THE DISAPPEARING MAN, POST-OP and More Slated for Musical Theatre Factory's Fall 2015 Season

Musical Theatre Factory (MTF), under the leadership of founding Artistic Director Shakina Nayfack, has announced its fall 2015 season which will support the development of over 15 new shows.

The four-month season features Musical Theatre Factory's second showcase production THE DISAPPEARING MAN, a new folk opera written by Jahn Sood. THE DISAPPEARING MAN takes place backstage at a small-time circus in 1936 and the story of a magician and his lovely assistant as they fight to break free of the roles they've always played. The show was previously developed by Musical Theatre Factory at Cloud City in January 2014 as well as at Theatreworks Silicon Valley and SPACE at Ryder Farm. THE DISAPPEARING MAN will run Thursday through Saturday nights, from December 3 - December 20.

MTF Artistic Director Shakina Nayfack's new solo show POST-OP will have its world premiere on September 22 at Joe's Pub. The one woman show, written and performed by Nayfack, follows Shakina's pilgrimage to Thailand to undertake gender confirmation surgery. POST-OP was developed through the Musical Theatre Factory Writers' Group, and includes songs by Julianne Wick Davis, Ty Defoe, Michael R. Jackson, Teresa Lotz, Lauren Marcus, Sam Salmond, Zoe Sarnak, Tidtaya Sinutoke, Shaina Taub and Joel Waggoner. The show is directed by Sarna Lapine, with music direction by Jacob Yates.

On November 9, MTF will present its first gala, "Get Yourself Some NEW ORCHESTRATIONS!" with The Chelsea Symphony at Merkin Concert Hall. The event will feature fully orchestrated excerpts from four new musicals including THE WHITE CITY (Book and Lyrics by Julia Gytri, Music by Avi Amon, Orchestrated by Kim Sherman), RADIOACTIVE (Book and Lyrics by Eric Price, Music by Will Reynolds, Orchestrated by Doug Besterman), ONLY ANNE (Book and Lyrics by John Dietrich, Music by Will Buck, Orchestrated by William David Brohn) and THE FIREBIRD (Book and Lyrics by Christopher Staskel, Music by Lisa Burns, Orchestrated by Matt Aument), as well as a special presentation of excerpts from THE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY (Book by Marsha Norman, Lyrics and Music by Jason Robert Brown, Newly Orchestrated by Charlie Rosen).

The Musical Theatre Factory "Assembly Line" continues through the fall with a series of development residencies each culminating with a public showing of new material, including TEETH (September 20, Book & Lyrics by Anna Jacobs, Music by Michael R. Jackson), NIKOLA TESLA DROPS THE BEAT (September 28, Book and Lyrics by Benjamin Halstead, Music by Nikko Benson), THE HAPPY HOOKER (October 5, Book and Lyrics by Richard Hansom, Music by Henry Aronson with additional music by Warren Wills ), NEWTON'S CRADLE (October 16, Book by Kim Saunders, Music and Lyrics by Heath Saunders) and THE AWAKENING (October 26, Book and Lyrics by Sarah Rebell, Music by Teresa Lotz).

Musical Theatre Factory's innovative 4x15 program selects four new musicals monthly and offers each writing team a cast, creative staff, and five hours of rehearsal space to stage fifteen-minute excerpts of their shows. The selections are presented together in one evening before a panel of industry guests and a public audience. 4x15 - Round 13 (September 14) will feature new work from MTF's writers group, including NIKOLA TESLA DROPS THE BEAT (Book and Lyrics by Benjamin Halstead, Music by Nikko Benson), HART ISLAND (Book and Lyrics by Michelle Elliott, Music by Danny Larson), A STRANGE LOOP (Book, Lyrics and Music by Michael R. Jackson) and SHADES OF WAYNE (Book and Lyrics by Christopher Staskel, Music by Lisa Burns). 4x15 - Round 14 -- "Out of this World" (October 19) will feature work from MARATHON (Book by Hunter Bird, Music and Lyrics by Vinny Stodder), THE WRONG BOX (Book, Lyrics and Music by Kit Goldstein Grant), THE EXTRAORDINARY FALL OF THE FOUR-LEGGED WOMAN (Book, Lyrics and Music by Lily Ali-Oshatz) and HAPPILY NEVER AFTER (Book by Mimi Cassidy, Lyrics and Music by Rebecca Greenstein). 4x15 - Round 15 -- "Belonging" (November 23) will feature work from MACKENZIE AND THE MISSING BOY (Book, Lyrics and Music by Joel B. New), HURRICANE (Book, Lyrics and Music by Michael Finke), QUESTION 1 (Book, Lyrics and Music by Chris Reza) and EASTBOUND (Book and Lyrics by Khiyon Hursey, Book and Music by Cheeyang Ng).

The Factory Salon, where new and established musical theatre writers are invited to share previously unheard songs, will be held on September 17 with guest host Julian Fleisher (February House, The Performers). Factory Salons will also take place October 22 and November 19, with guest hosts still to be announced.

Musical Theatre Factory is a volunteer-based organization dedicated to helping musical theatre artists develop and present new work in a collaborative environment free from the pressures of critical or commercial success. MTF is located at 250 W. 40th Street, between 7th and 8th Avenues, on the 4th floor, in New York, NY. For more information or to get involved with Musical Theatre Factory as a volunteer, visit www.mtf.nyc or call 347-871-4615.

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