BMI Sponsors New Writers Workshops And Showcases

BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop Thrives in Adverse Environment as promising playwrights sharpen their skills with expert tutoring and peer feedback.

The Great White Way has encountered some challenges recently with celebrated shows closing and theatres running half-empty. Despite these trends, a well-respected workshop fully sponsored by Broadcast Music, Inc (BMI) continues to nurture musical theatre scribes and showcase their works to the public.

A recipient of the Tony Honors for Excellence in Theatre Award, The BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, founded in 1961, was deemed "the Harvard of musical theatre" by the New York Times. The Workshop, which runs from September to June, was formed to bring writers together to work under the guidance and supervision of experienced professionals in order to develop new works in American musical theatre.

Currently, Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime) is instructing songwriters in the advanced workshop, which meets January 26, February 2, 9 and 23. This is a great opportunity for you to see what's in development in the Workshop and destined for Broadway.

Alumni include:
- Tony Award winners Jeff Marx and Robert Lopez (Avenue Q)
- Alan Menken (Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid)
- Tony Award winner Edward Kleban (A Chorus Line)
- Michael John LaChiusa (Hello Again, Marie Christine, The Wild Party)
- Scott Frankel and Michael Korie (Grey Gardens)
Instructors include:
- Maury Yeston (Nine, Titanic, Grand Hotel),
- Lyricist Michael Korie (Grey Gardens)
- Lyricist Lynn Ahrens (Ragtime).