MOUNTAINSIDE — For Lamar Richardson, a Tony Award is not just a career milestone, but a reminder that unconventional paths can lead to unexpected places. The Mountainside resident recently made history as the youngest Black lead producer to win a Tony Award in the category for his work on the revival of Ragtime, becoming only the fourth Black producer to reach that milestone.
Richardson said the achievement is meaningful not only because of the award itself, but because of what it represents for young people who may not see themselves represented in the arts.
“I really take this seriously in terms of visibility and representation being at the forefront of why I do what I do,” Richardson said. “By young people seeing someone like me at 33 operating at the level that I am, it gives them hope and inspiration and encouragement to reach for the skies themselves.”
Although his career has taken him to Broadway, Hollywood and beyond, Richardson remains connected to New Jersey. Born in New Brunswick, he spent much of his early life in Middlesex County before later living in Charlotte and California. He returned to the area and has lived in Mountainside for the past four years.
“I’m New Jersey through and through,” Richardson said. “I love that I’m being an example for the next generation of our people in our local community to show that you can have unconventional dreams, you can go into other career professions like the arts and find success.”
Richardson’s path to producing began onstage. After studying psychology and theater at Columbia University, he spent nearly a decade as an actor. After the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted the entertainment industry, Richardson began considering a new direction.
“Once I really saw how the industry shut down, it just really put things into perspective for me that I wanted to have more scope and longevity in this industry,” he said.
He returned to Columbia for additional training in theater management and producing and began his Broadway producing career in 2022. Since then, he has worked on 10 productions, with Ragtime marking his first time as a lead producer.
His job extends far beyond fundraising. Producers help develop projects, secure rights, build creative teams, work with actors and designers, and oversee the process of turning an idea into a finished production. For Ragtime, that meant helping bring a large-scale production to life while meeting the expectations surrounding one of musical theater’s most recognized titles.
“ Ragtime is a huge musical,” Richardson said. “We have the biggest orchestra on Broadway. Our cast size is massive. There are a lot of moving parts that go into that.”
He said much of a producer’s work happens behind the scenes to make the final performance appear effortless.
“Our job is to make it seem seamless behind the scenes so that they can come and experience a show every night without being privy to any of that,” he said.
Through his production company, Ivy Lion Productions, Richardson said he hopes to continue supporting stories that bring different communities together. He pointed to Ragtime as an example of storytelling that connects people across backgrounds.
“I think that art has a responsibility to bring all of us together and to challenge the things in society that are not working in terms of biases and prejudices and things that keep people and communities apart,” Richardson said.
Looking back on his historic win, Richardson said the legacy he hopes to leave is not just professional success.
“I want to always be remembered for my kindness,” he said. “Someone who wasn’t afraid to be in a position of power, but still be kind, to still pull other people up, to still provide opportunities to people.”
