Musical Theatre Review reports on a great new initiative at Theatre Royal Stratford East - a new British musical theatre development scheme that's the first in a series of planned annual partnerships with organisations supporting musical theatre. That can only be good for #StageFaves performers too - more shows, more chances to see our faves in them!
British musical theatre is to receive a major boost with the launch of a new partnership between Theatre Royal Stratford East and New Musical Development Collective (NMDC), an organisation set up to develop homegrown musicals and genre artists. Joining forces with the prestigious London venue, NMDC will launch its inaugural Musical Theatre Lab (MT-Lab) on 7 March and will be in residence at Theatre Royal Stratford East for a full year, culminating with a public sharing of work on 9 March 2018. Founded and run by Sevan Tavoukdjian, Adam Lenson (whose #StageFaves shows include The Sorrows of Satan and Whisper House) and Aaron Rogers, NMDC’s stated aims are to foster and develop new contemporary British musicals.
The residency at Stratford East is planned as the first in a series of annual partnerships with organisations that have an interest in new musical theatre, allowing companies to utilise their expertise to support the development of new musicals and nurture the talents of composers, songwriters., lyricists and playwrights from all backgrounds. The MT-Lab writers will receive: a £1,000 stipend; year-long dramaturgy and development; industry and skills masterclasses and workshops; a work-in-progress sharing at The Other Palace; an excerpt sharing at Theatre Royal Stratford East; a 12-month membership to Mercury Musical Developments; free tickets to Theatre Royal Stratford East productions; and access to hot desks and rehearsal rooms.
The inaugural 2017 NMDC MT-Lab writers, chosen from an open call for applications, will include (pictured): Zara McFarlane, Amber Hsu, Stu Barter, Firdos Ali, Nikki Burnhope, Shireen Mula, Joe Von Malachowski, and David Austin Grey.
