Dean (President and Founder) is a Tony Award and Grammy Award winning producer. He co-founded Broadway Records which released nearly 300 albums during his leadership. Van earned his Grammy Award for helping to produce the Broadway Records’ release of the 2015 Broadway revival of The Color Purple. His Grammy nominations were earned for his work on Matilda the Musical, My Fair Lady and Caroline, or Change. Van also executive produced well over 200 other albums including 9 that were Grammy Award nominated.
His theatrical production credits include The Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess (Tony Award), Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Cinderella (Tony Award nomination), Anastasia, Jagged Little Pill by Alanis Morissette and Diablo Cody (Tony Award nomination), How to Dance In Ohio, The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical, Matilda (Tony Award nomination), Evita (Tony Award nomination), Gore Vidal’s The Best Man (Tony Award nomination), Catch Me If You Can (Tony Award nomination), The Velocity of Autumn, Big Fish, Bonnie & Clyde, Chinglish, the Off-Broadway production of You’re A Good Man, Charlie Brown (2016) and ROOMS a rock romance and the national tours of Anastasia, Matilda, Cinderella, The Lightning Thief and more. He was also a producer of Master Class with Tyne Daly and the 2022 and 2023 productions of Bonnie & Clyde in London’s West End. Upcoming: Death Note, Wild, Goodbye New York, SMASH, Figaro, Little Dancer, Song of Bernadette.
He co-produced Broadway For Orlando’s “What The World Needs Now Is Love” to raise funds for the GLBT Community Center of Central Florida. The charity single was featured on NBC’s “Maya and Marty” and at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. He co-conceived and co-Executive Produced the anti-bullying single “I Have A Voice” featuring 70 Broadway kids from Matilda, School of Rock and more and co-produced the new Broadway United music video of “We Are The World”. He also co-conceived and produced From Broadway With Love: A Benefit Concert For Sandy Hook featuring 100 Broadway stars, a 40 piece orchestra and 300+ children from Newtown and From Broadway With Love: A Benefit Concert for Parkland, USA at the BB&T Center Arena in Sunrise, FL and co-produced the Emmy Award winning From Broadway With Love: A Benefit Concert For Orlando. He is also a co-producer of the feature film documentary “Midsummer in Newtown” which premiered as a Spotlight selection at Tribeca Film Festival. Van has several major film and television musicals in pre-production.
Full article available via Broadway World here.