Give my regards to Broadway

Albert Einstein said "Imagination is more important than knowledge." Scott Saxon, general manager of the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall in the Edison College Campus, doesn't have Einstein's crazy hair, but does wear a loud suit with a very cool, orange tie. He also thinks that the ways the arts fuel our imaginations are as important as any other discipline - be it knitting, baseball, or rocket science.

PHOTO BY EVAN WILLIAMS Scott Saxon at the Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall. "It can really inform everyday decisions," he said. "And there's a certain magic in live performances that I'm a true believer in. Sometimes, saying this, I feel like Don Quixote tilting at the windmill, but live performances offer an incredible value. It's like holding a live wire; it's never really the same."

Saxon, born in 1970, was captivated by theatre in his early youth when it was for him one of the lovely mysteries of his hometown of Pittsburgh.

"As I was growing up, the steel mills were closing, and Pittsburgh was transforming itself from a dirty, steel mill image into a city that has a lot of everything. They had old buildings that were old movie houses as well, that had fallen into disrepair, that were being restored. Some of my earliest memories of going to shows were at the Heinz Hall. I'd get on the bus; go downtown to see The Nutcracker or The Phantom of the Opera. I remember being seven or eight and walking into this beautiful building, and I was just being blown away."

But it was a while before he returned to that early love, even though Saxon said it was never far away. Childhood gave way to high school.

"I was a huge Steelers fan," he said. "I played baseball, football, basketball, growing up. Even in high school, I was always involved in front of the house ticket sales. I'd still be in the high school baseball uniform; selling tickets to the spring musical after practice."

College slipped by in Grove City, Penn., and immediately following that, a dreary retail job for a chain of discount department stores called Ames, that went bankrupt in 2002. Saxon's job was to close down some of its failing outlets in Buffalo.

"It was so depressing," he said. "To do that everyday just didn't suit my personality. I really wanted to get out of retail, and I had friends who said a box office theatre downtown needed a manager with some retail experience."

Soon, Saxon was the general manager at Shea's Performing Arts Center in Buffalo. He spent the next 12 years there.

"Performances were canceled in Buffalo due to snow about once a year," he said.

The only snow Saxon will experience this winter will be during performances of White Christmas, which will open at the Barbara B. Mann on Jan, 1.

"I won't have to shovel it, so it's a beautiful thing," he said.

After the 2004-05 theatre season in Buffalo, Saxon was looking towards the future; he had already successfully seen through a $15 million stage expansion project there, which brought in the big Broadway tours (the kind he likes best), such as The Lion King, Miss Saigon, and Radio City Christmas Spectacular.

"We had this huge season," he said. "… and after 10 or 11 years, I'd been thinking it was kind of time to move on…"

He moved to Albany, N.Y., after that big season, as executive director of The Palace Theatre, which was, similarly, a movie house converted into a theatre; but its small space prevented the arrival of the big Broadway shows.

"I enjoyed my time there, but I missed Broadway, "Saxon said. "I think it's such a great blend - dancing, music, singing, and the majority of the time a story line. And it's such an American form."

In September 2006, Saxon got a call from the president of Professional Facilities Management in Providence, R.I. (the Barbara B. Mann was their first client, in 1991).

"He asked me how I felt about Florida," Saxon said. "I said 'Florida?…I like Florida.' I went to Providence to talk to him about it, and by the end of the weekend I was coming to Fort Myers…We've really enjoyed our time here. It's an interesting community. I like it."

One of the first shows Saxon brought to the Mann was The Lion King.

"It's the biggest, most popular, and in my estimation the most creative show out there," he said. "It's sort of the gold standard of Broadway shows…"

More than anything else, Saxon said he hopes people feel comfortable coming out to a show, and wants them to know how welcome they are, how much fun all this can be.

"I really believe that once we get you in here once, you'll be hooked," he said. "…And wear whatever makes you feel comfortable to the show. I've seen people come in in shorts and flip-flops, suits, tuxedos. Of course, there are…you know…limits. Personally, when I go to a show, in New York or here, it's business casual. That's what I feel most comfortable in, probably because that's how I dress most of the time."

For more information on specific shows and when you can experience them live, check out Florida Weekly's guide "What to do, Where to go," in the Arts and Entertainment section. Or visit www.bbmannpah.com; this also includes Saxon's blog, new everyday.

"I just try to give my thoughts on the entertainment business," he said. "Kind of an insider perspective."