#90 - Lydia-Renee Darling: Breaking Out of the Scarcity Mindset

“If you’re branching into the U.K. market post Brexit, it’s going
to be a nightmare and I don’t say that to dissuade you, just to
remind you that what I did was very specific.” - Lydia-Renee
Darling In this episode we discuss: Pandemic panic! Grad
panic!  What are the main differences and similarities for
multi-hyphenates in the NYC and West End markets? How do you plant
your feet when branching into new markets? What happens when you
girl-boss too hard? Breaking out of the scarcity mindset. How does
multi-hyphenating contribute to cultural preservation? The American
Dream The concept of Ann Bogart’s Satz Lydia-Renee Darling is an
actor-producer and founder with a BFA in Musical Theatre from
Webster Conservatory of Theatre Arts and an MA in Writing for Stage
and Broadcast Media from The Royal Central School of Speech and
Drama. As a biracial, second-generation Ghanaian-American, Lydia
aims to explore identity, belonging and mental health within
heightened worlds and uses live immersive theatre with digital
interactive elements to enhance audience impact. 
#rememberadam, a Zoom short produced, written and acted by Lydia in
response to the Kenosha shootings in her home state, was chosen for
the Lift Off Sessions festival, First Time Filmmaker Festival and
Andromeda Film Festival. A portion of her play, The Thin Gray
Line, has been seen at Bob Carter's Actors' Rep and she performed
in her short play, Twenty-Five and Other Things, at The Pleasance
in the Dear Black People Festival in July 2021.  Lydia is the
Founder of Oh! (My Gosh) Creative Co., an international DEI
audience development and co production company. A systemic lack of
access to visibility and guidance in the entertainment industry has
resulted in fewer BIPOC professionals, making fewer and fewer BIPOC
want to enter the industry… and so the cycle repeats. OMG breaks
this vicious cycle of underrepresentation. At Oh! (My Gosh)
Creative Co., Lydia produces entertainment featuring marginalized
creatives both onstage and backstage and specializes in reaching
audiences that reflect the diverse faces of those casts. She most
recently served as Associate Producer and Head of Marketing for the
UK tour of Vitamin D. Lydia has been part of multiple accelerators
for Oh! (My Gosh) Creative Co., which won a first place grant at Do
It Now Now’s Black and Good: Build Hustle Grow 2.0. The first of
its kind on DEI in entertainment, OMG will launch their virtual
publication in January 2024. This is possible due to grant support
from Do it Now Now and residency at Somerset House Trust, plus the
input, support and mentorship of Rachel at Brick London, Nikita at
Local Champions CIC, Louis at 7PK and the ECHO Young
Entrepreneurship Accelerator. This is a much-needed publication by
underrepresented creatives, for underrepresented creatives. Even if
you're not underrepresented in the industry, we'll have stellar
tools, takeaways and studies for allies. Originally from Madison,
Wisconsin, Lydia now splits her time between Chicago and as a
commonwealth citizen in London. To keep up with Lydia and Oh! (My
Gosh) Creative Co., find her here: Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/lydiareneedarling/ LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lydia-renee-darling/  Website:
https://www.lydiareneedarling.com Oh! (My Gosh) Creative Co.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ohmygoshcreative.co/ LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/oh-my-gosh-creative-co/ Website:
https://www.ohmygoshcreative.co  Learn more about your ad
choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices