The Academy for New Musical Theatre (ANMT) is a non-profit 501 c(3) organization dedicated to the creation and development of new

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

. The organization is composed of writers, composers, producers and actors who work together to create new musicals. The workshop is located in 5628 Vineland Avenue,

North Hollywood, Los Angeles North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

History

ANMT was originally named The Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, and was founded by and under the direction of

Lehman Engel A. Lehman Engel (born September 14, 1910, Jackson, Mississippi - died August 29, 1982, New York City) was an American composer and conductor of Broadway musicals, television and film. Work in theatre, television and films Engel worked in a variety ...

. The

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

-based workshop was an extension of the

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

-based

BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI) is a performance rights organization in the United States. It collects blanket license fees from businesses that use music, entitling those businesses to play or sync any songs from BMI's repertoire of over 20.6 milli ...

. In the late 1970s, the West Coast tradition of the workshop was carried on by John Sparks, Marty Hansen, and Lenning Davis. After Lehman Engel's death in 1982, John Sparks took over the role of founding artistic director. The writer's workshop remained under the name: The Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop until 2002, when it became The Academy for New Musical Theatre. Moderators include: John Sparks (Founding Artistic Director), Scott Guy (Executive Director), and Elise Dewsberry (Artistic Director, Resident Dramaturg). Notable participants have included: Marc Hollman (

Urinetown ''Urinetown: The Musical'' is a satirical comedy musical that premiered in 2001, with music by Mark Hollmann, lyrics by Hollmann and Greg Kotis, and book by Kotis. It satirizes the legal system, capitalism, social irresponsibility, populism, burea ...

), Jeff Marx (

Avenue Q ''Avenue Q'' is a musical comedy featuring puppets and human actors with music and lyrics by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx and book by Jeff Whitty. It won Best Musical, Book, and Score at the 2004 Tony Awards. The show's format is a parody of PBS' ...

), Hunter Foster (Clyde 'n Bonnie),

Georgia Stitt Georgia Stitt (born June 17, 1972) is an American composer and lyricist, arranger, conductor, and musical director. Early life and education Stitt was born in Atlanta, but spent most of her childhood in Covington, Tennessee. She earned a B.Mus d ...

(The Water), and Placido Domingo Jr. (Vlad). Notable salon guests have included: Richard Sherman,

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

Winnie Holzman Winnie Holzman (born August 18, 1954 in Manhattan) is an American dramatist, screenwriter, and poet. She is known for having created the ABC television series ''My So-Called Life'', which led to a nomination for a scriptwriting Emmy Award in 1995, ...

, Jason Robert Brown, Charles Strouse,

Marty Panzer Marty Panzer (March 20, 1945) is an American songwriter and first song-writing partner of Barry Manilow. He is the author of over 30 songs recorded by Manilow and over a hundred songs for Disney Pictures. He also co-wrote the song " Through The Ye ...

, and Arthur Kopit.

Participation in the Workshop

The Writer's Workshop begins with the Core Curriculum in which writers complete foundation classes, craft specific labs, and are placed on writing teams to collaborate on various assignments. At the culmination, participants write and present a 15-minute musical. After Core Curriculum, writers might be asked to enter the Full Length Curriculum, in which participants create and develop a full length musical. After Full Length, some participants are invited to become members of the General Workshop in which writers receive developmental feedback on their projects on an ongoing basis.

Grants

The Academy for New Musical Theatre has received grants from the

BMI Foundation The BMI Foundation, Inc. is a non-profit organization founded in 1985 by executives of Broadcast Music Incorporated for the purpose of "encouraging the creation, performance and study of music through awards, scholarships, internships, grants, and c ...

, the Los Angeles County Arts Commission, the

National Endowment for the Arts The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that offers support and funding for projects exhibiting artistic excellence. It was created in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal ...

, Walt Disney Imagineering, and the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs.

Production history

"40 is the New 15" at the Noho Arts Center (2010)
"A Ring in Brooklyn" at the Noho Arts Center (2013)

References

From Seed to Song

Bit by Bit Putting it Together at The Academy for New Musical Theatre : Footlights

A ring in Brooklym

ANMT Events page

External links