Schumacher studied theatre at UCLA. In 1987 he was associate director of the Los Angeles Festival of Arts, presenting the American premiere of Cirque du Soleil and the English-language premiere of Peter Brook’s The Mahabharata. Previously, he spent five years on staff at the Mark Taper Forum, served as a line producer on the 1984 Olympic Arts Festival, and served as assistant general manager of the Los Angeles Ballet. He then joined the Disney company in 1988, producing the animated film, The Rescuers Down Under, which was released in 1990. With The Lion King under consideration for the next Broadway adaptation, Eisner ceded Disney Theatrical Productions to theatre-rooted Disney Animation president Peter Schneider and Schumacher, at their request, making them president and executive vice president of DTP respectively. Schneider was promoted to Disney Studios president in January 1999, while Thomas Schumacher was promoted to president of Walt Disney Feature Animation and Walt Disney Theatrical Productions, while both are made co-presidents of Disney Theatrical. which was renamed to Buena Vista Theatrical Group Limited with two divisions, Disney Theatricals and Hyperion Theatricals, head by the duo. With Schneider leaving in June 2001 to form his own theater production company partly funded by Disney, Schumacher became only president of Buena Vista Theatrical Group and head of its divisions. After producing dozens of films, Schumacher left Walt Disney Feature Animation in 2002, replaced by David Stainton. He transitioned to solely focus on the growing theatrical business as its head. He is a member of the Board of Trustees for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, the TonyAdministration Committee and the Advisory Committee of the American Theatre Wing. He is a mentor for the TDF Open Doors program and serves as an adjunct professor at Columbia University. In November 2012, Schumacher married his longtime partner, interior designer Matthew White. On February 21, 2018, the Wall Street Journal reported that Schumacher was the subject of an internal investigation at Disney into inappropriate behavior, with eyewitness accounts detailing aggressive sexual language and intimidation.
Theatrical productions
Schumacher has worked with The Walt Disney Company since 1988 and currently serves as President of Disney Theatrical Group.
Publication
Schumacher is the author of the book How Does the Show Go On? An Introduction to the Theater.
