We are so happy with all of the amazing actors, directors and music directors who have signed on to join the Festival this year! The Festival employs over 100 artists every year and it takes considerable manhours to find the right actors, directors and music directors for each piece.
We have some of our regulars back (Chris Hoch, Kenita Miller, Marie-France Arcilla), we reunite faces we have not seen at the Festival in a few years (Robin de Jesus, Sarah Stiles, Kate Rockwell) and we welcome new faces to our Festival (Annette O’Toole, Bryce Ryness, Demond Green). I am always humbled by all of the talented artists who decide to come work with us for two weeks to help give these eight new musicals the best reading possible! You can read about our initial casting announcement on playbill.com.
Additionally, we announced last week our line-up for the Songwriters Showcase and our hosts, Nancy Opel and Joe DiPietro. Joe and Nancy have known each other for years and I know that they will be great hosts for the audience and writers, alike. This year, the Showcase is filled with shows that have been developed by NAMT member theatres. Many of the shows have been developed by multiple NAMT members which shows the strength of our membership to help push shows forward, together. It will be a wonderful display of the great work being done around the country to further the field. You can read the full line-up and history of this year’s showcase shows at Broadwayworld.com.
But this is just the tip of the iceberg. We still have about 2 dozen roles to cast and announce, plus the line-up of singers for the Showcase. The Festival promises to be another stellar two days of musical theatre heaven, and it would not be possible without all of our extraordinary artists!