Kevin Kopjak stands at the PR epicenter for Bay Area theater
Kevin Kopjak was still in grade school when he first fell head-over-heels for theater.
“I fell in love with theater back in fourth grade, when my class studied ‘Les Misérables,’” says the South San Francisco resident. “Even though I had no comprehension of what I was listening to, I was instantly captivated. It was at that moment I was bitten by the theater bug.”
Kopjak no longer stages one-man productions for his “patient parents in their living room,” but he’s still madly in love with theater. These days, he helps some of the Bay Area’s top theaters — Broadway San Jose, Berkeley Rep, ACT, Center Rep and Broadway SF among them — spread the word about their latest productions via Prismatic Communications. He founded the theater-centric PR firm in 2021, after spending decades under the wing of legendary Bay Area publicist Charles Zukow.
Q: What drew you to the theater world as a profession?
A: There is something about the liveliness of theater that has always been exciting to me. I love that every performance is a living, breathing experience shared between actors and an audience. There is a rush and unparalleled thrill to live theater that I knew I had to be a part of in some form.
Q: Were you a theater major in college?
A: I began college — at San Jose State — as a theater major, aiming to become a professional stage actor. (But) I began to doubt my talents and abilities as an actor, which made me realize that being on stage might not be the right path for me. I still wanted a career that tapped into my creativity, and that’s when I found my passion for marketing. There are tons of theater jobs that don’t involve being on stage — box office managers, stage crew, designers and dramaturgs to name a few.
Q: How did you get your first break in the biz?
A: After graduating college, I serendipitously stumbled upon Charles Zukow Associates, a boutique PR agency that specialized in arts and entertainment. Although they weren’t hiring when I first reached out, I persisted until Charly eventually brought me on board. I stayed with the agency for 18 years under Charly’s mentorship until his retirement in 2021.
Q: What did you learn from that experience?
A: Everything I know about public relations stems from those formative years working alongside Charly. I am forever indebted to him for teaching me the importance of building and maintaining authentic relationships, for understanding the nuances of storytelling and for always maintaining integrity in how you represent clients and their work.
Q: What prompted the decision to start your own company?
A: When Charly retired during the pandemic, I was faced with a choice: find another job or take a leap and start my own agency. I’ll never forget a conversation I had with a friend, who pointed out that if I didn’t open an agency, someone else would step in and take the clients I had spent years building relationships with. So on April 1, 2021, Prismatic Communications was born.
Q: What was that start-up process like?
A: I expected to have a ramp-up period to get my bearings and learn the ropes of running a company, but that wasn’t the case. In addition to retaining some clients from my time at Charles Zukow Associates, I began receiving several new business inquiries each week. It quickly reached a point where I had to turn down opportunities, because I couldn’t keep up.
Q: Marketing theater during a pandemic must have been challenging…
A: Marketing theater during COVID was difficult, but exciting. Most of the challenges stemmed from the shutdown of live performances and the uncertainty surrounding the future of the arts. With theaters closed, many of the companies I worked with had to quickly pivot to keep audiences engaged. This included producing live virtual plays, presenting online screenings of previously recorded productions, hosting in-depth conversations with prominent industry icons, staging filmed play readings and more. If there’s one thing about the arts community, we are a resourceful bunch.
Q: And afterward?
A: Theaters and music venues were among the first to close and the last to reopen, so when it was finally time to welcome audiences back, the demand for live entertainment was palpable. I had the privilege of attending the first performances for many of my clients, and I’ll never forget the overwhelming reactions from the audiences — it was pure joy and relief to experience live performances again. Those were some of the most exciting standing ovations I’ve ever experienced.
Q: Have things normalized by now? What’s the environment for theater in 2024?
A: The pandemic was devastating to the theater community. While the appetite for live theater has returned and audiences are eager to reconnect with in-person performance, the recovery has been uneven and theaters are still adapting to the changed landscape. I encourage everyone to continue supporting your favorite theater or exploring a new one in your community.
Q: What challenges face live theater as we move forward?
A: Theaters continue to face numerous challenges in a post-COVID world, from audience hesitancy to shifting consumer habits. These shifts require increased effort and strategy to inspire audience engagement and boost attendance. Audiences have grown used to the convenience and affordability of a wide range of at-home entertainment options, making it more difficult to draw them back to live theater.
Q: The number of major organizations that you work with is, to put it mildly, impressive. It seems unprecedented, actually, for one PR person to handle this much theater in one metropolitan area. How do you keep all those ducks in a row?
A: Organization is key. For each show I work on, I develop a PR campaign that kicks off nine weeks before performances begin. This includes writing and distributing the press release, crafting and sending pitches to the media, inviting press to attend performances and more. Every deadline is meticulously tracked in my trusted calendar to ensure nothing is missed.
Q: What are your five favorite plays or musicals?
A: “Les Misérables” will always be the holy grail of musical theater for me. The music, the drama — what more could you ask for?
“Rent” changed my life when it came out. I remember my father taking me to New York City to see it on Broadway. It was unlike anything I had ever seen before. I was obsessed with it.
“Sunset Boulevard” was another show my father took me to see on Broadway. I had the honor of seeing Betty Buckley in the role of Norma Desmond and will never forget her performance. I am honored to call Betty a dear friend now. Full circle moment for sure.
“Kiss of the Spider Woman” is so underrated. The story is haunting and the music is thrilling. It is a dream of mine to produce a Broadway revival of this.
“Hedwig and the Angry Inch” — Stephen Trask and John Cameron Mitchell’s masterpiece on identity and self-acceptance — came out at a pivotal time in my life.
Kevin Kopjak
Position: Founder, Prismatic Communications
Formerly worked at: Charles Zukow Associates
Residence: South San Francisco
Hobbies: Concerts, theater and travel
Five things about Kevin
1 He is adopted: “My birth mom found me at the age of 40! I’m lucky to have a mom and a bio-mom.”
2 He loves to travel: “Southeast Asia is my happy place! Hit me up for some recommendations.”
3 He went to high school with Tom Brady: “I was a freshman when he was a junior (at Junipero Serra High School), so we only had two years together. Go Padres!”
4 He is a southpaw: “I’m constantly living in a world where scissors and coffee mugs don’t appreciate my greatness.”
5 He loves to spoil his nephew, Devin, and niece, Cailey: “I like to think that I’m a cool uncle, so I constantly have to find new ways to impress them.”