WHO ARE THE LOBBYISTS?
The Lobbyists are a band and theater collective building a home for actor-musicians, creating groundbreaking works of music theater that deepen our connection to history and the present.
For us, a home means:
• A place of belonging
• A place where individuals are celebrated
• A place that invites and inspires creation, innovation, and community
• A place that values fun and care for humans and families
For us, groundbreaking means:
• Thought-provoking and intellectually stimulating
• Emotionally resonant
• Formally imaginative and innovative
• Collaboratively built
This is an ongoing statement and we are still working to make it specific to us. We invite you to continue on this journey with us!
The Lobbyists formed in 2012, and take their name from the lobby of the old Flea Theater, where the group first started playing and writing music together. As a lobby is a place of welcome and transition, so The Lobbyists seek to collapse boundaries through story and song.
Drawing on folk, roots, and a host of other influences, the band has been noted for their lush harmonies, “marvelous” songwriting (The New York Times), and “impressive musicianship” (Entertainment Weekly). The New Yorker calls their music “terrific,” and The Village Voice lauds them as “undeniably talented.”
The Lobbyists’ music for SeaWife, a haunted tale of the American whaling trade created with playwright Seth Moore and director Liz Carlson, was nominated for a 2016 Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Music in a Musical. The band was a 2021 finalist for the Jonathan Larson Award.
The Lobbyists have played some of New York’s favorite concert venues, including Little Island, Joe’s Pub, Rockwood Music Hall, 54 Below, Pete’s Candy Store, Ars Nova, Mercury Lounge, and more. Their music has been workshopped and developed with NY Stage & Film, Cape Cod Theater Project, Ars Nova, and Rhinebeck Writers’ Retreat. Their debut full-length album, Songs from SeaWife, was released January 9th, 2017 and is available widely online.
The Lobbyists keep a collaborative ethos at the heart of their mission, cultivating a growing circle of playwrights, actors, musicians, directors, and designers.
The collective currently has several projects in development, including The Golden Spike, Miss Mitchell (EST/Sloan commission), The Westside Cowboys of Death Avenue, and Around the Campfire with The Lobbyists, an immersive audio play experience. Click here to learn more about these new projects.
The current core members of The Lobbyists are Tommy Crawford, Laura Dadap, Eloise Eonnet, and Alex Grubbs. The Lobbyists collective was founded by Tommy Crawford, Eloise Eonnet, Alex Grubbs, Will Turner, Tony Aidan Vo, and Douglas Waterbury-Tieman.
We hope to see you around soon! Want to join our lobby? Drop us a line! We’d love to hear from you.