Richard Lewis retiring from leading Broadway Sacramento, Music Circus for decades
SACRAMENTO – It's a lifetime celebration for the man who's brought so much music to Sacramento.
"I'm a little speechless," Richard Lewis said.
Lewis is retiring from leading Broadway Sacramento and the Music Circus, which for 70 years has brought song and dance to the Downtown Sacramento stage.
He's spent nearly his entire life working there.
"Richard started out just handing out programs and being an usher and selling popcorn," said Dennis Mangers, a performing arts supporter.
More than a thousand people came out for his final curtain call.
"He decided to invest his life, his work, his creativity in Sacramento," said Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg.
Many young singers and dancers got their start on his stage.
"You kind of watch their career as they move along, and now they're on Broadway," Lewis said. "And then they come back to Sacramento, which is just very heartwarming and wonderful."
Among those in attendance, some Broadway stars who grew up going to Music Circus shows and then went on to perform in New York and national tours.
"His legacy is in these children that get to come and see the shows and then say, 'Maybe I can do that when I grow up.' And I'm one of those kids," said James Snyder, a Broadway performer.
Scott Klier is now the new Music Circus CEO. He plans on continuing that commitment that Lewis brought to performing arts.
"All the folks on Broadway, the Broadway leaders all know Richard. They're all sorry to see him go and so I have big shoes to fill," Klier said.
Richard may now be retired, but before leaving he's already helped lay out performances that will take place all the way into the 2026 season.