Kate Lumpkin on Casting Masquerade NYC, Building Community, and Trusting Your Audience

CI to Eye with Monica Holt

Audiences don’t just want to watch theater; they want to step inside it. Few people understand that better than casting director Kate Lumpkin.

Kate has become a go-to voice in immersive performance, shaping productions that dissolve the line between stage and audience. Her latest project? Masquerade NYC: an immersive Phantom of the Opera revival now running Off Broadway.

For Kate, immersive work isn’t a trend. It’s a response to what audiences are hungry for: connection, participation, and community. Her vision flips the question from “How do we fill the seats?” to “How do we open the doors wider?”

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Kate Lumpkin Casting

Masquerade NYC

James Madison University | School of Theater and Dance