The NAMT staff had heard of the legendary Broadway baby Twan Baker, of course, but until last week’s in-depth New York Times profile of him, we didn’t realize he had such deep NAMT roots! From the Times:
BroadwayWorld.com has shared video of the world premiere production of 2011 Festival show Bernice Bobs Her Hair at NAMT member Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma.
Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma continues its new works initiative this fall with BERNICE BOBS HER HAIR, a world premiere musical that will take its first bows at Lyric’s Plaza Theatre. The show, written by the lauded pair of Adam Gwon and Julia Jordan, runs October 7 through 25. Based on the F. Scott Fitzgerald short story of the same name, the show tells the story of 18 year old Bernice Harvey’s journey from socially awkward to the belle of the country club- and back again.
Read the whole article at BroadwayWorld.com.
54 Below‘s Jennifer Ashley Tepper announced in an interview with Playbill.com that “Broadway’s Living Room” will be launching a new series next year called New Musicals at 54: A Showcase of Our Own. “The idea is to present ten new musicals that haven’t been produced in New York, yet that are things you might have seen an out-of-town tryout of or a workshop of,” said Tepper. No word yet on what shows will be featured, but the initial list of writers announced includes several Festival alumni: Kirsten Childs (The Bubbly Black Girl Sheds her Chameleon Skin, Festival 1998), Adam Gwon (Ordinary Days, Festival 2008), Joe Iconis (Bloodsong of Love, Festival 2011), and Georgia Stitt (Big Red Sun, Festival 2010).
We can’t wait to see what Jen and our talented alumni have to show us!
Watch video from our own shows at 54 Below in our concerts archive.
This month, we check in with Adam Gwon and Julia Jordan as they prepare their 2011 Festival Show Bernice Bobs Her Hair for its premiere production at Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma this Fall.
In this new delightful dancing musical, small town socially awkward Bernice visits her popular cousin in the big city and finds herself making changes to fit in with her cousin and the popular crowd. Testing the limits of society, free-spirited Bernice bobs her hair, becoming a social revolutionary in the roaring 20’s.
It has been four years since we presented Bernice Bobs Her Hair in the Festival, but do you remember what the reception for the show was like at the Festival?
We remember a great reception, and how much Kate Wetherhead made everyone laugh! We got several offers immediately after the festival, and for a variety of reasons we can’t even remember, none of them worked out at the time. A lot of colleges were interested, but we felt strongly that we wanted to solidify the show with a professional production before releasing it out into the world. So we waited patiently for the right opportunity to come along.
Both of you have been quite busy with other projects over the past few years. What work have you done on Bernice?
When we found out that Lyric Theatre would be doing the premiere, it’d been awhile since we’d revisited the script, and at almost the exact same moment, we got an email from Bruce Goodrich at CSU Fullerton, who’d seen the show at NAMT and was checking in to see if Bernice had become available. It was perfect timing, so we did a reading with them and identified all the rewrites we wanted to do before going into rehearsal for the production. We also have a new 11 o’clock number for Bernice, which we wrote in two airport hotel bars after getting stuck on our way home from auditions in Oklahoma City!
In a “Critic’s Notebook” article in The New York Times, Setting New Standards: American Songbook Series Reshapes the Canon, Stephen Holden and other Times critics and editors suggest “songs that could further expand the notion of the songbook.” Their picks included several Festival of New Musicals alumni!
Last month, we caught up with alumnus Joe Iconis as he prepared his 2011 Festival show, Bloodsong of Love, for a new immersive presentation at 54 Below on October 20.
A wild musical theater interpretation of the Spaghetti Western film genre. It follows the story of a wandering guitarist, known only as The Musician, on a journey to reclaim his bride from the evil clutches of Lo Cocodrilo. Raucous, heartfelt and hilarious, Bloodsong is a raging battle cry for those who believe in art and love and sticking together.
One of my favorite parts of my job is getting the chance to visit our members around the country. There is no better way to take the pulse of the industry and help discover new ways for us to serve our members than to meet them on their home turf, see their shows and meet their staffs. Summer is the busiest travel time for the NAMT staff because it is when the number of shows skyrocket in our member theatres. My summer was filled with 10 productions (7 of them premieres), 2 workshops and 6 readings from New York to California, from Vermont to Tennessee. We a few Festival shows and National Fund for New Musicals (NFNM) grant recipients along the way.
Here is the quick rundown (NAMT member theatres and Festival shows are bolded blue):
MAY
Los Angeles, CA- World premiere of Los Otros at Center Theatre Group
San Diego, CA- World premiere of Nobody Loves You (NAMT Fest ’12, past NFNM Project Development Grant) and Scottsboro Boys at The Old Globe, world premiere of Hands on a Hardbody at La Jolla Playhouse, and the chance to sit in on a rehearsal for Harmony, Kansas (NFNM Production Grant, past Writers Residency Grant) at Diversionary Theatre.
New York, NY- World premiere of February House (past NFNM Project Development Grant) at The Public Theater, reading of Suprema (NFNM Writers Residency Grant) at Ars Nova and Speargrove Presents (NFNM Writers Residency Grant) at New York Theatre Barn
JUNE
Connecticut- Readings of When We Met and String at The O’Neill Theatre Center, production of Mame at Goodspeed Musicals
JULY
New York, NY- Production of Triassic Parq (by Festival alumnus Marshall Pailet) produced by Amas Musical Theatre and New Musical Development Foundation at SoHo Rep
East Haddam, CT- Final dress of Carousel at Goodspeed Musicals
Poughkeepsie, NY- Workshop of Murder Ballad (by Fest alumna Julia Jordan) at Vassar Powerhouse
AUGUST
Rhinebeck, NY- Reception for Beatsville (NAMT Fest ’08) at Rhinebeck Writers Retreat
Palo Alto, CA- TheatreWorks Festival of New Works with readings of Being Earnest and Triangle (NAMT Fest ’12) and a developmental production of The Trouble With Doug (NAMT Fest ’10)
SEPTEMBER
New York, NY- Reading of notes to MariAnne (NAMT Fest ’11) at New York Theatre Workshop
Weston, VT- World premiere of Pregnancy Pact (NAMT Fest ’11) at Weston Playhouse Theatre Co.
Crossville, TN- Regional premiere of Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge (NAMT Fest ’11) at Cumberland County Playhouse
New York, NY- Broadway Bound concert at Merkin Hall featuring songs from Watt?!? and The Dogs of Pripyat, both from the 2011 Festival
And I am pretty sure I am missing a few.
I got a lot more out of these trips than a wallet full of receipts and slight confusion as to my time zone. I was fortified in my belief that our members and alumni are creating, producing and exploring the best musical theatre in the country. They are continually engaging, challenging and building audiences through their great work. They are not resting on their laurels but pushing forward.
It is very hard to find a show today that does not have the NAMT stamp somewhere on it…and that makes me very proud to be just a small part of any show that adds to the crazy tapestry of musicals across the country. The great work continues all over the country, and I’m the lucky one who gets to take in at least a fraction of it.
Branden Huldeen
New Works Director
An interview with John Fionte, New Works Director at Cumberland County Playhouse, about their upcoming production of 2011 Festival show Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge, by Peter Mills and Cara Reichel, playing Aug. 23-Oct. 26.
A pitch-dark comedy with the kick of moonshine, Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge transplants J.M. Synge’s classic The Playboy of the Western World to 1930s Appalachia. Bluegrass music and backwoods mayhem abound in this coming-of-age story about a slapdash murder, a whirlwind romance and a most unlikely hero.
What drew Cumberland County Playhouse to Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge?
Producing Director Jim Crabtree first became aware of Golden Boy in 2009 through the authors’ agent, and he asked me to pay particular attention to it when the show was presented in the 2011 Festival. We both felt that Golden Boy‘s rural Appalachian setting, combined with its bluegrass score, made the show something worth investigating.
Why is it a great show for your audience?
The Cumberland Plateau is a part of rural Appalachia. This region is fiercely proud of its rich musical heritage…and of the Scots-Irish roots of its culture. Peter Mills’ compelling score celebrates both the contemporary bluegrass musical idiom, along with that music’s deep Celtic roots. Additionally, our audience loves shows with onstage musicians, as is evidenced by the perennial popularity of Smoke on the Mountain, which is in its 19th consecutive year here at the Playhouse. Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge has all of that, and it’s fresh, new and exciting. I hope it appeals to Smokefans and beyond.
Are there any special approaches you are taking to the show?
Just as Pete and Cara wrote a play that’s an intricate blend of the traditional and the contemporary, I’ve tried to give equal weight to both of those things in terms of the production. The choreography, staging, design aesthetic… all those choices are firmly grounded in Synge’s Playboy of the Western World, but filtered through a contemporary eye. I’ve also been careful to always consider Golden Boy‘s Irish roots. While it’s not particularly present in Playboy, Synge was part of an Irish literary tradition that was steeped in a sense of enchantment, of magical realism. I’ve tried to bring a sense of that to Golden Boy.
What are you most excited about when Golden Boyfinally hits your stage?
I’m eagerly anticipating that first audience reaction. Golden Boy is so full of things that our rural Tennessee audiences love; but it’s also full of surprises, of fresh new sights and sounds. I think it will be an electric experience.
Why should people check out the Playhouse and Golden Boy?
Cumberland County Playhouse is truly a gem that’s nestled in a rural part of the country, so it remains undiscovered to some people. It’s always a joy to hear first-time patrons express their surprise and delight to find such professionalism and exceptional production values in a small town. I hope that audiences will experience the same sense of excitement and delight when they experience Golden Boy of the Blue Ridge for the first time. It’s really a remarkable musica,l and it deserves to be discovered by a much wider audience.
For more information, please visit www.ccplayhouse.com.
An interview with Michael Kooman and Christopher Dimond, writers of the Festival ’11 show Dani Girl, about their show, life since the Festival and other projects they are working on.
Dani Girl is the inspiring and humorous story of a young girl’s battle with a life-threatening disease. Far from sitting back and accepting her condition, Dani transforms her struggle into a fantastical adventure. Together with her teddy bear, imaginary guardian angel and movie-obsessed hospital roommate, she battles a personified Cancer across the realms of fantasy and reality as she attempts to get her beloved hair back. Told from a child’s perspective, this provocative musical explores the universal themes of life in the face of death, hope in the face of despair and the indomitable power of imagination.
What was the response to your presentation at the Festival?
We got a terrific response. The feedback we received was incredibly encouraging and it’s generated some great opportunities for the piece, including the chance to participate in the festival at The Human Race Theatre Co. (Aug. 3-5), which we’re thrilled about. Additionally, the Festival has generated several opportunities for us beyond Dani Girl, which have allowed us to begin to develop several new projects. We’ve also made some terrific new contacts that we hope will lead to new opportunities in the future, which came about as a direct result of NAMT.
Did the Festival process make you go back and revise or refine anything in the show?
Absolutely. The process of preparing the piece for the presentation, trimming it down to 45 minutes, helped us to see some potential cuts to the script that we ended up implementing. We’ve also gone back and done some work on the very opening of the show, which we think helps to establish the tone of the piece much more clearly right from the get-go.
What are you hoping to work on while at Human Race?
In addition to seeing how the new changes we’ve made feel up on their feet, we’re looking forward to getting to watch the show in front of a regional American audience. The show has changed quite a bit since the last time we were able to do so, and we’re interested in seeing how people respond.
Why should people come out to Dayton and check out Dani Girl?
We feel that Dani Girlis a theatrical experience unlike any other. It’s a story that needs to be told and it’s told in a way that people don’t expect. If the show works the way we want it to, we think that it has the potential to do most of the things that great theater should do. You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll think. You’ll experience the full gamut of human emotion and you’ll come out seeing the world in a different light.
What else is planned for Dani Girl?
We’re working on setting up a number of small regional productions at the moment, as well as a few international ones. Additionally, we’re in the midst of discussions for a potential New York opportunity. Hopefully we’ll be able to say more soon.
Other than Dani Girl, you had residencies at Goodspeed Musicals and at The 5th Avenue Theatre with more coming up at at Trinity Rep and Rhinebeck Writers Retreat. What are you working on at these residencies and how have the experiences been?
We’ve been working on a new, original musical called The Noteworthy Life of Howard Barnes, which tells the story of a man who wakes up to discover that his life has become a musical. Not being the type of man who would see this change as a good thing, he embarks on a journey to escape the world of the musical and get his normal life back.
This project has been a blast to work on. It’s been great to work on something that’s a bit more commercial and more focused on comedy than some of our other work. At the same time, the premise allows us to have fun with a lot of the conventions of musical theater, while simultaneously digging into the heart of what musicals are all about.
The experiences that we’ve had thus far have been terrific. We felt unbelievably supported at Goodspeed and The 5th Avenue. In both cases, we received some incredibly encouraging responses as well as some terrific feedback that has shaped the direction we’re heading in. We’re really looking forward to continuing to develop it at Trinity and Rhinebeck this summer, as well as continuing to develop a couple of other projects that we have in various stages of development.
For more information about Dani Girl, please visit www.koomandimond.com
An interview with Gordon Leary and Julia Meinwald, the writers of Festival 2011 show Pregnancy Pact, as they prepare for the show’s world premiere this August at the Weston Playhouse Theatre Co. in Weston, VT.
Pregnancy Pact is a pop-rock musical about a group of teens who make a pact to become single mothers together. 15-year-old Maddie is devoted to her three best friends and they are to her. So when Brynn gets pregnant, the friends all plan to have children, raising them together in a dream of a perfect life. Their pact grows as other girls find out and want in. The bubble finally bursts when their secret is revealed, leaving each of the girls to face the hard realities of love, responsibility and growing up
The show was fairly young when it came to the Festival. What was it like to put it up in front of the membership and industry at such an early stage?
Having only had one staged reading of the show before the Festival, it was thrilling to be able to share our work with such a large and enthusiastic audience. Beyond the thrill, the process of preparing for the Festival was immensely helpful. Since we chose to present an abridged version of the full piece, we were tasked with condensing the show down to its most important elements. It gave us a very clear idea of what story we are telling, which has helped us greatly as we continue to refine and reshape the piece.
What was the response to the show like after the Festival?
We got a full spectrum of responses. Even though some NAMT members doubted that their audience would want to see a show with language like ours dealing with issues of teenage sexuality and pregnancy, everyone we talked to was excited by the show’s energy.
What has it been like leaving the Festival knowing that in less than a year you would have a world premiere?
We feel very lucky to get to continue working with Weston Playhouse [after previously winning the Weston’s New Musical Theatre Award]. Their phenomenally supportive community has embraced the Playhouse’s interest in new work, giving us the opportunity to jump right in to seeing the show come to life fully. Given the challenging subject matter of Pregnancy Pact, we are happy to have a production in place to show the rest of the NAMT membership that it can be done!
What has changed to the show since the Festival?
We were lucky enough to participate in CAP21’s Writers Co-Op in January. Over those two weeks we were able to tackle a number of rewrites, including a number of streamlined scenes, a few new bridges for existing songs and an altogether new song to replace an existing one towards the end of the first act. We’ve also decided to have one actor play all of the male roles, so now we’ll only be working with seven actors.
What excites you about going up to VT this summer?
Since the show is still relatively young, we have yet to see it on its feet. We can’t wait to work with our production team to see the visual world of the show. The way the characters interact with technology and the way movement might be involved in the songs are especially exciting for us, as these are things we’ve largely had to imagine in readings.
How much do you expect the show to change between now and opening night?
We expect to do a fair amount of rewriting as the show gets staged. We feel that the structure of the piece is sound but look forward to working within that structure to realize a full production.
Why would YOU want to go see the show up at Weston this summer (if you hadn’t written it)?
The show tells a story we haven’t seen before about what it’s like to be a teenage girl in America today. Plus, we would travel any distance to hear these truly fierce beltresses on some new pop-rock musical theatre tunes!
For more information on Pregnancy Pact, head to www.westonplayhouse.org.
For the past 4 winters, I have spent a January weekend in Connecticut catching a show at The Spirit of Broadway Theater and attending Goodspeed Musicals’ Festival of New Artists. It is one of my favorite annual excursions to see great new musicals and catch up with members and writers.
I started out my trip with a visit to see The Spirit of Broadway‘s production of the new musical The Boy in the Bathroom by Michael Lluberes and Joe Mahoney. This beautiful and touching production was directed by Brett Bernardini. The three-person show tells the story of a young man who chooses to live locked in the bathroom of his mother’s house while he finishes his dissertation. It is a quirky story rendered wonderfully in this production. The show is running through February 5.
It was then off to Goodspeed‘s 7th Festival of New Artists
in partnership with The Hartt School and Boston Conservatory. This year there were 3 staged readings of new musicals, 2 cabarets and a sneak peek at one of the new musicals Goodspeed will present this season. The readings this year were:
Harmony, Kansas by Anna K. Jacobs and Bill Nelson (a past recipient of a NAMT Writers Residency Grant at Barrington Stage Co.)
Not Wanted on the Voyage by Neil Bartram and Brian Hill (the writers of NAMT Fest ’07 show- The Story of My Life)
The Dogs of Pripyat (NAMT Fest ’11) by Jill Abramovitz, Aron Accurso and Leah Napolin.
Also in residency that weekend working on other shows were Jeremy Desmon (NAMT Fest ’04-The Girl in the Frame) and Jeff Thomson, NAMT Fest ’11 (Dani Girl) writers Michael Kooman and Chris Dimond, and the team of Marcy Heisler, Zina Goldrich and Hunter Bell working on The Great American Mousical which was the special sneak peek musical that weekend.
As you can see, there were a whole lot of NAMT connections throughout the weekend with Festival alumni involved throughout. I had seen previous incarnations of all of the shows and was really excited to see all of the great work the writers have done on them. All of the shows have grown so much, and I hope that they all find great futures across the membership.
Post-show evenings were spent in cabarets in which the uber-talented writers listed above would entertain us with other songs from shows they are working on. Goodspeed knows how to pack a weekend with the perfect amount of art, fun, music and cocktails!
I love my January trip to Connecticut each year. I get to chat with members, see work from alumni and other great writers, but, most of all, I get a chance to spend a great weekend immersed in a community of new musicals. Not a bad way to spend a cold winter weekend!
An interview with Goodspeed Musicals’ Line Producer Donna Lynn Hilton about their 7th Annual Festival of New Artists happening January 13-15. The Festival is in partnership with fellow NAMT members The Hartt School and Boston Conservatory. The line-up includes readings of NAMT Festival Show The Dogs of Pripyat, Not Wanted on the Voyage from the NAMT alumni writers who wrote The Story of My Life, and Harmony, Kansas. There will also be late-night cabarets featuring NAMT alumni writers Jeremy Desmon, Michael Kooman and Chris Dimond. Plus special events all weekend!
What are the goals of the Festival of New Artists?
We have a number of goals for the festival…to provide a safe haven for very “young” musicals; to provide the opportunity for collaboration at a very early stage in the development of a new musical—for everyone involved—writers, directors, musical directors and performers; to provide young musical theatre performers the rare opportunity to participate in the creation of a new musical and its characters; and to give [these young musical theatre performers] access to the professional writers, directors, MDs and performers.
Having been at the Festival for the last 3 years, I have seen it really blossom. What additions do you have in store for us this year?
We haven’t expanded the programming of our festival weekend much this year but are very proud that, in addition to the 3 teams presenting their full musicals during the festival weekend, we are able to host 3 teams of writers for Festival Residencies and will feature the work of these teams in our Festival Cabarets. One of those teams will present a “sneak peek” at an exciting new musical being developed by Goodspeed and scheduled for the Norma Terris Theatre in 2012.
How did the collaboration with the Universities start and how does the students’ involvement shape the Festival?
The collaboration between the Hartt School (now in its 7th year) and with the Boston Conservatory (in its 2nd year) is a direct result of relationships begun and developed through our work with NAMT. Goodspeed wanted to provide another outlet for supporting new musical development in our quieter winter months and the universities were looking to expose their students to professional opportunities and training. It was a perfect match.
What is the Festival experience like for the writers?
The main focus of the first 11 days of the festival is on the writers, giving them the opportunity to hear their work read and encouraging them to respond to it with revision. The Festival presentations, while an important piece of the puzzle, are somewhat secondary from the writers’ perspective. Several years ago, in response to a similar question, one of our Festival writer said… “the presentation is our gift to Goodspeed for allowing us to be here for two weeks, to work on and rewrite our show.”
Goodspeed really provides a whole weekend experience filled with new musicals. What do you hope your patrons walk with when they leave the Festival weekend?
Several things – an appreciation for and understanding of the passion, hard work and commitment that go into developing a new musical; excitement about the talent that is entering the field today; and, of course, an acknowledgement of what a truly wonderful place East Haddam and Chester, CT and Goodspeed’s Artists Village are to develop and present musical theatre, established and new.
Why should your fellow members come to beautiful snowy East Haddam in January to catch the Festival?
You really won’t regret joining us…the synergy created by the art and artists on display will thrill you and inspire you as it has us each January for the past 7 years. In many ways, the Festival is the most exciting project we mount all year long.
For more information about Goodspeed Musicals’ Festival of New Artists, please visit www.goodspeed.org
Ask anyone who has sat on the Festival Committee over the past few years and s/he will tell you how hard it is to select the Festival each year. We get over 150 submissions, reduce them down to 20 shows and then determine the final 8 we present each year. After 4 years of working with the committee through this process, I have realized that the challenge is not finding 8 great shows to put in the Festival. The hard part is finding those 8 amazing shows that reflect the diversity that we believe is vital to the future of musical theatre. We want 8 shows that get stuck in our heads, that we can’t wait to tell people about, that excite us as theatre artists. And we want those shows to represent a wide array of styles, sizes, tones and themes.
Time to think about what you’ll submit! You do not need to be limited to the shows that your theatre is currently developing or recently produced.
What about that great show that was sent to you that you wish your theatre could do and that you know other theatres will love?
NAMT is the best way to share great shows with the entire industry!
What about your friend the commercial producer who is developing all of those exciting new musicals?
Maybe she has a show that could use NAMT’s help!
Remember that really great new musical you produced a few years ago that is now lost to the ages?
Track down the writers and send that in!
Our Festival is not just about the hottest, newest, freshest properties that no one has ever heard of. We want to present great musicals that will excite all of you and invigorate the field.So if you know of a show that is amazing and could use NAMT’s help, please track it down and submit it. The Festival can only be as great as the shows submitted to us, and with our amazing members and alumni, I know that we will have another exciting Festival in 2012!
If you don’t see a slideshow above, please click here to view the photos.
Yesterday, you got to meet the 4 of the writing teams and now it is time to meet the other 4 teams! These are the teams who will present their work on October 27 and 28 at New World Stages on Stage 3 as part of our 23rd Annual Festival of New Musicals.
Don’t forget to register before Sunday!
BERNICE BOBS HER HAIR
Book & Lyrics by Julia Jordan, Music & Lyrics by Adam Gwon
Directed by Joe Calarco, Music Direction by Andy Einhorn
THE DOGS OF PRIPYAT
Book by Jill Abramovitz & Leah Napolin
Music by Aron Accurso, Lyrics by Jill Abramovitz
Directed by Peter Flynn, Music Direction by Brad Haak
GOLDEN BOY OF THE BLUE RIDGE
Book by Peter Mills & Cara Reichel
Music & Lyrics by Peter Mills
Based on “The Playboy of the Western World” by J.M. Synge
Directed by Gordon Greenberg, Music Direction by Eli Zoller
NOTES TO MARIANNE
by Dan Lipton & David Rossmer
Directed by Jeremy Dobrish, Music Direction by Chris Fenwick
The Festival is only a week away! Time to meet this year’s writers…a some are returning writers, some are a newbies to the NAMT Festival, but all of their shows are NEW!
In Part 1, we will introduce you to the writers and the shows that will take place on Stage 2 of New World Stages at the 23rd Annual Festival of New Musicals this October 27 and 28. Don’t forget to register before registration closes on Sunday!
DANI GIRL
Book & Lyrics by Christopher Dimond, Music by Michael Kooman
Directed by Scott Schwartz, Music Direction by Andy Einhorn
BLOODSONG OF LOVE
by Joe Iconis
Directed by John Simpkins, Music Direction by Brian Usifer
PREGNANCY PACT
Book & Lyrics by Gordon Leary, Music by Julia Meinwald
Directed by Mark Brokaw, Music Direction by Rich Silverstein
(warning: Like the show, this video contains strong language)
WATT?!?
Book & Lyrics by David Javerbaum, Music by Brendan Milburn
Directed by Steve Cosson, Music Direction by Zachary Dietz
It is fall in NYC and that means it is time for our annual Festival of New Musicals! (Have you registered yet?) Even on my fourth one, things still excite me every day about the Festival. We have such an amazing group of shows and writers for you all to enjoy this year. I know that as you learn more about these writers and their shows, you, too, will feel the rising anticipation and energy. To help share the excitement, I’ve prepared two new pre-Festival features this year.
First, if you go to the Festival page on our website, you will notice that you can now click links to read about the development history, the show synopsis, and, new this year, “5 Things You Should Know” for each show. This new section is filled with 5 factoids the writing teams want you to know about the show before you see it. They range from what they need next, to staging desires, to contextual background info.
Second, for NAMT members and alumni writers only, you can see 3-minute interviews with each of the writing teams. 4 of the 8 show videos are currently up on the website and the other 4 will be up next week, just as soon as we can get them scheduled, shot and edited! You get a chance to hear from the writers, put a face to a name and learn more about the shows. You will need to log in to access them. If you need your log-in information, please contact Kimberly (kimberly@namt.org).
Demos are being pressed, casts are being cast, the program is being proofed…and you are the last piece of the puzzle. Visit the Festival page, be inspired by our writers’ videos and don’t forget to register now for our 23rd Annual Festival of New Musicals!
Every year the Festival Committee strives to select the eight most diverse and exciting musicals out there, and this year they have topped themselves. Over the last three Festivals, we have been working hard to improve the member experience at the Festival. From bigger signs to a reconceived program, we want all of you who come to the Festival to have a great time and enjoy the shows.
This year, we are at it again…now focusing on providing you with more information about the show before you even get to the Festival. Over the next couple of months, I will be adding more content to the Festival website, including cast size, band size, future productions already lined up, facts you should know about the show, and (hopefully) even members-only introductory videos from the writers talking about their show. I want everyone to see every show, but I know that that is not always possible so I want to give you more tools to know which shows would be more suited to your tastes and needs.
I would love any thoughts you have about this…what would be helpful for you to know about these shows before you come to the Festival? Email me your thoughts at branden@namt.org. I can’t wait to share this bold and exciting Festival with you in October!
Every year, I scour the Internet and the country for exciting songwriters to present in the Songwriters Showcase during the Festival. I try to compile as many choices as possible and then work with the Festival Committee co-chairs to select the most dynamic group of songs and songwriters to complement that year’s Festival. This year, I’m opening up the submission process to all of you.
I’m looking for songs from complete (or almost complete) new musicals that have not been heard much in New York. Send me the full show demo (not just one or two songs) along with a long-form synopsis and production history to NAMT, 520 8th Ave, #301, NY, NY 10018. Feel free to tell your talented friends too!
We want interesting, innovative and diverse songs for the showcase and I know that amongst our alumni and members we can put together the best showcase yet!
Thank you to everyone who submitted shows to this year’s Festival…160 scripts were sent in for review! Many people ask me: What happens next? Well it is a simple process to explain but a long and hard process to carry out.
Shows submitted to the Festival are sent on to the Festival Committee, a group of 13 brilliant and brave NAMT members who will each read and evaluate 25 or so shows between now and late April. The shows are all “blind,” meaning the Committee knows nothing (no authors’ names or production history) but the art in front of them. I send each show on to committee members who are most likely to love the show and advocate for it.
Then, we meet in late April in NYC and discuss all of the shows. Our goal for that meeting is to leave with a list of the 20 best, most diverse, exciting, fresh new musicals we can find that represents the breadth of work happening out there but also moves the art form forward. Then we repeat the process with the Top 20…but this time every show is read by every committee member.
By mid-June we will have taken 160 shows, divided them by 20 and gotten the 8 shows we will present at the Festival in October. It is a big task, a daunting task…but anyone on the Committee will tell you: it is a whole lot of fun!
Every January and February changes the topography of the NAMT office in a wonderful way. Piles of CDs and scripts start appearing on once empty flat surfaces and binder clips become scarce. It is submissions time for our 23rd Annual Festival of New Musicals. The non-member deadline passed earlier this week and I am excited to give the members and alumni an extra 3 weeks to find those perfect shows to submit this year (your deadline is on February 15, postmarked). As the Festival has grown in my 3 years here, it has become clear that we really need to present the best, most eclectic, exciting 8 works we can find and I look to you, our members and alumni, as the primary source for our great musicals. Don’t be afraid that something is too edgy, or too wholesome, or too big, or too small for the Festival. Is it great? Does it excite you? Does it make you love being in the theatre? Then submit it because odds are you are not alone in your opinions! Let’s share our great work with the each other and the world this October!