Musical Theatre Matters (MTM:UK)

Planning starts for the second season of Musical Theatre at George Square for Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2009

Sat, 04 Oct 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Following the popular, critical, and artistic success of Musical Theatre @ George Square, planning has now begun for 2009! The University of Edinburgh Festivals Office will again join forces with ChrisGrady.org and Pleasance Theatres in producing a Musical Theatre Programme to grasp everyone’s attention.

For August 2009, the project will be back offering Edinburgh Fringe audiences an alternative dedicated venue with a diverse programme of emerging talents, established talent and brand new Musicals. This year George Square Theatre also hosted a lively, and very sparkly, café bar and box office creating a hub for our other dedicated Musical Theatre Venues George 2, George 3 and George 4.

All four venues, cleverly created and adapted for this year’s project, were an amazing success, attracting new audiences and thrilling existing Fringe-goers. This year allowed for a large programme, ranging from an intimate exchange with a solo performer to the spectacle of dance and choral power - this project really is something to talk about!

Musical Theatre @ George Square in 2008 was the overall banner for five different audience experiences:

• George 1, with 481 seats, which this year rang to the battle cries of ONLY THE BRAVE starring Niamh Perry and Keith Jack.
• George 2, the intimate 87 seat space, offered the world premiere of JET SET GO which has already had a London transfer and is on the hot list of many producers.
• George 3 (Free) offered a dedicated free masterclass programme for performers, producers, singers and writers.
• George 4, with 275 seats, gave audiences the chance to be part of BIG BRUVVA – THE MUSICAL or to celebrate the coming of age of the lads from DEPARTURE LOUNGE (a new work also in discussion for long-term commercial production).
• And finally the Singers Café where performers and audience had the chance to let their hair down, sing and showcase the best of Musical Theatre.

Musical Theatre @ George Square is to British Musical Theatre what off-off-Broadway is to the New York and American scene – open to all, willing audiences to experiment, and giving a platform for professional discovery. The search for exciting new projects, enterprising producers, and shows that will pack a punch (and a large auditorium) begins in earnest this month.

The exact format for 2009 is to be confirmed, with details to follow at a later date.
For past details of the 2008 programme, please visit: http://www.festivals.ed.ac.uk/

Interested parties are invited to contact the programming consultants, ChrisGrady.org, at the earliest opportunity. For more information, please visit: http://www.chrisgrady.org/

Jet Set Go! transfers to London's Theatre503

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Hit Edinburgh Fringe Musical, Jet Set Go! by Pippa Cleary and Jake Brunger, will transfer to London's new writing powerhouse Theatre503 for a limited engagement, 2-6 September 2008 @ 8.00pm nightly.

For only the second time in its 25-year history and the current artistic directorship of Tim Roseman and Paul Robinson, Theatre503 will play host to a brand new musical. Jet Set Go! transfers from a highly successful sell-out run at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2008 where it received rave reviews from all the major Festival press and special commendations at the Musical Theatre Matters (MTM:UK) Awards.

Jet Set Go! is the first “home grown” musical by Take Note Theatre associate composer, Pippa Cleary, and associate writer, Jake Brunger. The production was initially presented in repertoire with I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change at Musical Theatre @ George Square, the fringe festival’s first dedicated series of new musical theatre venues, prior to being offered the London transfer in Theatre503’s traditional post-Edinburgh slot which was designed to show off the best that the festival had to offer.

Commenting on the transfer, artistic director Tim Roseman stated:

“Theatre503 has always been committed to nurturing the freshest emerging talent, and we are hugely excited to be starting to work with musical writers alongside straight dramatists. Pippa Cleary and Jake Brunger have a glorious, generous style and a humour that is all-too uncommon in musical theatre. Jet Set Go! is a fabulous first piece from promising company Take Note Theatre, and we were attracted to its verve, wit, laugh-out-loud humour, joyous numbers and sheer spirit. We are looking forward to working with them on the development of the piece while it is with us.”

To book tickets, please visit: http://www.theatre503.com/

Special MTM:UK Members Offer: On Thursday 4 September, tickets for MTM:UK members are just £8.00! To take advantage of the offer, call the box office on 020 7978 7040 or buy on the door.

Winners announced for 2008 MTM:UK Awards at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The winners have been announced for the second annual Musical Theatre Awards at Edinburgh's Festival Fringe. The ceremony took place at 10am in the Music Hall at Assembly @ George Street in front of a full audience, where several other awards (including the Scotsman’s final Fringe Firsts) were also announced. The MTM:UK segment was presented by Dr. Nick Phillips, Head of Musical Theatre at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, and West End star Frances Ruffelle.

One production – BARBERSHOPERA! – walked away with two awards: the MTM:UK Award for Best Lyrics in a New Musical and the prestigious OD Musical Award for Most Promising New Musical. Two other award winners were also announced – DEPARTURE LOUNGE won the MTM:UK Award for Best Music in a New Musical (music by Dougal Irvine), and FUNK IT UP ABOUT NOTHIN’ received the Dress Circle Award for Best Musical Production. They also closed the whole ceremony with a performance of their rap title song.

The judging panel, this year, decided not to give an award in the Best Book for a New Musical. Whilst a highly unusual decision, the judges felt that there were no Musicals with a book of a high enough quality at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2008. Instead, the move to withhold the Best Book award is hoped to be seen to set a certain bar for next year which we hope companies, bringing Musical Theatre to next year’s festival, will feel challenged to strive to achieve.

Click here for a full list of the winners.

Click here to read our news story on the nominations announcements.

BBC Scotland: Sound of musicals at Fringe

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

BBC Scotland paid a visit to George Square Theatres at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, the festival's first set of dedicated Musical Theatre venues, last week and recorded a video report featuring segments from the European Premiere production of Zanna, Don't! (RSAMD) and the World Premiere of a brand new Musical, Only The Brave (Daniel Sparrow and Patrick Gracey), starring reality TV favourites - Keith Jack and Niamh Perry.

Andrew Panton, Head of Musical Theatre at RSAMD, and Chris Grady, Chair of MTM:UK, are among the individuals who are interviewed.

Click here to watch the report.

Nominations announced for 2008 MTM:UK Awards at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe

Sat, 16 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

The nominations have been announced for the second annual Musical Theatre Awards at Edinburgh's Festival Fringe. Two productions – DEPARTURE LOUNGE at Musical Theatre @ George Square and ON THE ISLAND OF AARS at Pleasance Courtyard - are leading the pack with nominations for all five titles.

Last year’s winners have since had big successes with; Eurobeat (which won the Best Musical Production award) just about to head into the West End after a major tour; Truth In Translation (for which Hugh Masekela won Best Composer) which received a lengthy US tour last year and embarks on a Balkan tour in September 2008; and Tir Nan Og (which won the Dress Circle Award for Best New Musical) transferred to London as part of the Perfect Pitch festival of new Musicals and received a highly successful tour of Scotland.

This year, we’re proud to be associated with our sponsors, OD Musical (Korea) and Dress Circle in London.

Click here for a full list of the nominees.

Over the next week the Judges will review each show and reach agreement by the time of the announcement as part of the Scotsman Fringe First Awards Ceremony on Friday 22^nd August at Assembly Hall.

Co-Chair of the Awards panel, Dr. Nick Phillips, announced the 2008 nominations on stage at George Square Theatres, the first dedicated set of Musical Theatre venues at the Edinburgh Fringe, as part of the MTM:UK Question Time on the morning of Saturday 16 August 2008. He comments:

"When considering the selection of nominated musicals in our five categories we started from the basis that Musical Theatre can be viewed in terms of the noun ‘theatre’ and the adjective ‘musical’ to describe shows which focus on character in action expressed through song and/or dance. Rather than being a simple escape, it is perhaps the most complex form of theatrical synthesis and hence why so much of it fails to reach the aspirations of this most complex of forms.

In addition we wanted to measure the relative success of how a show balances the demands of inner dramatic tension with overt theatricality and convention. It has been particularly interesting to note the strength of musical comedy this year in the 49 shows viewed, in particular aspirations to lyrical wit, and this is reflected in the nominations.”

These awards are now in their second year, having been launched in 2007 to celebrate the creativity of the Fringe and the potential of those creating work in Britain today.

MTM:UK Chair, Chris Grady, Speaks to TheatreVoice

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Chris Grady, the Chair of Musical Theatre Matters:UK, was interviewed by the online podcasting service TheatreVoice last month. It's now online and available to stream or download.

For anyone interested in the history of the Vivian Ellis Prize or the founding of MTM:UK, please do take a listen and hear Chris talk about the state of new work in the UK as well as George Square Theatres in Edinburgh, a venue dedicated to Musical Theatre at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

Listen at: http://www.theatrevoice.com/listen_now/player/?audioID=596

Musical Theatre Masterclasses - George 3

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 00:00:00 +0000

37 Free Masterclasses at George Free
As part of the
Musical Theatre at George Square season
Edinburgh Festival Fringe Aug 2008

With thousands of performers, writers, producers, directors and committed audience members descending of Edinburgh through August, CGO is preparing a programme to allow each and all to run away from their current show and go back to school for 90 minutes, in the company of some teachers and guides across every facet of Musical Theatre creation.

In conjunction with the University of Edinburgh Festivals Office, located at Alison House, the University Music Department, each class will be for a max of 25 people (*) and places can be booked via the Fringe office, at the Musical Theatre at George Square box office or www.festivals.ed.ac.uk in the unusual way. (* a few classes are marked for fewer people – check with the box office).

Tutors include John Sparks, from Theatre Building Chicago flying in for just two days, David James, chair of the UK Writers Guild Theater Writing Committee, Des O’Connor ukulele, vaudeville and musical theatre composer, Donna Soto-Moretini who’s work as vocal coach and guide on Nancy, Joseph and Maria searches gives her a unique insight into “the Reality of Reality” and audition techniques to get you through, Richard Jordan looking at producing in Edinburgh and beyond, Chris Grady hoping to give a few insights into sponsorship, fundraising and developing new work, and Anne Marie Lewis Thomas, composer, teacher, and director of the new Musical Theatre Academy in in London.

Bookwriters and composers will share their experience, and challenge perceptions of Musical Theatre in a series of classes led by Julian Wolford, Susannah Pearse, Trevor Alexander. Directors and Choreographers will explore staging Musical Theatre led by Dr Nick Phillips, Sally Rapier, Helen and Jamie Read. And there’ll be a chance to explore Improv, songwriting with the Showstopper team of Adam McGuido and Dylan Emery.

Writers of Musical Theatre will have two sessions when they can “pitch” new work and new ideas to a panel led by Andy Barnes, the creator and director of Perfect Pitch Development and look at ways that writers can develop their work, their craft, and their chances.

Musical Theatre at George Square is a first year collaboration between the University and CGO to host a dedicated programme of new work and new productions at the very heart of the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Running from July 31st – Aug 25th across 3 paid performance venues and the masterclass spaces. Below George 1 there will be the Singers’ Café every night where performers can do their stuff, and throughout the day the Café and Dress Circle (the west end music store open for business in Edinburgh this August) will welcome performers, musical theatre lovers, and passers by on the way to the Meadows. Drop in and see what’s happening.

To download the schedule for all the masterclasses, please click here.

Arts Council London funds MTM:UK

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0000

At the AGM on Mon 7th July Nick Williams of Arts Council London confirmed a grant to MTM:UK for 2008/9 towards the development of the network with an intention that this funding will be continued for the next two years.

“We had asked for £7,500 per year to help with our work. We are delighted that the officers and powers that be at the Arts Council have made that offer to us, and endorsed enthusiastically the work which we have done since our formation in Dec 05. Thanks to Nick, to Emma Stenning, previous Head of Theatre for Arts Council London, and Jemima Lee, a long-time champion for new Musical Theatre work during her years in the drama department at Arts Council London.

Its taken 16 years of gentle discussion to reach the point where Musical Theatre is included as a Strategy objective in any area of the Arts Council. At the last AGM in 2007 when Emma and Jemima first met MTM and challenged us to put our case carefully and constructively to change Policy, through to last month, has been a fascinating and immensely positive time for us. And the result is great” Chris Grady/Chair MTM:UK

George Square Theatre plans 2008

Sun, 13 Jul 2008 00:00:00 +0000

GEORGE SQUARE THEATRE TO BE CENTRE FOR A FESTIVAL OF MUSICAL THEATRE DURING EDINBURGH FESTIVAL FRINGE 2008

For the first time in the Fringes history, Edinburgh has a dedicated home for Musical Theatre as George Square Theatre plans for the best of new and classic Musical Theatre across three performance spaces. The Festivals Office at the University of Edinburgh will be operating the venue in partnership with Chris Grady.org and supported by Anthony Alderson and his highly renowned team at Pleasance Theatre. Chris was previously Head of Licensing of Cameron Mackintosh; he founded Musical Theatre Matters (MTM:UK) in 2005 and established the first Edinburgh Festival Fringe MTM:UK Musical Theatre Awards in 2007.

These spaces George 1, George II and George Free will be complemented by a musical caf and bar, musical theatre shop, talks, master classes and showcases. George Square Theatres will be THE place to be this Festival. Almost a Festival within a Festival the Edinburgh Festival of Musical Theatre.

Chris Grady commented I am delighted that the University of Edinburgh Festivals Office have decided to offer companies and audiences the very first dedicated venues for Musical Theatre. Edinburgh is a fantastic launch pad for new writers, new talent, and new producers. It is also a great opportunity for professional, student and community companies to offer audiences productions of musical theatre classics. Working with the Pleasance Theatre management and technical teams on the development of George II and the marketing of the programme will hopefully ensure the best possible start for this important initiative. Now we look forward to listening to many new projects for this years Festival
The University of Edinburgh Festivals Office is heavily involved in all Edinburghs various festivals throughout the year, in particular, The Edinburgh International Science Festival, and the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

The Edinburgh Festival Fringe takes place 3rd-25th August 2008 and marks a return for George Square Theatre following a major refurbishment in 2007. Owned by the University, its 481 capacity auditorium will be supported by a 95 seat Studio space, with wide open musical theatre stage. In addition, a third free performance space completes the project creating a focus and centre for musical theatre.