Taylor Iman Jones, Grey Henson and More to Star in NAMT's 37th Annual FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS

National Alliance for Musical Theatre has revealed the initial casting and more details about the lineup for the 37th Annual FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS, which takes place on Thursday, October 23 and Friday, October 24, 2025, at New World Stages.

Now in its 37th year, the National Alliance for Musical Theatre's FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS is an industry-only professional development event offering the chance to discover eight new musicals presented in 45-minute concert presentations over two days to hundreds of producers, presenters, artistic & executive directors, investors, donors, developers and creative administrators in Regional Theatre, Broadway, Music, Film & TV from all around the globe. As a non-profit organization, NAMT funds the Festival entirely through donations, sponsorships and contributions which underwrite all production costs.  

PRELIMINARY FESTIVAL CASTING 

Preliminary casting for the 37th Annual FESTIVAL OF NEW MUSICALS includes Aeden Croix Alvarez (Perelman PAC), Gabriel Bernal (Tour: The Lightning Thief), Mayelah Berrera (Theatreworks: El Otro Oz), Chad Carstarphen (Hell’s Kitchen), Miguel Cervantes (Hamilton), Genesis Adelia Collado (59e59: Notes from Now), Brandon Contreras (Operation Mincemeat), Major Curda (KPOP), Dexter Darden (Peacock: Saved by the Bell), Sidney Dupont (Paradise Square), Latoya Edwards (White Girl in Danger), Andrew Faria (Paper Mill Playhouse: Rent), Andrea Frierson (Once on This Island), Abe Goldfarb (Beetlejuice), Ted Guzman (Pittsburgh CLO: Anything Goes), Grey Henson (Shucked), F. Michael Haynie (The Heart of Rock and Roll), MaryAnn Hu (Frozen), Ryan Jacobs (Starlight Theater: School of Rock), Taylor Iman Jones (SIX: The Musical), Claire Kwon (Maybe Happy Ending), Raymond J. Lee (Masquerade), Nathan Levy (Disney’s Aladdin), Xosé Monge (Amazon Prime: The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel), Belén Moyano (Hadestown), Ari Notartomaso (Paramount+: Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies), James Olivas (West End: Evita), Jennifer Sanchez (Real Women Have Curves), AJ Shively (Bright Star), Elizabeth Teeter (Heathers: The Musical), Cindy Tsai (Ars Nova: The Jordan and Avery Show), Lucas Wu (AppleTV+: Wonder Pets), Anna Zavelson (The Notebook).   

Final casting will be announced soon. The casting director for the Festival of New Musicals is Michael Cassara, CSA.  

COLLEGE ROADTRIP LINEUP 

Programs from NAMT’s academic members will be featured this year at the Festival as a part of COLLEGE ROADTRIP. Each Festival afternoon will highlight a double bill of cabaret performances from musical theatre projects developed at colleges & universities from across the country, offering a unique opportunity for a sneak peek into the vibrant musical theatre scene happening nationwide. This year’s College Roadtrip will include:  

Florida State University 

PREVIEW@FSU (Tallahassee, FL) 

Featuring songs from musicals by Sam Caps, Annie Dillon, Phillip Palmer & Stacey Luftig 

Michigan State University Department of Theatre 

New Musical Laboratory (East Lansing, MI) 

Featuring songs from musicals by Joey Contreras, Ryan Scott Oliver, Sonya Hayden & Matt Lowy 

Syracuse University Department of Drama  

New Works/New Voices (Syracuse, NY) 

Featuring songs from musicals by abs wilson, Veronica Mansour, Letitia Bullard & Nathan Leitão 

San Diego State University  

Musical Theatre Program (San Diego, CA)