Lauren has been with DoItBig since the beginning. First as an actress until her graduation in 2010, and then upon her graduation from PB Cosmetology, she became our Wig, hair, and Make-Up Artist. In recent years she has taken up as director for our Junior productions as well as choreographer and assistant director for our Senior productions.

Her credits include: “Beauty and the Beast” (Hair/Make-up), “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers” (Hair/Make-Up), “Les Miserables” (Hair/Make-up), “Shrek: The Musical” (Wigs and Make-Up), “Schoolhouse Rock Live! Jr.” (Director/Choreo.), “42nd Street” (Wigs/Make-up), “Annie Jr.” (Director/Choreographer/Wigs), Oliver! (Asst. Dir./Choreo.) “Matilda” (Asst. Dir./Choreo./Hair), “The Wizard of Oz” (Asst. Choreo./Makeup/Hair), and will direct 2024’s upcoming production of Annie Jr!

Outside of DIB Lauren also worked with Two River Theatre for their world premiere production of “Pamela’s First Musical” wigging numerous Broadway stars.

Leslie McManus is a graduate of Stephen F. Austin State University where she studied Theatre Management. Leslie founded DoItBig Productions (formerly under the name LEARN Productions) as a homeschool program in 2000 initially performing straight plays. She began directing musicals when DoItBig took it’s new name.

With DIB she has directed “Dirty Work at the Crossroads”, “Anne of Green Gables”, “One Foot in Heaven”, “The Homecoming”, “The Hobbit”, “Nicholas Nickleby”, “Pride and Prejudice”, “The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe”, “Yours, Mine, and Ours”, “The Wizard of Oz”, “The Sound of Music”, “Beauty and the Beast”, “Seven Brides for Seven Brothers”, “Les Miserables”, “Shrek: The Musical”, “42nd Street”, “Godspell”, “Oliver!”, “Matilda”, “The Sound of Music” (again!), “Beauty and The Beast” (again!), The Wizard of Oz (again!), and 2024’s upcoming production of “Into The Woods”

Outside of DoItBig she was solicited by the Milburn Stone Theatre to direct their productions of “The Wizard of Oz” and “Beauty and the Beast” which became their highest yielding and attended productions in the theatres history. She also worked as director for “Shrek: The Musical” for Acting Naturally in Langhorne, PA. Since 2017 Leslie has been acting instructor at Trinity Preparatory School and with the Muslim Homeschool Association of Cherry Hill. Leslie is credited with inspiring hundreds of her students to follow their performing dreams and touching the lives of all who’ve worked with her.

As Leslie McManus’s son, Wyatt grew up alongside DIB performing in his first show at 5 years of age. Because of DoItBig, at the age of 13 he realized that he would like to take on theatre as his profession and began studying hard and appearing in local productions. Upon his high school graduation he enrolled at The Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre in New York City where he graduated in 2019. He has since appeared Off-Broadway in The New York City Opera’s The New York Times reviewed world premiere of “Dear Erich” as well as in numerous regional productions.

His production team credits with DoItBig include: “Shrek: The Musical” (Choreographer), “42nd Street” (Choreo.), “Godspell” (Choreo.), “Carpe Diem” (Writer, Director, Choreo,), “It’s About Time” (Writer, Director, Choreo.), “The Sound of Music” (Asst. Director, Choreo.), “Making It” (Writer, Director, Choreo.), “Beauty and The Beast” (Asst. Director, Choreo.), “Little Women” (Director, Choreographer), The Wizard of Oz (Co-Director, Choreo.), The Addams Family (Director/Choreo.)