Kevin Beebee ’06 Company Manager ‘Wicked’ National Tour

Kevin Beebee ’06 is a Falcon ‘defying gravity’ as tour manager of Wicked

As company manager for the national tour of the hit Broadway musical, Wicked, Kevin Beebee ’06 gets the Wizard of Oz mantra, “There’s no place like home.”

Simplifying life on the road for the 75-member cast and crew is an important aspect of Beebee’s role. Tasks that are simple from home — finding a doctor or a car — get tricky as a guest in a new city. Beebee and his team help with such personal complications on top of their other obligations. Beebee doesn’t flinch on days as long as 16 hours while managing ticket sales, issuing paychecks, and hiring nearly 50 locals in each host city.

“A lot of people will call me ‘Dad’ or ‘Pops’ out on the tour, because basically anything you would count on your father for, they’re counting on us for,” Beebee said.

Beebee transferred to BGSU after summer work at the Huron Playhouse, run by BGSU students and faculty. Beebee impressed, so former department chair Dr. Ron Shields urged him to apply for a grant-in-aid scholarship. He got it.

BGSU Theatre had a huge role in Beebee’s success. Associate professor and costumer Margaret McCubbin offered his first industry contacts. And after theatre business manager Shaun Moorman ’95 was recruited to Broadway by Dean Greer ’85 in 2005, Moorman helped Beebee get there, too. Moorman and Beebee continue to recruit Falcons.

“There’s a really great presence on Broadway from Bowling Green,” Beebee said.  “That says a lot about (alumni) networking and Bowling Green.”

Beebee’s Broadway education began with a credit on Curtains, a musical. The show ended sooner than expected, so Beebee took up with the Legally Blonde tour. He felt like a break after 18 months on the road, and the risk of quitting without a gig paid off. He landed at the NYC production of Wicked, and has had opportunities to travel with both U.S. tours and all of the companies of the show to date.

Stage life means collecting certain skills. Packing? Beebee has learned to keep an out-of-season item at hand in case snow turns to sun. Choosing theatre seats? Make like a pro in the balcony or middle for the best view, he advises. Job hunting? Your good name is everything: a truth that Beebee knows will apply to any vocation.

“Your reputation becomes so important when you are done with college and your work ethic really comes into play,” Beebee said. “My advice and what I wish somebody had said to me: ‘You always give 110% and you can’t piss anybody off.’”