McKechnie, Cerveris, Murphy and More On Board for New School's Summer Music Theatre Immersion

For three weeks this June, a small classroom in Greenwich Village will be packed with Broadway talent, as well as young performers.

A select group of students will benefit from the tips of the trade from musical theater stars, choreographers, and casting agents as part of The Summer Music Theater Immersion Experience, a new program just announced by The New School for Drama. The program, which begins June 12, is designed to prepare aspiring performing artists for a career in music theater, and is open to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as professionals looking for more specialized training.

Under the direction of New School Drama Faculty Member Keith Buhl and Music Theater Group producer Diane Wondisford, a faculty of distinguished industry professionals will be joined by visiting music theater artists and professionals who will teach master classes and workshops. Guest-instructors currently scheduled to teach include Tony Award/Drama Desk Award/Outer Critics Circle Award-winners Michael Cerveris (Sweeney Todd, Assassins, The Who's Tommy), Wayne Cilento (Choreographer: The Who's Tommy, Sweet Charity, Wicked), Bill Irwin (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, Fool Moon, The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?), Donna McKechnie (A Chorus Line original cast), Donna Murphy (The King and I, Wonderful Town, Passion), Denis O'Hare (Take Me Out, Assassins, Sweet Charity), Michele Pawk (Hollywood Arms, Mamma Mia!, Cabaret), Christopher Sieber (Spamalot, Chicago, Into the Woods), and Bernard Telsey (Casting Director: The Color Purple, Hairspray, Wicked, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and co-artistic director of MCC Theater).

A new initiative spearheaded by New School for Drama Director Robert LuPone, the program is an extension of the school's redesigned curriculum, which is focused not only on serious training, but also on performance and building the careers of a new generation of actors, directors, and playwrights.

"The intensive program will include a challenging array of activities that engage students day and night. As music theater is a demanding art form that requires a wide range of skills, instruction will be offered in speech, voice, acting, and dance. Students will also have the opportunity to see three Broadway shows and speak to the casts afterward—giving them the rare chance to learn and interact with successful theater actors, dancers, and singers. Two of the productions featured in the program are Sweeney Todd and The Light in the Piazza. In addition, participants will receive two individual voice lessons, and two individual vocal coaching sessions. Small classes of no more that 24 participants will allow for copious feedback and help students access the full range of their imaginative and creative powers," state press notes.

For more information about the Summer Music Theater Immersion Experience, including how to register for the program, please email dramasummer@newschooledu, call 212.229.5859 x2628, or visit www.drama.newschool.edu. For more information, visit www.drama.newschool.edu.