ABOUT

Photo by David Levine

Aria Entertainment was founded in 2012 by award winning Producer Katy Lipson. In 11 years, she has produced over 80 productions in the West End, Off-West End and on UK Tours. Her most recent West End credits include the World Premiere of Brokeback Mountain at Nimax’s newest West End theatre, @Soho Place; Cruise, which received an Olivier nomination for Best New Play and is now being developed as a film after two sell-out runs at the Duchess Theatre and Apollo Theatre, and the critically acclaimed transfer of The Last Five Years to the Garrick Theatre. She also produced or co-produced several major UK Tours including The Osmonds, The Cher Show, Hair, The Rise and Fall of Little Voice and The Addams Family. Several of these productions have since been produced internationally, including The Addams Family in Singapore, Hair in Germany and upcoming runs of The Last Five Years in China and Taiwan, Zorro in Korea and Cruise Internationally.

For several years, Katy was the Producing Artistic Director of the renowned Hope Mill Theatre in Manchester, creating and producing productions, many of which transferred to London. During her tenure 2016-2019 she worked with Stephen Schwartz on creating a re-imagined version of Rags and presented the first production of Jerry Herman’s Mame in the UK for over 50 years. Other notable titles included European or Northern premieres of Pippin, Parade, Little Women and Yank amongst others.

In 2017, Lipson was awarded the Best Producer award by the Off-West End Awards and in 2019 was nominated for International Producer of the Year by the League of Professional Theatre Women in New York. She is a recipient of the Stage One Bursary and Start Up Award and works as a mentor on their Bursary and Bridge the Gap programmes. In 2018 she was included in “The Stage 100” list and in 2019 and 2020 for her work at Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester and again in 2021 for her work as a solo producer.

Lipson is at the forefront of new musical development in the UK, having set up the From Page to Stage festival to support new musicals. Between the years of 2013-2017 From Page to Stage gave a platform to over 100 new musicals; many of which have gone on to have full productions and be licensed worldwide. It is a keen passion of hers to cultivate new musicals that can have a long lasting legacy in the West End, on Broadway and all around the world.

Upcoming Productions: The Addams Family at The London Palladium starring Michelle Visage, Ramin Karimloo and Lesley Joseph.