There's nothing like the roar of applause, watching people jump to
their feet in a standing ovation or the feeling you get the first time
you hear a brand new harmony snap into place as you sing with the
person standing next to you. There's nothing like watching a story
unfold before your eyes for the first time and feeling brand new music
fall over the audience, closing your eyes to get swept up in it. And
yet, there's nothing like returning to a show you've seen five, ten,
or even a hundred times, because it feels like home. You know the
tunes, you know the words, but it's a place of comfort, excitement and
familiarity you wouldn't give up for the world. That's Broadway.

Being BroadwaySpotted is a full time job. It may sound like all glitz,
glamor, fun and games...and well, it kinda is, but it's also a lot of
work. Behind the contests and spottings it's an around the clock
effort to make sure that Broadway is fun and accessible to not only
New Yorkers and people with large pay checks, but also out-of-towners
and people (much like ourselves) who aren't bringing in 6-figure
salaries. And on top of all that, we've got to keep ourselves a
secret, otherwise what fun would it be? One of our followers asked
yesterday if we've ever had a close encounter with our identity being
found out, and the answer--thankfully--is no. We've had a lot of
people send messages telling us they've figured us out! We're Matt
Doyle! (True story, someone said this) Or any number of people working
in Midtown Manhattan, but no, you haven't got us yet, Broadway.

So anyway, how did this all happen, you ask? How did we get started?
WHY did we get started? And what is our goal for BroadwaySpotted?

Well, it's simple really. Just a couple of friends taking a stroll
through the theatre district. We were talking about a time in the past
when Broadway and all of it's goings on were in-accessible to us. A
time when we were younger, and more than anything we yearned for a
taste of the Great White Way. When you aren't seeing Broadway shows
every week, it doesn't matter how near by you are physically, it seems
like a world away--am I right? We decided right then and there that we
needed to create a way to connect the Broadway community. Not just the
actors and professional performers, but get the fans and budding
performers all over the country in on the same game. At that moment a
group of actors from Hair walked by. We smiled, waved at the ones we
knew, and then it hit us--Gossip Girl. You know the rest from there.
We had no idea when we began that it would blossom as fruitfully as it
has. Truthfully, we thought it'd go for a few months, people would
enjoy the "Gossip Girl" aspect of what we do, and that would be the
end of it. How wrong we were.

Why Twitter, you ask? It's a brilliant medium. It's not coincidence
that every new show that pops up to be on Broadway, off-Broadway, or
even in a festival now has a twitter long before they open their doors
to the public. It's a great way to reach a large number of people in a
super short amount of time. Granted, we are locked into the max of 140
character (spaces included!) but it's a very connected community, you
can reply to one person, or send a message to 5000 people all around
the world in one moment. Making use of the new technological advances
in front of us as well as social networking is something that will
extend Broadway far past the city limits of New York.

Around the clock, we are constantly connected with more than 5000 of
you as we monitor twitter, Broadway/Theatre news and of course, do
some live spotting around Manhattan. It's starting to feel like a wild
addiction as we may wake up at any hour of the night and check what's
going on in the theatre world. Any text message or phone call that
comes in may be new information. The truth of it is, we know we have
to be on top of our craft, and that means bringing you the most
up-to-date, exclusive and comprehensive information (weeding out
stuff that's bee repeated by simply everyone...) and make it fun!

We have the love and support of not only a large number of Broadway fans,

but a good chunk of the working Broadway community. We are so grateful

for that, and we could never express to you how much we enjoy

bantering with all of you back and forth on a daily basis. Yet, I'd venture to say the most
difficult part of being BroadwaySpotted is dealing with the people who don't like us.
Yes, they're out there. There are people who

aren't into it, and unfortunately to that we have to say: you can't
please everyone. Just like with any Broadway show, there are going to
be a thousand who hate it for every thousand who love it, we are no
different.

What do we hope to accomplish? We've been asked this many times,
and the answer is simple: we hope to continue the legacy of those
before us. Those who have put Broadway within reach for those of us who
didn't think we could touch it. We want to create a community of people who
ban together, love together, sing together, dance down Broadway together after a show.
To make friends and cast-mates extend
past those who perform on the Great White Way. Our Broadway journey
began in a community of fans that love not only what they see before
them on stage, but also the performers, and the fans sitting to the
left or right of them at every single performance. Our Broadway
memories are of a place where you can be you and you're welcomed with
open arms--we certainly were, not only as Spotted, but as ourselves.

Now, we turn it back over to you. We are at your service more than anything;
we're here to support and enrich the theatre community. So, tell us what you want to
read and hear about. Tell us how we can help you, how we can make this more fun for you
and we'll do our best to bring you everything you crave.


Coming up NEXT WEEK!: Breaking into the business from all different angles. We talked with performers, directors, casting agents and managers to get you the best info from the best of Broadway!

Add me as a friend! And Follow me on TWITTER!