The festival will take place on May 6th at 7pm at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center.
Theatre Now New York has announced the casts and creative teams of the 10 short musicals to be presented in its SOUND BITES ELEVEN Festival of 10-Minute Musicals. The festival will take place on May 6th at 7pm at Merkin Hall at Kaufman Music Center (129 W 67th St, New York).
Hosted by Ben Cameron (Wicked, Broadway Sessions), this year's eleventh annual SOUND BITES Festival of 10-Minute Musicals features a stellar cast of 30 including Jean Christian Barry (How to Dance in Ohio), Sam Gravitte (Wicked), Christine Heesun Hwang (Suffs), Kendyl Ito (Soft Power), Kristen Jeter (Book of Mormon), Sierra Rein (MAC and Bistro Award Winner), Devina Sabnis (Monsoon Wedding), and Heath Saunders (Company). Casting is by Erik Schark. Theatre Now's Artistic Director Tom Morrissey describes the event as "an incredible opportunity to experience the future of musical theatre, with both traditional and genre-bending shows that showcase the next generation of writers."
The 10 teams for this year's festival are:
Words by Seth Christenfeld, Music by James Ballard
An ordinary couple faces the ordinary problems of an ordinary Sunday: marital stagnation, who gets to do the New York Times crossword, and a mysterious portal opening in their backyard.
Director: Rachel Klein, Music Director: Bryan Blaskie
Featuring: Dana Aber-Torres, Katie Emerson, and Keith Varney
Book, Music, & Lyrics by Brooke Trumm & Will Shishmanian
While making an apple pie, three generations of women try to recall pieces of their family history lost to their grandmother’s memory loss.
Director: Mack Brown
Featuring: Patricia M Lawrence, Andrea Prestinario, and Devina Sabnis
Music by Adam Rothenberg, Book & Lyrics by RJ Christian
A disgruntled anthropology professor seeks to prove the limitations of artificial intelligence with a live demonstration of software that feels uncannily human and takes an unexpected turn.
Director: Dalia Ashurina
Featuring: Christine Heesun Hwang and Heath Saunders
Music by Jack Lipson, Book & Lyrics by Jessica Wu
Inspired by the short film ANNE by Adi Eshman
Two hopefuls vie for the title role in Anne, a new mega-musical.
Director: Jessica Wu
Featuring: Kendyl Ito and Jenna Lea Rosen
Book & Lyrics by Kaylee Killingsworth, Music & Lyrics by Kenady Sean
Arranged by Rhett Hayes
Inspired by the short story by Nathaniel Hawthorne, a scientist grows obsessed with removing a mysterious birthmark from his wife’s cheek.
Director: Rachel Klein, Music Director: Halle Mitchell
Featuring: Jean Christian Barry, Zachary Crowle, and Kristen Jeter
Book, Music & Lyrics by Jake Landau
A person flips a coin to decide whether or not to text their ex, but the coin spirals up impossibly high into the sky and refuses to come back down — it is not the only thing spiraling.
Director: George Abud, Music Director: Melody Valdez
Featuring: Sam Gravitte
Music & Lyrics by Noah Weisbart, Book & Lyrics by John Sakelos
It’s such a beautiful day. What could possibly go wrong?
Director: John Sakelos and Noah Weisbart, Choreographer: Michael Sakelos, Music Director: George Luton
Featuring: Patty Irwin, Andrea J. Love, Connor Marsh, Maxime Prissert, John Sakelos, and Noah Weisbart
Book, Music & Lyrics by Katherine Cartusciello
In the fifteen minutes she has before her mother comes home, a girl goes on an adventure with her faithful dog companion, battling foes real and imaginary in order to finally face the Giant in the Sky.
Director: Thalia Ranjbar
Featuring: Alia Cuadros-Contreras, Lauren Genevieve, and Sierra Rein
Book, Music & Lyrics by Zonia Tsang
Set against the backdrop of the recent Hong Kong protests, a grandmother recounts the dangers she survived and the prices she paid to leave China during the Cultural Revolution.
Director: Dennis Yueh-Yeh Li
Featuring: Sarah Chiu, Mami Kimura, Hanh Nguyen, and Mandarin Wu
Book & Lyrics by Andrea J. Love, Music by Alex Ngo
Story by Andrea J. Love and Alex Ngo
It’s the Devonian Period — 375 million years ago — and one bold Tiktaalik is about to journey onto land for the very first time and change the course of evolution…right?
Director: Billy Eric Robinson
Featuring: Teresa Attridge, Patrick Swailes Caldwell, and Nicole Eve Goldstein
SOUND BITES ELEVEN is supported in part by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Additional support is provided by Music Theatre International and A.R.T/NY. Theatre Now is an artist service organization dedicated to the development, production, publication, and circulation of short and long-form musicals by providing ongoing support for writers and their work in order to nurture voices and forms that push the boundaries of musical theatre.
Tickets are on sale now at www.tix.com/ticket-sales/tnny/4464. For more information about Theatre Now New York, visit www.tnny.org.
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