Musical Theatre Factory's High 5 Celebrates 5 Years Of Being Down To FAC

Musical Theatre Factory's (MTF)'s collective High Five celebrated of the first five years of the magic that is the MTF with a gala hosted by Larry Owens at Town Stages, 221 West Broadway, NYC on May 13, 2019 at 7:30pm.

MTF has come a long way in the five years since they were born in the back of a porn studio. From flying the coop and wandering the mean streets of New York, to finding their current home as a resident company of Playwrights Horizons, MTF has continued to serve musical theatre artists by creating spaces to collaborate outside the pressures of critical and commercial success. Their work dismantles oppressive ideologies towards collective liberation - through powerful and joyful story in song. High Five gathered all members of the community with accessible tickets ranging from $25 and up with over 200 people in attendance. To celebrate this growth, the gala was a night filled with dance and song that honored Michael R. Jackson (A Strange Loop) and introduced the inaugural MTF Makers Cohort with work & performances by Troy Anthony (The River is Me), Melissa Li & Kit Yan (Interstate), Jillian Walker (SkinFolk: An American Show), AriDy Nox (Flawless Feminism) and Brandon Webster (Medicine for Melancholy), andJonathan Larson Award winners Tidtaya Sinutoke and Straight White Men alum Ty Defoe (Clouds Are Pillows for the Moon).

Exceptional performances and work by MTF Artists included Natalie Walker(Alice by Heart), Heath Saunders (Alice by Heart, Great Comet, NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live), Nikko Benson (Jonathan Larson Winner), Douglas Lyons (Beau, Polkadots), Diana Oh (my lingerie play, Clairvoyance) Preston Max Allen (Agent 355, We Are The Tigers). Directed by Brandon Powers and Sidney Erik Wright.

"We were so thrilled to celebrate five years by honoring Michael R. Jackson, a founding artist of MTF, whose incredible musical A Strange Loop is premiering now at Playwrights Horizons, where we are a resident company. We gathered our community to remember Darius Smith, uplift our incredible artists, and also succeeded in raising 1/4 of our annual budget to support our artists into our sixth year," said Mei Ann Teo, producing artistic director of MTF.

"MTF's wholehearted commitment to reimagining story-telling by creating avenues for equitable representation both onstage and offstage has transformed the face of musical theatre in New York City and beyond," said Robin Sokoloff, executive director of Town Stages. "We are thrilled to have hosted this special night honoring the extraordinary efforts of those who've contributed to Musical Theatre Factory's success."

For those who could not attend but would like to still donate they can do so at: mtf.nyc/high5

Larry Owens is a founding member of Musical Theatre Factory. He's the star of upcoming Factory developed musical A Strange Loop by Michael R Jackson, which ends the season at Playwrights Horizons. A proud member of AEA and WGA, Larry has credits spanning Off-Broadway, indie film and television writing. Most recently he was named a comic to watch by New York Magazine's Vulture.

Musical Theatre Factory is a 501(c)3 non-profit artist service organization dedicated to developing new work in a collaborative atmosphere free from the pressures of critical or financial success that dismantles oppressive ideologies towards collective liberation through powerful and joyful story and song. MTF's all access programming serves musical theatre makers in developing their work through the Assembly line of services, from Roundtables that are affinity spaces of POC and Women&Trans folx, to 4x15's and residencies that provide rehearsal time and space, support in finding collaborators, and public showings.

Town Stages (Robin Sokoloff, Executive Director) is a state-of-the-art cultural arts space, event venue, and cocktail bar in the heart of downtown Tribeca. With a stunning 10,000 square foot storefront facility, Town Stages blends convention-level facilities with captivating decor for 299 guests. Serving as New York's premier venue to celebrate, collaborate, and put on a show, Town Stages offers much needed meeting space and production resources for businesses, arts organizations, and families celebrating their very important day. Centrally located off all major NYC trains, Town Stages is available for corporate gatherings, fashion shows, film shoots, weddings, & beyond. Follow under @townstages and #itsyourtown.

townstages.com.

About Sokoloff Arts (501c3) at Town Stages

Sokoloff Arts (501c3) is a women-led cultural institution creating inspired space and cutting edge experiences at Town Stages. Helmed by a team of women from different backgrounds and multi-hyphenate artistic disciplines, Sokoloff Arts builds viable and safe places to congregate, strives to promote cross-cultural community activations, and blends the arts and business sectors to design sustainable solutions to social and financial inequalities in New York City and abroad. The organization assists young creators with mentorship, sponsorship, and fellowship by supporting ticketed performances and curated community programming in the performing arts, fine arts, and the advancement of social justice.

townstages.com/non-profit.

Photo by Mari Uchida

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