Arnold M. Engelman, 1974
B.F.A., Denison University
President
WestBeth Entertainment
New York
Citation awarded May, 2014
Arnold Engelman, whose ability to meld the visions of creative people in the performing arts with financial and producing savvy, has made a life’s work out of making artists dreams come true, with entertainment and audience enjoyment always being the key element.
Born and raised in Greenwich Village, New York City, which introduced him to the broad appeal of the performing arts, Arnold ventured to Ohio for college and saw firsthand the diversity of our country. His time at Denison University and the Bachelor of Fine Arts degree he received, gave him the training and the tools, in all aspects of theatre and film, which he has used as a foundation to build and maintain a career in the entertainment industry.
WestBeth Entertainment, founded by Arnold Engelman, is a producing organization that has successfully and consistently produced critically acclaimed, financially successful, groundbreaking and alternative entertainment for 35 years.
WestBeth has produced, presented, promoted and managed diverse productions all over North America in such venues as Madison Square Garden, Hollywood Bowl, Radio City Music Hall, Broadway, Toronto’s Massey Hall, The Chicago Theatre, Carnegie Hall, and Lincoln Center.
Among the many performers on WestBeth’s roster are Eddie Izzard, Billy Connolly, Eric Idle (Monty Python), John Leguizamo, Margaret Cho, Lewis Black, and The Jim Henson Company.
WestBeth continues to introduce North America to new talent, most recently with South Africa’s Trevor Noah and the Britain’s Dylan Moran and Simon Amstell.
Arnold founded Westbeth Theatre Center in 1977 with Bill Hoffman ’72. During its 25-year existence, Westbeth made its mark as the home for experimental, innovative and daring new works. Among the artists Arnold has worked with in the facility include Judith Ivey, Darryl Hannah, Stephen Colbert, John Cassevettes, Ben Gazzara, John Turturro, Allison Janney, Cy Coleman, Patti LuPone, Joe Layton, Amy Sedaris, Sandra Bernhart, Ray Davies, and John Cameron Mitchell.
Upcoming and current productions include La Soiree currently running in New York, Eddie Izzard’s Force Majeure 60-city tour of the U.S., Henson Company’s Puppet Up in Australia, and Billy Connolly’s The Man Live U.S. Tour.
