Equipping the Future Stars of Broadway

Laura Osnes & Nathan Johnson bring Stagecraft to those Aspiring to be on Stage

I have long been a fan of Broadway actress Laura Osnes, primarily because of my own aspiring Broadway Baby - my twelve-year-old daughter. She is quite the fan, and no doubt Laura’s career and body of work speak for themselves. But you will find no stage diva in Laura Osnes. She emanates an innate and authentic “star” quality that you feel the moment you meet her. To hear her story and that of her husband, Nathan Johnson, you are transfixed by this “dreams come true” tale, with the “dreams shattered” moments thrown in as well. But these two people, individually and certainly as a couple, have no time to rest in any of the disappointing moments, and instead have created their lives rooted in a deep sense of purpose and paying it forward. They are doing that with a new online program called Stagecraft.

After fifteen years immersed in New York City’s theater industry, Laura and Nathan discovered a gap in the arts education landscape. Passionate young performers lacked access to practical, high-level training that truly prepares them for holistic success in the arts and entertainment.

Stagecraft closes that gap with a comprehensive, accessible online course platform designed for aspiring and working performers, arts educators, and parents seeking training they can trust. Laura and Nathan bring first-hand experience from Broadway stages, studio production, branding, and career strategy—and they’ve gathered a team of reliable, world-class coaches who’ve made their mark where excellence is the standard.

But before they could provide this exceptional product to the world, they, too, had to earn their way to this moment. Laura aspired to the stage from childhood and was lucky enough to have community and school theater opportunities surround her, where she grew up in Minnesota. Natural talent cannot be denied when combined with determination and hard work, and Laura was undoubtedly full of all and then some. She and Nathan met while both performing in a local play, and the rest is history. While Nathan honed his own acting skills and pursued his real passions in photography and production, Laura continued, after deciding to pursue her life’s dream while doing, rather than just studying it in college, and it wasn’t long before she found herself performing as Sandy in Grease at a Minnesota dinner theater. 

She tried out for and won her place on a national television contest to cast the next Sandy and Danny for a Broadway production of Grease. Episode after episode Laura was in the running until finally, she was the last “Sandy” standing. And off to New York she went. Nathan had his own career aspirations and made a career in the Big Apple alongside Laura, who worked on stage. In contrast, his work continued in a successful photography and production business offstage. 

PHOTOGRAPHY By JOAN MARCUS

They say a Tony award nomination is one in a million; well, Laura has two. She is best known for her roles in Grease, Cinderella, South Pacific, Anything Goes and Bonnie and Clyde. She has a nearly twenty-year history of stage productions as well as television acting in Hallmark and Great American Family movies, among others. Her career has been the stuff of which Broadway dreams are made. In 2021, with much of the theater business in New York on a COVID shutdown, both she and Nathan found themselves at a crossroads. By virtue of friends’ persuasion and Nathan’s side passion for researching on Zillow, they found themselves on their next adventure, right here in Middle Tennessee, Williamson County to be exact. 

With almost Hallmark-esque scripting, the duo left the big-city lights to immerse themselves in the bucolic existence here. And they soon realized, they were not the only transplants of talent to the already multi-talented landscape of Nashville and its suburbs. “I believe there is something wonderful about the influx of 'artistic refugees' congregating in middle Tennessee,” Laura says. “We find ourselves collaborating with colleagues from the top of every field right here in Williamson County, including Hollywood film producers, actors, and animators, musicians, orchestrators, artists, and photographers. There are fellow Broadway performers and commercial dancers - who all moved here because, like us, they love it here. We are so grateful to enjoy the quality of life that Tennessee offers, while also contributing to and investing in the growth of artistic excellence within this community.”

No doubt, Nathan and Laura will leave a lasting mark here in their new hometown and on the stage scene across the world with their latest endeavor—Stagecraft. “Rather than teach or coach future stage actors, I wanted to “equip” them with the tools and skills and most importantly, knowledge, I have gained throughout my own career, good and bad; to be able to have the confidence to go out and give it their all,” Laura explains about the premise behind Stagecraft. With Nathan to provide the production side of the equation, it seems as if this holistic and values driven online training program provides for not just a missing element in stage training overall, but a way for anyone, anywhere, to have access to learn from true stage performers and industry experts, even when their own circumstances and locations make that seemingly impossible. 

“I had the mission to help 'equip' a generation and the experience to be able to do it. Nate is the producer and brilliant business mind behind bringing the idea to life. I can handle a lot of the artistic side and the content-creation with our other coaches, while Nate has taken on the execution and technological aspect of it all,” Laura explains. “Nate adds: “We hired a couple of other friends along the way to help with design, but a year and a half after the initial idea, we have a product!”

In addition to Laura and Nathan’s expertise, the current panel of stage brilliance includes Andrew Byrne, Carrie Manolakos, Matthew Morrison, Alex Aguilar, and Julie Eicher Aguilar—all successful in their own right and trained in their respective facets of the triple threat of acting, singing, and dancing. 

With the motto "Providing Insider Wisdom: From Broadway to You," these mentors have forged their craft through thousands of performances, auditions, and behind-the-scenes moments with Broadway’s most esteemed directors, choreographers, and vocal coaches. With Stagecraft, you will go behind the scenes as Tony®-nominated powerhouses, award-winning teachers, and Broadway theater artists personally guide you through the exact techniques they’ve used to book lead roles, survive grueling eight-show weeks, and build sustainable careers that most performers only dream about. 

Through insider stories, practical exercises, and step-by-step guidance, they’ll help you build the complete performer’s toolkit: the vocal, acting, and movement skills it takes to become a true triple-threat. With Stagecraft you will find real-world training covering voice, acting, dance, audition technique, performance mindsets, and much more to come! You can utilize actionable tools to apply immediately and take with you for years to come. The program and its producers will provide a growing community focused on support, inspiration, growth, collaboration, and well-being.

In addition to Stagecraft, Laura and Nate are involved in numerous other creative projects, including documentaries on local charitable initiatives, more movies (enjoy Laura in the Great American Family Production of Little Women, filmed right here in Franklin), and really whatever inspires and motivates them to contribute. “We are most excited about projects that celebrate courage, hope, and the enduring values that have shaped our country. And in this ever-evolving world of AI, our goal is to remain committed to producing human-made stories,” concludes Laura. 

Stagecraft will certainly succeed there, as they breathe life into the idea that anyone can make it, and when you are very lucky, or talented, or determined, or all of the above—you too can find yourself standing mid-stage, under the spotlight! Stagecraft says anything is possible, and, no doubt, from its creation, there will be many a star born!

A very special thank you to Nathan and Laura for inviting the YOUR Williamson team and Miss Keeling Birdsong into their home for this story. We look forward to having them make their mark on our special community for many years to come.

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For more information on Stagecraft, go to mystagecraft.com.