Broadway Casting Shake-Up: Duncan Stewart To Head New RWS Entertainment Group Casting Arm As Stewart/Whitley And Binder Casting Dissolve
03.04.2023 - 15:19
/ deadline.com
EXCLUSIVE: Broadway casting director Duncan Stewart, whose big-name clients include the Tony-winning Hadestown, the new Life of Pi and the acclaimed The Great Comet of 1812, is dissolving his Stewart/Whitley agency after 14 years to head up the new casting arm of global live event company RWS Entertainment Group.
RWS’ new casting division will be called ARC, and will mine talent for theater, film, television and commercial projects. With the establishment of ARC, RWS’ old casting division, Binder Casting, will, like Stewart/Whitley, dissolve.
Stewart co-founded Stewart/Whitley with Benton Whitley in 2009. Whitley has not yet announced his plans.
The new venture was announced today by RWS. ARC will be based in New York and London.
Stewart, along with casting directors and associates from both Stewart/Whitley and Binder, will maintain current clients of both agencies, including Life of Pi, long-running shows Disney’s The Lion King and Chicago the Musical, as well as the Christmas Spectacular Starring the Radio City Rockettes and numerous other productions.
“Bringing Duncan Stewart onto the team to transition Binder Casting into ARC was a natural fit and will help spearhead the industry’s most exciting work,” said RWS founder and CEO Ryan Stana. “His reputation as having one of the most discerning eyes for talent in the industry will elevate our powerhouse team and accelerate discovering world-class talent. He also brings with him a firmly held commitment to treating everyone with whom he engages with respect.”
Said Stewart, “I always knew it would take something truly extraordinary to pull me from Stewart/Whitley and that is exactly what this new opportunity is.”
Patrick Maravilla from Stewart/Whitley will join as