LaChanze Launches Production Company for Theater and More

Tony Award winner LaChanze is launching her own multimedia production company.

The company, LaChanze Productions, will seek to produce Broadway and other commercial theater projects, with an eye to original works that bring new talent to the stage. All current projects in development are plays and musicals, but the company also plans to expand into film and television as well.

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LaChanze, a Tony Award winner for her role as Celie in the original 2005 production of The Color Purple, has appeared on Broadway numerous times, including originating the lead role in Once on This Island in 1990 and most recently starring in the 2021 revival of Trouble in Mind.

In recent years, LaChanze has also been producing on Broadway. She served as a co-producer of Kimberly Akimbo, which won the 2023 Tony Award for best musical; TopDog/Underdog, which won the Tony for best play that same year; and this season’s Jaja’s African Hair Braiding, Here Lies Love and The Outsiders. She is also president of Black Theatre United, which has been pushing for equality and inclusion on Broadway.

“Since 2009, I have wanted a seat on the other side of the table,” LaChanze said. “As a career theater professional, I have had the good fortune to witness all aspects of what it takes to build a successful theatrical production. My love for this industry coupled with my advocacy to develop new audiences has inspired me to launch LaChanze Productions. I hope to bring a unique perspective to each project we produce, and I look forward to continuing to build this company, nurture new productions and bring on other passionate people to join me in this endeavor.”

Titles currently in development include Love Warrior, a one-man show about triumphing over trauma with Daniel “Koa” Beaty, produced with Vanessa Williams for Asé Enterprises, and Reunion at Bartersville, a whodunnit involving senior citizens, set for a private industry reading on June 13.

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