about

The Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge, presented by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) in partnership with the National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT), is an opportunity for high school students all across the country to develop and showcase musical compositions that could be part of a musical theater production. Submissions will be judged by a panel of leaders in the musical theater field — including NAMT members and festival of New Musicals Alumni Writers, among others — who will select the Challenge’s winning writers/writing teams. Those writers will be invited to New York City in June 2024 to work with mentors, culminating in a concert of their songs.


LEarn More:

Visit the NEA’s website to learn more about the program and hear submissions from previous finalists!

Eligibility & Guidelines

Songwriting Challenge Where You Live

Submit to the Songwriting Challenge for High School Students

Songwriting Challenge Kit

 


Join us:

Attend these informational and educational events to learn more about Songwriting Challenge, and get first-hand tips and tricks from experts. 

October 6th — Songwriting 101: Words & Lyrics

October 13th — Submission Clinic: Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge for High School Students

November 3rd — Songwriting 201: The Music

 


Stay Informed:

Sign up here to receive email updates about the Songwriting Challenge (and other NAMT news, too!)

 


Submit Now!

Are you ready to get started? NAMT uses Submittable for all submission management. You’ll have to create an account with an email address. It doesn’t happen often, but visit namt.org/submissionhelp at any time if you are having technical difficulties to contact a Submittable representative and open a ticket. Bookmark namt.org/submittable to come back to your submission quickly. 

Submit Now

This page was last updated on 09/08/2023