Paramount Theatre in Aurora announced today the addition of a new staff member and two promotions within the company’s artistic department:
Paul-Jordan Jansen, familiar to Paramount audiences for his lead roles in Disney’s Beauty and The Beast, The Wizard of Oz and Sweeney Todd, for which he won the Jeff Award for Best Actor-Musical-Large, has joined Paramount as Associate Artistic Producer. Jansen’s new responsibilities will include being a conduit between the Paramount School of the Arts and Paramount’s artistic team. He also will serve as lead producer for The Inception Project, Paramount’s new play development program for BIPOC writers, and will be a core member of Paramount’s casting team at auditions.
Amber Mak, New Work Development Director and acclaimed director of Paramount’s holiday season blockbusters including Beauty and The Beast, The Wizard of Oz and Disney’s The Little Mermaid will now serve in the expanded role of Artistic Producer and New Works Director.
Trent Stork, previously Artistic Associate and Casting Director at Paramount, where he has worked on the directing team for 19 productions, has been promoted to Associate Artistic Producer and Casting Director.
From left: Paul-Jordan Jansen, Amber Mak and Trent Stork
“I stand in gratitude and thank my lucky stars for this newly titled team of professionals rising to the daily challenges of creating art and continuing Paramount's EDI initiative,” said Paramount Theatre Artistic Director Jim Corti.
“Jordan, Amber and Trent have learned by doing and their skills have grown with their compassion and dedication to serve the greater good at Paramount, our community, and beyond. I’m so proud of this team! Congratulations to them all.”
The artistic team is busy preparing for the return of live performances at Paramount, which last week announced its delayed production of Kinky Boots will open on August 18, 2021. The production, directed by Trent Stork, will mark Chicago’s first regional staging of the flashy, sassy, sexy story of big heels invading a small town that shook Broadway and was universally adored by critics and audiences, winning every major Best Musical Award including the Tony, the Grammy and London’s Olivier Award.
Kinky Boots will run through October 17, and will be followed by the launch of Paramount’s long-awaited 10th Anniversary Broadway Season. Stay tuned for dates and details.
Paramount Theatre is located at 23 E. Galena Blvd. in downtown Aurora. For subscriptions, single tickets and information, visit ParamountAurora.com, or call the box office, (630) 896-6666, Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Meet the Artists
Paul-Jordan Jansen, the new Associate Artistic Producer for Paramount Theatre, is familiar to Chicago theater audiences as the Jeff Award-winning actor in the title role of Sweeney Todd, as the Cowardly Lion in The Wizard of Oz, and most recently as The Beast in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast, all at Paramount. In addition to his on-stage work at Paramount, Jordan served as Artistic Associate of The Inception Project, Paramount’s new play incubation initiative for BIPOC writers. He has also shared his talent with area youth as Musical Theatre Administrator for Paramount School of the Arts since (month) (year). Jansen has performed on stages across the world for over a decade, appearing in musical theater classics, new works, and world premieres at some of the country’s most renowned regional theaters. His other favorite credits include the world premiere of The Prince of Egypt at the Tony Award-winning TheatreWorks Silicon Valley, the U.S. premiere of The Count of Monte Cristo, Sting’s The Last Ship and Once on this Island at Pioneer Theatre Company, Fulton Theatre’s Les Misérables and The Hunchback of Norte Dame, and Matilda, And Then There Were None and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at Drury Lane Oakbrook.
(left) Paul-Jordan Jansen won the 2017 Jeff Award for Best Actor-Musical-Large for performing the title role in Paramount's Sweeney Todd, opposite Bri Sudia as Mrs. Lovett. (right) Jansen also played The Beast in Paramount's 2019 staging of Disney's Beauty and the Beast, with Beth Stafford Laird as Belle. Photos by Liz Lauren.
Amber Mak was hired in 2016 as Paramount’s New Works Development Director, foretelling an exciting new era of artistic and economic expansion for Paramount. Mak spearheads Paramount’s new works projects, including The Inception Project, Paramount’s new play incubation initiative for BIPOC writers, which developed and presented virtual staged readings of two new plays in January 2021 – Lanise Antoine Shelley’s Pretended and BULL: a love story by Nancy García Loza. For Paramount’s Broadway Series, Mak directed and choreographed the theater’s hit productions of Beauty and The Beast, nominated for six Jeff Awards including Best Musical, The Wizard of Oz, which earned seven Jeff nominations including Best Musical and Best Director, as well as Elf The Musical, Disney’s The Little Mermaid and Hairspray – The Broadway Musical. Previously at Paramount, Mak was Rachel Rockwell’s assistant director and associate choreographer for the 2014 smash hit Mary Poppins, and she played Bombalurina in Cats. She also staged Chicago Shakespeare Theater’s summer 2018 production of Peter Pan. Prior to joining Paramount, Mak was founding artistic director of Chicago’s FWD Theatre Project, which collaborated with Claude-Michel Schönberg and Alain Boublil, co-creators of Les Misérables and Miss Saigon, on a concert reading and English premiere of La Révolution Française. Mak also served as Assistant/SDC Observership Fellow for Susan Stroman for Big Fish in Chicago and on Broadway, and she was Jeff-nominated for her choreography of Singin’ in the Rain at Drury Lane Oakbrook. Regional credits include director/choreographer of Mary Poppins and Swing and choreographer for Legally Blonde and The Sound of Music, all at The Little Theatre on the Square, choreographer of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying at Rocky Mountain Rep and The Music Man at The Clarence Brown Theatre. Her credits as associate director/choreographer include The Sound of Music, Ragtime, Mary Poppins, Sweeney Todd, Xanadu, Shout and The Emperor's New Clothes. As a performer, she has been on stage in more than 40 shows nationally including Cabaret, West Side Story, Crazy For You and Thoroughly Modern Millie. Mak’s next production will be Rock of Ages at the Paramount with new dates to be announced soon.
Amber Mak-helmed productions at Paramount include (left) The Wizard of Oz in 2018 and Disney's Beauty and The Beast in 2019. Photos by Liz Lauren.
Trent Stork previously served as Artistic Associate and Casting Director at Paramount, where he has worked on the directing team for 19 productions, 13 of those alongside Paramount Artistic Director Jim Corti. In 2018, Stork made his Paramount directorial debut at the helm of Legally Blonde (Broadwayworld.com Award – Best Direction of a Musical.) This August, he will direct the delayed production of Kinky Boots, the first Chicago regional production of the Tony Award-winning musical, and the show that will usher in the return of live performances at Paramount. Stork has been the company’s resident casting director for the last six years. Outside of Paramount, Stork has worked at the Kaufman Center in New York City, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Angels Theatre Company and The Nebraska Repertory Theatre among others. He also started his own casting company, Trent Stork Casting, and was the Chicago casting director for the new West Side Story adaptation, directed by Steven Spielberg.
Trent Stork directed Paramount's 2018-19 season opener Legally Blonde, featuring Casey Shuler as Elle Woods. Photos by Liz Lauren.
About Paramount Theatre
Paramount Theatre, 23 E. Galena Blvd. in Aurora, is the center for performing arts and education in the second largest city in Illinois. Designed by renowned theater architects C.W. and George L. Rapp, Paramount opened on September 3, 1931. Today, Paramount remains downtown Aurora’s anchor attraction, a beautiful, 1,843-seat theater graced with a 1930s Art Deco influence and original Venetian décor, nationally known for its high-quality productions, superb acoustics and historic grandeur.
Since Paramount Theatre first launched its own Broadway Series in 2011, it grew to be the second largest subscription house in the U.S. More than 41,000 subscribers signed up from all over Chicagoland and the Midwest in 2019-20 to enjoy Paramount’s affordable, critically acclaimed, Broadway-quality productions. In addition to its Broadway Series, Paramount presents an array of internationally known comedians, music stars, dance events and family shows. Community members also enjoy Paramount’s Classic Movie Monday series for just $1.
Paramount Theatre continues to expand its artistic and institutional boundaries under the guidance of Tim Rater, President and CEO, Aurora Civic Center Authority; Jim Corti, Artistic Director, Paramount Theatre; a dedicated Board of Trustees and a devoted staff of live theater and music professionals.
Paramount is one of five live venues programmed and managed by the Aurora Civic Center Authority. ACCA also oversees the newly-renovated, 165-seat Copley Theatre, right across the street from Paramount; RiverEdge Park, the city’s outdoor concert venue; the Stolp Island Theatre, slated to open in summer 2022 as a 99-seat immersive theater space, as well as the new Paramount School of the Arts.
For the latest news from Paramount Theatre and updates on upcoming performances, please visit ParamountAurora.com, or follow Paramount on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter, all @ParamountAurora.