Directors, Music Directors And Prelim Casts Announced for 21st Annual Festival of New Musicals

The National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT) and Executive Director Kathy Evans announced the directors, music directors and preliminary casts for the eight musicals being presented as 45-minute staged readings for its 21st Annual Festival of New Musicals at New World Stages (340 West 50th St) on Monday, October 19 and Tuesday, October 20, 2009. www.namt.org

BAND GEEKS! by Tommy Newman, Gaby Alter, Mark Allen and Gordon Greenberg: Broadway's David Loud (Ragtime, Curtains) will be the Music Director with Greenberg (Happy Days, Working) as Director. The cast will include Jared Gertner (Ordinary Days), Aaron J. Albano (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Alex Brightman (Wicked), Adam Chanler-Berat (Next To Normal), Patti Murin (Xanadu), Griffin Matthews (Papermill's 1776) and more to be announced.

FACTORY GIRLS by Creighton Irons and Sean Mahoney: The cast will include Carrie Manolakos (Mamma Mia!), Anika Larsen (Xanadu, Avenue Q), David Larsen (Billy Elliot), Steel Burkhardt (Hair), Kate Ferber, Lindsay Mendez (Everyday Rapture), Dana Steingold (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), Brian Sutherland (1776), Cortney Wolfson (Legally Blonde tour) and more to be announced. Directed by Victoria Bussert with Matt Hinkley (Rooms) as the Music Director.

HOSTAGE SONG by Clay McLeod Chapman and Kyle Jarrow will feature music direction by Nathan Leigh (Big Money) and will be directed by Oliver Butler (co-founder of The Debate Society) who directed Hostage Song off-Off Broadway last year. The cast for this rock musical will be announced shortly.

HOW CAN YOU RUN WITH A SHELL ON YOUR BACK? by Michael Mahler and Alan Schmuckler: Gideon Glick (Spring Awakening, Speech and Debate) and Emma Hunton (Spring Awakening) will be part of the cast with the other actors to be announced shortly. Kent Nicholson (Long Story Short at San Diego Rep) will direct and Deborah Abramson (Bernada Alba at Lincoln Center Theatre) will be the Music Director.

IRON CURTAIN by Susan DiLallo, Peter Mills and Stephen Weiner: Directed by Cara Reichel (Illyria) with Music Direction by Remy Kurs (The Dome). The cast will be announced shortly.

IT SHOULDA BEEN YOU by Barbara Anselmi and Brian Hargrove: Cast includes Harriet Harris (Tony Award Winner for Thoroughly Modern Millie), Debra Monk (Curtains, Tony Award Winner for Redwood Curtain), Lisa Howard (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee) and Sebastian Arcelus (Jersey Boys) with more casting to be announced. Michael Bush (Stormy Weather) will be directing with T.O. Sterrett (Wicked) as Music Director.

MEMORY IS THE MOTHER OF ALL WISDOM by Sara Cooper and Zach Redler: Joe Colarco (Sarah, Plain and Tall) will direct with music direction by Vadim Feichner (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee). The cast will feature Leslie Kritzer (A Catered Affair) and Catherine Cox (Baby).

RIPPER by Duane Nelsen will be directed by John Simpkins (The Black Suits) with music direction by Andy Einhorn. Elena Shaddow (The Light in the Piazza tour) will star with the remainder of the cast to be announced shortly.

Admission to the FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS is for Industry Professionals only. Industry professionals may register now on www.namt.org.

A stand by line is open to the general public. Historically all stand by patrons have been able to see the Festival shows.

Since 1989, NAMT's FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS has introduced theatre producers to more than 220 musicals and 350 writers. More than three-fourths of these shows have had further development, tours and licensing agreements, leading to thousands of subsequent productions. Past festival highlights have included the multiple Tony Award winning The Drowsy Chaperone and Thoroughly Modern Millie, as well as Children of Eden, Honk!, Ordinary Days, Songs for a New World, Striking 12, Summer of '42 and Vanities, A New Musical.

The 21st annual Festival of New Musicals is overseen by Festival Artistic Director and NAMT New Works Director Branden Huldeen and General Manager Lisa Dozier.

The eight selected shows, culled from a pool of more than 130 applicants, were selected by the NAMT Festival Committee, comprised of artistic directors and producers from NAMT member organizations.

NAMT is very grateful to the following foundations and government agencies for supporting the mission to nurture the production of new musicals and classics:

The ASCAP Foundation Irving Caesar Fund, The BW Foundation, The Dramatists Guild Fund, Friars Foundation, Gilman & Gonzalez-Falla Theater Foundation, The Mackintosh Foundation, The Mindich Family Foundation, The Rodgers and Hammerstein Foundation, The Shen Family Foundation, and The Shubert Foundation.

The Festival of New Musicals is supported in part by a generous award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and by public funds from the New York State Council on the Arts, a State Agency.

We also thank the following sponsors for supporting our Festival of New Musicals. Without them we couldn't present these talented artists to the theatre industry:

Gold Sponsors: The 5th Avenue Theatre, Broadway/L.S. Nederlander, Dallas Summer Musicals, Goodspeed Musicals, The Muny, Pittsburgh CLO, Samuel French, SenovvA, TheaterMania.com, and Theatre Under The Stars.

Silver Sponsors: Chicago Shakespeare Theater, Fox Theatre of St. Louis, and Walnut Street Theatre.

NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR MUSICAL THEATRE (NAMT)

Founded in 1985, the National Alliance for Musical Theatre (NAMT) is a national service organization dedicated exclusively to musical theatre. Our 150+ members, located throughout 31 states and 8 countries, include theatres, presenters, universities, and independent producers who share our commitment to nurture the creation, production, and recognition of new musicals and classics. Last season, NAMT members cumulatively staged over 26,000 performances attended by 15 million people. NAMT has presented its annual FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS since 1989. The Festival makes "a major impact on the world of musical theatre," according to American Theater Magazine, by bringing together leading theatre producers and musical theatre writers. NAMT's other programs include conferences, new works summits, and the National Fund for New Musicals, which provides grants to support the development and production of new musicals. For more information, visit www.namt.org.