NY Musical Theatre Festival Announces 2007 Partner Events

The New York Musical Theatre Festival (NYMF) announced today the 2007 NYMF Partner Events.  Since its inception NYMF has joined forces with other organizations celebrating musical theatre during the month of September. Enjoy the full spectrum of NYC's musical theatre activity, and check out these partner productions held at numerous different venues around the city.

The events are as follows:
 
Girl Gang
"Girl Gang follows Didi, an otherwise '50's "clean-teen" looking to escape her oppressive home life, as she stumbles down a path of infamy and eventual redemption in a reform school with other girls-gone-wild!  Conceived as a staged '50s 'juvie' film, Girl Gang is a dramatic musical with a humorous B movie edge.  Adult women portray all teenagers, and men portray all adults, regardless of gender.  The acting style is specific to the film era in which the musical is set; a 1950's pulp juvie fantasy mixed with gritty underclass reality; the contrast with our current era creates much of the show's humor."
Venue: Atlantic Theater Stage II, 330 West 16th Street , NYC
Performance schedule: Sept. 22 at 8:30pm; Sept. 23 at 3pm, Sept. 24 at 6:30pm; Sept. 26 at 3 and 8pm; Sept. 27 at 8pm; Sept. 28 at 7 and 10pm; Sept. 29 at 8pm; Sept. 30 at 3pm General Admission $18 
 
"APAC: A New Generation of Song '07"
The Future of Musical Theatre
"The second offering of our successful musical showcase featuring the songs of up-and-coming composers in the musical theatre world with a few surprises from established Broadway composers.  In a time when an original musical is a rare occurrence, 'A New Generation of Song: The Future of Musical Theatre' gives new musicals a chance to be heard and appreciated in a cabaret-like atmosphere.
"Venue: Waltz-Astoria, 23-14 Ditmars Blvd. (between 23rd and 24th street . Take either N or W train to Ditmars Boulevard and 3st street (last stop in Queens), and walk 6 blocks towards Astoria Park ), Astoria , Queens .
Performance schedule:  Fri. Sept. 28 at 8pm; Sat. Sept. 29 at 8pm; Sun. Sept. 30 at 8pm
General admission $15
 
Jungle Queen Debutante
Book by Sean O' Donnell; Music and Lyrics by Thomas Tierney
"Take one ingénue following her heart, mix in an archeologist who can't quite remember who he is, an elocution mistress with a secret, and a suave ambassador.  Add a lovelorn jungle chanteuse, a mobster with nefarious plans and the wickedest woman in the Lost City for this cocktail of an adventure musical with a big Broadway sound."
Venue: Times Square Arts Center , 300 West 43rd Street (Room 411)
Performance schedule: Sept. 26 at 8pm; Sept. 27 at 8pm; Sept. 28 at 3pm and 8pm; Sept. 29 at 8pm; Oct. 3 at 8pm; Oct. 4 at 8pm; Oct. 5 at 3pm and 8pm; and Oct. 6 at 8pm.  General Admission $18 
 
"Live Wire"
"Live Wire" is "a new music series that mixes New York 's hottest acts in music and comedy into one jamming showcase.  Comix will present musicians trying out anything old or new, comedians – not known for singing – performing songs and a blend of the two. As the lyrics state, 'Anything goes'"  Hosted by legendary DJ Cipha Sounds and featuring the creator of In the Heights Lin-Manuel Miranda who is joined by the other original members of Freestyle Love Supreme: Anthony 'Two Touch' Venenziale and Chris "Shockwave" Sullivan.  Comedian Christian Finnegan from VH1's 'Best Week Ever' will perform a hilarious spoof of 'We Are the World' that is a must see.  Rounding out the line up is the guitar comedy duo 'Stuckey & Murray.'"
Venue: Comix, 353 West 14th Street (just East of Ninth Avenue ) (A,C,E to 14th St ; L to Eighth Ave )
Sep 17 at 8:00pm General Admission $12
 
"Stephen Schwartz: Magic to Do"
Perhaps more than any other composer, Stephen Schwartz is known for introducing a pop/rock vocabulary to Broadway. From his early hits Godspell and Pippin, through his Oscar-winning work in the movies (Pocahontas, Hunchback of Notre Dame, Prince of Egypt ), he has created a remarkably varied and colorful repertoire of shows that bubble with humor and compassion. His latest mega-hit Wicked proves he is undeniably in his prime, and he has a wealth of new projects ready to follow on that success. Join host Sean Hartley for an evening with this fascinating and articulate artist, featuring performances by such exceptional Broadway singers as Debbie Gravitte, Liz Callaway and Marni Nixon.
Venue: The  Times   Center , 242 West 41st Street , NYC  Performance: Oct 1 at 8:00pm.  General admission $35
 
The Rockae
Music and lyrics by Peter Mills, adapted from Euripides' The Bacchae by Peter Mills & Cara Reichel
"Pent-up King Pentheus takes on Dionysus and his frenzied female fans when the god of wine and theater returns to Thebes. Get ready for moshing Maenads and thrashing catharsis in this rock musical adaptation of Euripides' classic, The Bacchae. Drama Desk-nominated writer Peter Mills fuses the intensity of heavy metal with the violence of ancient Greek tragedy. "
Venue:  Hudson Guild Theatre, 441 West 26th Street   Sept. 15 – Oct. 14.
Sept. 15th 8:00 pm,  Sept. 16th at 7:00 pm,  Sept. 17th at 8:00 pm, Sept. 20th at 8:00 pm , Sept. 21st at 8:00 pm, Sept. 22nd at 8:00 pm,  Sept. 23rd at 3:00 pm, Sept. 27th at 8:00 pm, Sept. 28th at 8:00 pm, Sept. 29th at 8:00pm, Sept. 30th at 3:00 pm, Oct. 3rd at 8:00 pm, Oct. 4th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 5th at 8:00 pm Oct. 6th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 7th at 3:00 pm, Oct. 10th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 11th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 12th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 13th  3:00pm, Oct. 13th at 8:00 pm, Oct. 14th at 3:00 pm.
General admission $20 
 
Antonin by Roi "Bubi" Escudero
A Site-Specific Installation of Musical Dynamic Tableaux
Bubi's distinctive dream-like dynamic tableaux fuse the gory characters of the Grand Guignol, the shocking awareness of the Theatre of Cruelty, with the unpredictability of the Absurd, Café Concert's chansons, Dance, Opera and Tango. Structures are broken down, reality & fantasy are intermingled, and the audience is invited to join in the process.
October 6, 2007 at 8:00 PM 
At The Philip Coltoff, Greenwich Village Center, 219 Sullivan Street.
Free Event! Reservations only call 212-628-5190  or E-mail: JEwan52698@aol.com 
 
"Musicals on Television"
A sampler of famed musicals adapted for television, with salutes to Ethel Merman-whose centenary will be celebrated in 2008-and West Side Story on the fiftieth anniversary of its Broadway premiere.
Screening location: The Paley Center for Media (formerly The Museum of Television & Radio)
25 West 52nd Street (between Fifth and Sixth Avenues).
Suggested donation: $10, $8 seniors and students, $5 children under 14
(212) 621-6600; www.paleycenter.org 
 
Saturday, September 29
12:30 p.m.
West Side Story at 50
"Includes the 'balcony scene' with original cast stars Carol Lawrence and Larry Kert, on 'The Ed Sullivan Show' (1958); a 1958 episode of 'Look Up and Live,' with director/choreographer Jerome Robbins and cast members; and a 1961 episode of the WCBS program American Musical Theatre with Stephen Sondheim. (90 minutes)"

2:00 p.m.
"The Best of Broadway: Panama Hattie"
Music and lyrics by Cole Porter, book by Herbert Fields and B.G. DeSylva
(television adaptation by HerBert Baker and supervised by Jule Styne).
Starring Ethel Merman, Art Carney, Ray Middleton, Jack E. Leonard, Janis Carter, Neil Hamilton, and Karin Wolfe. (1954; 60 minutes)

3:00 p.m.
Applause
Music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Lee Adams, book by Betty Comden and Adolph Green.
Starring Lauren Bacall, Larry Hagman, Penny Fuller, Sarah Marshall, Robert Mandan, Harvey Evans, and Rod McLennan. (1973; 105 minutes)

Sunday, September 30
3:00 p.m.
"HallMark Hall of Fame: You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown"
Music, lyrics, and book by Clark Gesner, based on the Charles Schulz comic strip.
With Barry Livingston, Wendell Burton, Ruby Persson, Mark Montgomery, Noelle Matlovsky, and Bill Hinnant. (1973; 80 minutes)

4:45 p.m.
"HallMark Hall of Fame: The Fantasticks"
Book and lyrics by Tom Jones and music by Harvey Schmidt.
With Ricardo Montalban, Stanley Holloway, Bert Lahr, Susan Watson, and John Davidson (1964; 50 minutes)
 
As in past years, many of the musicals, partner events and concerts are expected to sell-out prior to single tickets being offered to the general public.  In 2006, NYMF saw attendance exceed 36,000, an increase of more than 65%, and records being set for a single day of ticket sales (with 4,000 seats being sold on the first day). In addition, memberships increased three-fold from 2005 and more than half of the productions played to capacity houses for their entire runs, prompting NYMF to add performances as early as three days into ticket sales.  

"The New York Musical Theatre Festival is," according to press notes, "the enormously popular three-week celebration that features the works of the newest generation of musical theatre writers.  One of the fastest-growing theatre festivals in the country today, the New York Musical Theatre Festival has, in three short years, presented a total of 99 new musicals, many of which have gone on to subsequent productions at Off-Broadway and regional theatres around the country."
 
"Already this past season in New York , two musicals from past Festivals – The Big Voice: God or Merman (NYMF '04) and Gutenberg! The Musical (NYMF '06) – have played successful runs Off-Broadway, joining other transfers [title of show], Captain Louie? The Great American Trailer Park Musical and Shout the Mod Musical.  Two more – Nerds://A Musical Software Satire and Meet John Doe - enjoyed a successful regional runs in Philadelphia and Washington, D.C, Party Come Here (NYMF '06) will be presented this summer at the Williamstown Theatre Festival and Tom Kitt's musical Feeling Electric (NYMF '05), now titled Next to Normal will be presented at Second Stage Theatre's upcoming season.  NYMF's 2004 hit Altar Boyz is now in its third year and recently celebrated its 1,000th performance Off-Broadway at New World Stages."
 
Hailed as 'the Sundance of Musical Theatre,' NYMF is widely regarded as the essential source for new material and talent discovery.  NYMF is a flagship program of The National Music Theater Network, a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization, and is presented by BroadwayWorld.com and Microsoft Health Services, in association with amNewYork, Ars Nova, GSD Productions, King Displays, Panasonic Astrovision, Playbill and Verizon Wireless, and is proudly supported by Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Broadway Bullet, BroadwayBox.com, BroadwayInsider.com, Choice Signs, City Theatricals, Frank & Camille's Fine Pianos, HX Magazine, Port Authority of NY and NJ, Seasons of Savings, Tekserve, TheatreMania.com, TheMENevent, Virgin Megastore and Wybron. NYMF is made possible with public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency.

Tickets for the 2007 festival are now available and bookings are open for those who purchased NYMF memberships.  Memberships are affordably priced and are available from $60 to $250.  Single tickets ($20) are available to the general public on September 1 and can be purchased by calling 212-352-3101 or www.nymf.org.