ABOUT
At Rise Creative is the producing partnership of co-founders Michael Arden and Dane Laffrey, alongside their partner Mindy Dougherty Baiada. At Rise strives to produce groundbreaking theatrical experiences with an emphasis on blending dynamic storytelling with innovative design and technology. At Rise supports the work of Arden and Laffrey as well as bringing the same artist-centered approach to other projects that we deem both artistically exemplary and fiscally sound. At Rise won a 2023 Tony Award for the hit revival of Parade, which three times broke the house record at the Bernard B. Jacobs for highest grossing week.
CURRENT PROJECTS
PAST PROJECTS
WHO WE ARE
Michael Arden most recently won the 2025 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical for Maybe Happy Ending, as well as 2023 Tony Award for his production of Parade starring Ben Platt and Micaela Diamond. He was previously Tony-nominated for his acclaimed revivals of Once On This Island and Deaf West’s Spring Awakening. Michael wrote and directed Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol on Broadway starring Jefferson Mays. Other credits include Joseph… at Lincoln Center and the site-specific works American Dream Study and ALIEN/NATION with his company The Forest of Arden. Arden has been named to Variety’s Impact List and won an NAACP Award for his production of Merrily We Roll Along. Michael also regularly directs The Conners on ABC and is a Presidential Scholar in the Arts. He recently directed Ben Platt’s solo concert reopening the newly renovated Palace Theatre, and is currently working on The Lost Boys also at the Palace.
Dane Laffrey is an award-winning designer, creative and producer. Dane most recently won the 2025 Tony Award for Best Scenic Design of a Musical along with George Reeve for their work on Maybe Happy Ending. His work with Michael Arden on Broadway includes the Tony-winning revivals of Parade and Once On This Island, Maybe Happy Ending, Charles Dicken’s A Christmas Carol, which Dane co-conceived as well as designing the set and costumes, and Deaf West’s Spring Awakening. Their other collaborations include The Queen of Versailles, The Preacher’s Wife, Guys and Dolls at The Imperial Theatre in Tokyo, Merrily We Roll Along at the Wallis Annenberg, Annie at the Hollywood Bowl and many upcoming projects including and The Lost Boys at The Palace Theatre. Dane’s work has been seen at off-Broadway theatres including Lincoln Center Theatre, Manhattan Theatre Club (also Fool for Love on Broadway), Roundabout, The Public, Second Stage, Playwrights Horizons, Atlantic Theater Company, B.A.M. and across the US at most major theatres. Dane also designs the set and additional video for Disney’s Hercules, currently in Hamburg, Germany and opening in The West End in 2025. He has been nominated for 2 Tony Awards, 2 Drama Desk Awards, 9 American Theatre Wing Hewes Awards and 5 Ovation Awards (winning 2). Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Set and Costume Design.
Mindy Dougherty Baiada is a former Broadway performer, with a BFA in Musical Theatre from Penn State University. She received her MA in Theatre Education from New York University (NYU) and is the Producing Artistic Director and co-founder of Music Theatre Philly, a non-profit theatre school and production company, serving the Philadelphia area.