How Tulsa got Wicked

When Broadway mixed and melded with Tulsa’s theater scene

It’s a tidy office in South Tulsa, far from the thriving, eccentric arts districts revitalizing the central city. The waiting-room table offers local magazines and a book chronicling the history of Christianity in America. It’s a cozy, calming atmosphere, maybe not what one would expect to see at the home office of Celebrity Attractions, the production company that brought “Wicked” to Tulsa.

When Drew Payton, the company’s COO, steps out to greet visitors, he exudes the same warmth and welcome. This is his family business, dedicated to preserving the vision that his late father, Larry Payton, who passed in 2013, initially brought to the company. It’s with pride that he points out the posters from seasons past and renovations in progress. Like his father was, he’s a polished, poised businessman with his hands full running a busy company, but also as his father did, he nevertheless makes people feel like the whole morning has been blocked out just for a visit.

“Wicked” has Tulsa abuzz for the third summer in five years, slated for the Tulsa Performing Arts Center June 18 – July 6 for 2014. The national tour first came to town in July 2009 and ran for four full weeks, and, according to the Broadway League’s count, more than 73,500 people attended the show. The economic impact (which includes advertising, employment, expenses, rentals, taxes, etc.) on Tulsa was estimated at more than $16 million, with an additional $6 million spent by theater-goers who bought dinners, hotel rooms, and transportation.

“Wicked” returned in Fall 2010 for a limited, two-week run. More than 36,500 people saw the show, with economic impact calculated at more than $8.7 million and ancillary spending (additional money spent by theater-goers) at almost $3 million. “Wicked” holds the Tulsa box-office records for both a two-week and four-week Broadway engagement.

But major Broadway shows weren’t always the norm here, at least not until the late ‘80s. The fostering of a Broadway culture in Tulsa began in 1983 with Larry Payton and his wife, Kay.

While Payton was still working as Dean of Student Activities at The University of Tulsa, the couple began the company that now spans seven Midwest cities from a spare bedroom.

“They wanted to, you might say, revitalize the town itself with family entertainment. I was young, my sister was young, so they wanted something they could take the whole family to,” said Drew Payton.

The history of the company now spans three decades. One of the earliest shows, The Beatles tribute “1964,” marks its thirtieth consecutive year in Tulsa this July. But it was after Celebrity Attractions’ first season in ’91-’92 that the economic shifts in Tulsa brought demand for more entertainment. The company was poised to make the most of the opportunity, to fill seats with Tulsans bright eyed and optimistic, eager to take their place on the world stage again as the former Oil Capital turned telecom-and-technology hub.

New York, Line One
“In 1996, ‘Phantom of the Opera’ was the show that bumped Celebrity Attractions into the ‘known.’ We worked to get it here for six weeks, and New York laughed at us. We fought and fought and fought, and we got it. When ‘Phantom’ opened up for the first performance of the six-week run, we had less than fifty seats for the whole six weeks left. New York took notice,” said Payton.

Now, Celebrity Attractions doesn’t have to fight as hard—if New York laughs, it’s because they know they will have a successful run in the company’s markets.While it may take up to four years to bring a show to town, Celebrity Attractions now has markets that draw touring companies.

Payton attributes the company’s success to hard work and faith. The emphasis on family and community is a direct outgrowth of their Christian values, the element at the heart of their business model.

“Our company is grounded in our Christianity. We are a Christian company and not ashamed of it. Our staff gets together every Monday morning and the first thing we do is talk about our lives. Then we have a short prayer, all together. Then we go into the business—what’s going on in the business? It’s not just about our faith. It’s about who we are together,” said Payton.

The company’s original goal was to enhance the community, including both Broadway and events that appeal to smaller, niche audiences. For example, Larry Payton brought author Paul Young to Tulsa twice to speak about “The Shack,” his successful Christian book.

“Larry’s thought was, even if we affect one person’s life, it’s worth every penny that we put into it. You know, what we do is discretionary dollars, it’s not an ‘I must go and do this!’ So we have to be bringing things people want to see that will make their lives better…and happier.

“That’s why ‘Wicked’ is coming back as a return engagement—people want to see it,” said Payton.

Broadway on the Prairie
When Broadway and touring shows sweep into Tulsa, it’s a tide that lifts all ships. Chad Oliverson, Marketing and Public Relations Manager for the PAC Trust, said that both touring shows and local companies play a role in the city’s theater scene.

“They are doing a service by bringing in commercially successful shows. The more bodies in the PAC, the more you have people seeing what’s going on. They might take a chance on the local [theater],” said Oliverson.

“The more people who come, the more people are exposed to the theater experience, the more they may seek it out,” said Vern Stefanic, a fixture in Tulsa theater. Stefanic has been a director, playwright, and teacher here for over 30 years. “It does give people the chance to embrace something completely different and very entertaining. They have huge budgets, and you can fly people from the ceiling, and the PAC can refigure for the things that are going to happen. Local theater doesn’t have the ability to do that,” said Stefanic.

Thanks in part to the spotlight touring shows like “Wicked” shine on Tulsa’s theater scene in general, local theater is thriving, Oliverson and Stefanic said, and it has the ability to offer a more diverse palate of performing-arts experiences. This summer’s Tulsa Fringe, an outgrowth of the long-running SummerStage program, provides local artists and patrons with a performing-arts concept usually seen only in bigger cities. It’s a chance for Oliverson to do what he thinks he does best: help local talent break into production as well as performance.

“Five of the last six plays [I have directed] have been multimedia because people are used to processing that way. That’s the future of theater, and local is doing that more and more,” Stefanic said. “We may not have million-dollar budgets, but with stage and creative use of space, we can be impressive, too. If you get them in the door, now that they’ve been exposed to the big, gee-whiz of touring [shows], they’re going to be surprised.

“People who see them for the first time are pretty impressed with the talent we have here. Younger people are coming in with a lot of training from Heller and around town…we have a whole generation who watched ‘Glee!’ They want to be a part of that. Even though they aren’t as classically trained, they are so sharp and so natural on stage,” said Stefanic.

Tulsa’s Theater Next
The boundaries of Tulsa audiences are begging to be pushed. Payton sees Celebrity Attractions bringing different types of productions to town, including plays, a genre close to his own heart. But to bring a national touring play to Tulsa, it has to sell. And Tulsans aren’t always buying.

“When I saw ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ with James Earl Jones, I was on Row D going, ‘You’re right there!’ The tough part dealing with New York sometimes is reminding them that we are in the buckle of the Bible Belt. There have been shows that were more edgy that come to Tulsa that just don’t sell,” said Payton.

Tulsa’s theater community and its patrons have strived the past 30 years to cultivate the performing arts as a viable part of Tulsa’s creative community. By definition, a community is a group working together for the greater good. The dance between a company that brings shows to town and the PAC Trust and local companies that help create shows in town both edgy and family-friendly continues.

“There is a place for everything in Tulsa,” said Oliverson. “None of us stand alone. Together we are stronger.”

“Celebrity Attractions is still thriving,” Payton said. “We’re really looking forward to being part of the community, helping to continue to grow it even more.”

Being Wicked
“Wicked” returns to Tulsa this summer for three weeks, June 18-July 6

• 24 shows in Tulsa
• Broke the house in every city record since it started touring nationally in March 2005
• The national touring companies use about 200 pounds of dry ice per show
• Grossed more than $3.2 billion worldwide
• The companies use 4-5 miles of cable to automate scenery, lights, and more
• Tickets start at $35 for balcony seats
• Tickets go up to $175 for orchestra seats