Atlanta Musical Theatre Festival Sets Inaugural Lineup
By: Tyler Peterson Jun. 23, 2016
The Atlanta Musical Theatre Festival is thrilled to announce the selections for the inaugural Atlanta Musical Theatre Festival (AMTF), which will be held August 1 and 2, 2016, at Actor's Express and Synchronicity Theatre. The AMTF will be two days and nights of original musical theatre performances by local artists, as well as showcase performances of professional productions and educational groups. Performances will be open to the artistic community, the public, and the press. More than twenty submissions were accepted and four shows have been selected for the inaugural event. Tickets are $27.50 for a single event to $80 for a full festival pass (including all taxes and fees), and are on sale now at ActorsExpress.com.
Selected productions will be performed at Actor's Express and Synchronicity Theatre, per the schedule below. Actor's Express is located at 887 W. Marietta Street, Suite J-107, Atlanta GA 30318.
Synchronicity Theatre is located at One Peachtree Pointe, 1545 Peachtree Street, NE, #102, Atlanta, GA, 30309.
"From New York to California, the overall quantity and quality of submissions was wildly impressive," said Founder and Executive Artistic Director, Benjamin Davis. "We were truly astonished by our inaugural year's submissions. We had to re-arrange our programming because we received over twenty complete musicals, and only a handful of unfinished ideas!"
The Festival is programmed for its evening events at Actor's Express and daytime programming at Synchronicity Theatre.
The AMTF launched a crowd funding campaign through C4 Atlanta as its fiscal sponsor, on March 15 and exceeded its goal, reaching 111%. The organization is still accepting donations, as needs continue, of course. All donations are tax-deductible, and various levels of sponsorships and coordinating benefits are available. Details on sponsorship levels are available at www.TheAMTF.com and www.C4Atlanta.org.
SUBMISSIONS & SELECTIONS
More than twenty submissions were received for this inaugural event and four productions were selected and will be produced. The submissions deadline was May 1, and selections were announced June 1st, 2016. Submissions at any stage in development were invited to be considered for the festival. Whether an artist had a few songs written and desired to start developing the libretto, or had a fully realized new musical, the AMTF would provide a nurturing home for the show to grow in the area in which it needs support. The AMTF is designed to take new work a few paces further, via work with the Festival's Artistic Advisors, to its presentation point at the Festival. This year, the Artistic Advisors have approximately 8 weeks to work with each production. Submissions for the 2017 Festival will open in the fall of 2016.
SCHEDULE:
Monday, August 1:
12pm Underground, at Synchronicity Theatre
8pm The Yellow Wallpaper, at Actor's Express
Tuesday, August 2:
12pm The Fine Art of Forgetting, at Synchronicity Theatre
8pm What's Past, at Actor's Express
ABOUT THE PRODUCTIONS:
Underground
Book & Lyrics by Akil DuPont
1850. With dreams of freedom tuggin' at his soul, Bali plans to escape from slavery after learning that his master, Jacob, is going to sell his young daughter, Emala. During their escape, Bali encounters a house slave, Dembi, who is content with her station in life and the comfort that her master brings her. After the master misunderstands her intentions, she becomes an unwilling participant in this escape. The slaves strike out in the dead of night; singing Negro spirituals that they hope will protect them on their perilous journey to freedom and guide them to the Underground Railroad.
Will Dembi come to believe in the Underground Railroad, or will she betray the group and return to the comfort of her house? Can Bali protect his daughter and lead them to freedom, or will the master find them and drag them back to a life of servitude?
Underground, a slave story told through song, is based on a short film that won 21 awards, including 2 Student Emmys (one for music). In March 2016, this musical play was produced as a reading in NYC with the Negro Ensemble Company and was directed by TONY-award winner, Ben Harney.
The Yellow Wallpaper
Adaptation by Hannah Church
Music & Lyrics by Julia Goudreault
"The Yellow Wallpaper was not intended to drive people crazy, but to save people from being driven crazy, and it worked."
It is 1891, and Charlotte Perkins Gilman, a writer, has just finished a treatment called the "rest cure". Imagine lying in bed for eight weeks in complete isolation, with only your thoughts to guide you. This cure, which in 2016 looks more like solitary confinement, was the advanced medical care of its time. But now that the treatment is over, and Charlotte's mind is at its breaking point, her doctor Silas Mitchell has given a new prognosis. She can never write again if she intends to get better.
What will Charlotte decide?
Come and experience this classic short story with a new haunting musical twist!
The Fine Art of Forgetting
Book by Heidi Cline McKerley
Music by S. Renee Clark?
Lyrics by Jeff McKerley
It's Karen's birthday, and she is desperately trying to make the right choices, let go of her past, and move forward.
Through magic realism and a "Greek chorus" ensemble of characters, we follow Karen's journey as she juggles a mother battling Alzheimer's disease, a disappearing father, a nonexistent romantic relationship, and a new career opportunity which seems too good to be true.
With humor, hope, love, and laughter, Karen's thoughts and memories manifest themselves when she least expects it. As Mom desperately clings to fading memories, Karen can't seem to simply forget.
It's a fine art.
What's Past
Written by Chase Peacock & Jessica De Maria
What would you do if you could remember all the things you never knew you forgot?
Follow a pair of extraordinary siblings on a journey through time and memory as they unravel the mystery of their parents' death while untangling the mystery of their own identity.
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