Lauren Kennedy Brady, former Broadway veteran studied at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music and performed on Broadway in Sunset Boulevard, Side Show, Les Miserables, Spamalot  and as Nellie Forbush in South Pacific at the National Theatre in London.  As a producer, she invested in Bull Durham, and the Off-Broadway shows Rated P for Parenthood and Vanities. Lauren developed the musical Drift (BB Kings in NYC), Peace of Clay (with the North Carolina Theatre) and produced two albums with PS Classics.

 

As Executive Director of Theatre Raleigh, Lauren uses her Broadway connections to bring in top talent for the company’s shows and concerts including Broadway stars such as Tony Award nominees and winners Norm Lewis, Stephanie J. Block, and Norbert Leo Butz, as well as Academy Award winner Ariana DeBose. In June 2020, Kennedy Brady moved the theater company to North Raleigh. She oversaw the million dollar capital campaign to convert an 18,000-square-foot space into a hub for performing arts. The centerpiece of the new location is the De Ann S. Jones Theatre, a 3,600-square ft space with technical balconies, a sprung floor and flexible seating, which opened in August 2022. Other performances and rehearsal spaces at Theatre Raleigh Arts Center include the Elizabeth Droessler Rehearsal Hall, TR Studio Theatre and Cabaret Theatre.