The curtain rises. The stage comes to life. The crowd falls silent.
Among the audience members sits Michael Seiden ’63 ’64, taking in the performance with the same joy and attention that have drawn him to the theater for decades.
“Live theater is unlike anything else,” Seiden says. “It can really get you. It's raw, and it’s real. It’s meaningful without being overbearing, and it offers a new perspective.”
Engineering Creativity
A lifelong champion of the arts, Seiden doesn’t see engineering and creativity as mutually exclusive. He arrived at Lehigh at just 16 years old and explored several academic paths before finding his footing. Along the way, he spent time studying writing and mathematics before ultimately earning both a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science in industrial engineering.
For 24 years, Seiden built a successful career in industrial engineering and business logistics with Johns Manville in Denver, Colorado. After he and his wife, Enid, settled in the area, they subscribed to the inaugural season of the Denver Theatre Company.
He also enjoyed teaching and helped develop the University of Phoenix for the Apollo Group, which later asked him to move to Arizona to become president of Western International University. Throughout his professional life, his appreciation for the arts never faded.
That passion deepened when he moved to Phoenix and joined the board of the Arizona Theatre Company. Through that role, he developed relationships with actors, directors, and playwrights, including Matthew Spangler, a playwright and professor at San José State University.
The close friendship eventually led to their first major collaboration.
From Page to Stage
Spangler, Seiden, and actor Ben Evett decided to adapt Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem The Rime of the Ancient Mariner — the story of a harrowing sea voyage — into a stage production.
The result was Albatross.
Seiden became deeply involved in the project, contributing to everything from story development to marketing, set design, and production alongside Spangler and Evett.
Albatross went on to win the 2015 Elliot Norton Award for Outstanding Production by a Small Theatre, while Evett earned the Outstanding Actor Award from the Boston Theater Critics Association. The show was later produced Off-Broadway and featured at several theater festivals.
“I never made a penny off that play, but I didn’t care,” Seiden says. “I get a lot of pride and enjoyment out of it.”
The Producer’s Chair
The success of Albatross opened doors. A New York producer approached Seiden about investing in the Broadway production of The Kite Runner, written by Spangler. He became a co-producer and soon found himself presented with yet another opportunity.
This one took him across the Atlantic.
While in London, Seiden attended a performance of Operation Mincemeat, a musical that had developed a devoted following. Based on the true story of the British deception operation that helped disguise the Allied invasion of Sicily during World War II, the show blends history, comedy, and music in a way that captivated audiences — and Seiden.
Soon, he decided to invest in the show as a co-producer.
“The music is catchy and the comedy is wonderful,” he says. “It puts people in a good mood. It’s light and bouncy, but it tells a real story at the same time.”
Seiden never stops looking for the next great story. He’s planning to invest in an upcoming musical that’s under development, Loch Ness, that will include puppetry and acrobatics.
Above all, Seiden continues to advocate for the arts and the uniquely human experiences they create.
“The arts teach us lessons that AI can’t recreate,” he says. “They encourage us to look into our souls, to understand what’s in our minds, and to feel for others as well as ourselves. I’m happy to play a role in that.”
