The
American Musical Voices Project's presentation of composer grants and Leadership Awards took place on Monday, May 15, at a cocktail reception
at New World Stages in New York City (340 West 50th Street).
At the awards, composer/lyricist Michael John LaChiusa (Bernarda Alba, See What I Wanna See) and composers Ricky Ian Gordon (Dream True, My Life with Albertine) and Joseph Thalken (Harold and Maude) were awarded million
dollar musical theatre composer grants donated to Signature Theatre in Arlington, VA by the
Shen Family Foundation, as part of the American Musical Voices
Project. The $25,000 that each receives each year over the course of
four years will also enable him to fully workshop a new musical during
the 2006-2007 season. During the 2009-2010 season, the musical will
then be fully staged at Signature.In addition, four time Tony Award-winning actress Audra McDonald, Tony Award-winning composer/lyricist Adam Guettel (The Light in the Piazza), Ted Sperling (director of See What I Wanna See, Tony Award for co-orchestrating The Light in the Piazza) and orchestrator Bruce Coughlin (Tony Award-winner for additional orchestrations to The Light in the Piazza) each received a one-time grant of $25,000 as part of the first musical theatre Leadership Awards.
The
reception also featured performances of the
honored composers work by some of the musical theatre's brightest
stars, including McDonald (Ragtime), Tony-nominee Kelli O'Hara (The Pajama Game, The Light in the Piazza) and Tony-nominee Howard McGillin (The Phantom of the Opera).