BROADWAY ROSE TO BROADWAY: TITLE SPONSORS HARVEY AND SANDY PLATT

From sponsoring Broadway Rose to producing a Broadway show, Harvey and Sandy Platt continue to support the arts in big ways.

Harvey Platt, former CEO of Portland-based company Platt Electric Supply, has been involved with Broadway Rose since its first season in 1992. Primarily introduced to the theatre company through his daughters who were involved in performing arts, Harvey joined the theatre’s board and later became a title sponsor.

While Harvey eventually sold the business, Platt Electric Supply remained the title sponsor of Broadway Rose until 2012. From storing costumes in their warehouse to letting the theatre company occupy the upstairs of the Tualatin location for office space, Platt Electric Supply served as a catalyst for Broadway Rose’s success, especially in the early years. Harvey and Sandy Platt resumed their sponsorship and became independent title sponsors of Broadway Rose in 2023.

Harvey’s passion for supporting Broadway Rose came from a place that is close to his heart: his daughters. With both of them involved in dancing and theatre, he saw the need for support of the arts–as they are often underfunded in educational settings in comparison to sports. In hopes of seeing the theatre thrive, Harvey invested time and money into seeing Broadway Rose flourish.

“A local thriving theatre can be used as an example,” said Harvey. “It can be a great motivation for young people to want to get into theatre.” For his daughters, Broadway Rose served as motivation to get involved with theatre and they went on to perform in Broadway Rose’s Oklahoma!, choreograph the company’s production of Once Upon a Mattress, and more.

As a board member and sponsor for around 30 years, Harvey has seen Broadway Rose develop from Sharon and Dan’s house to its permanent home at the New Stage location. Not only would Harvey’s sponsorship of Broadway Rose help contribute to the theatre’s success, but it would also pave the way for him to become part of a team of producers of Barry Manilow’s passion project and musical: Harmony: A New Musical.

It all began back in 2005 when Harvey attended the Barry Manilow Concert to Benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in Las Vegas. In hopes of getting an autograph at the meet-and-greet, Harvey brought with him a special photo: “I had a picture I wanted him to autograph of my daughter, Melissa, when she was about six months old with a headset on and a Barry Manilow album on the couch,” he explained.

When Barry didn’t show up at the meet-and-greet, Harvey decided to mail the photo to the executive director of the venue, who got the photo signed for him and also invited him to come back to Las Vegas to meet Barry in 2006.

Later that year, Harvey was connected with Barry Manilow’s manager and now husband, Garry Kief. After Harvey suggested a benefit concert in Portland, Barry agreed and came to the Pacific Northwest in January 2007 for the event. The event raised half a million dollars for Cystic Fibrosis and was a huge success. Barry would perform at another benefit concert in Seattle in 2009, suggested again by Harvey.

In 2007, while Barry was in Portland, Harvey had dinner with Garry and some of the musician’s team. Harvey was handed an original script for Harmony, which Barry wrote the music for, and was told they were looking for investors in an attempt to get the show to Broadway. However, Harvey never heard anything more about the show until it ran in Los Angeles in 2014 and later had a successful run off-Broadway in 2022.

In early 2023, Harvey received an email from Garry that explained they were still looking for investors for Harmony as they were going to open on Broadway, and after deliberation, Harvey and Sandy decided to agree to help produce the production.

Harmony: A New Musical by Barry Manilow and Bruce Sussman tells the true story of the Comedian Harmonists, six talented young men, Jewish and gentile, who came together in 1920s Germany and took the world by storm with their signature blend of sophisticated close harmonies and uproarious stage antics.

“We had the whole Broadway experience,” said Harvey about the premiere of the show in November. “I enjoyed the experience and have no regrets.” While the show closed early due to lower projections, the musical was well-received with many sold-out shows and good reviews. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity served as a meaningful way for Harvey and Sandy to deepen their support for the arts as well as get a personal chance to be a part of a legendary production.

Broadway Rose is extremely grateful to our title sponsors, Harvey and Sandy Platt, for believing in the theatre from the start and for their continued sponsorship of the performing arts!