Lin-Manuel Miranda, Craig Carnelia Set For 6/25 Johnny Mercer Songwriters Proj.

New Voices: Chicago is proud to present an exciting evening with the 2009 Johnny Mercer Songwriter's Project on Thursday, June 25, 2009.

The special concert will feature the 11 talented songwriters and composing teams of The 2009 Mercer Project. This year's participants include: Danny Abosch, Jordean Beck & Jonathan May, Obed Bermudez & Jennifer Pena, Ben Camp, Michael Cooper & Hyeyoung Kim, Graham Fink, Samuel Hall Flanigan, Robert Gontier & Nicole Phillips, Riley Thomas Markey, Femke Weidma, and Emily Pritchard as they perform their freshly written material. It will also feature this year's guest Master Teachers: Tony Award-nominated composer and lyricist, Craig Carnelia; Tony Award-winning composer, lyricist, and star of the musical In The Heights, Lin-Manuel Miranda; and three-time Grammy Award-winning singer and songwriter, Lari White.

Severing as Music Director, Dan Stetzel, will accompany vocalists including Amanda De La Guardia, and others soon be announced.

The exciting series, produced by David Tomczak, in association with composer Scott Alan, has been embraced by the Chicago theatre community and continues its tradition of bringing together rising talent. New Voices: Chicago strives to showcase talent on both a local and a national level and provides an intimate atmosphere for the audience to become included in witnessing the development of contemporary musical theatre.

The Johnny Mercer Foundation is a nonprofit organization devoted to preserving and celebrating the work of Johnny Mercer and other great American songwriters, and introducing their music to a new generation through educational programs for students from elementary through college age. The Foundation also supports charitable organizations through royalties from Mercer's more than 1,500 songs. This year marks the centennial of Mercer's birth. To learn more about the Foundation, visit: http://johnnymercerfoundation.com/intro.html.

The evening will begin at 8:30PM at The Theatre Building Chicago, located at 1225 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL. 60657. Tickets are $15 and can be purchased through Ticketmaster.

Other exciting events featuring the Mercer Project include:

Johnny Mercer Songwriters Project, Songwriters Showcase, 8 p.m. Friday, June 26, Josephine Louis Theater, 20 Arts Circle Drive. An audience favorite, this evening of original music features the works of emerging songwriters from across the country who represent the fields of pop, music theatre, folk, Latin and country music. Tickets are $10.

Johnny Mercer Songwriters Project, Johnny Mercer Celebration Concert with guest artists Liz Callaway and Capathia Jenkins, 8 p.m. Saturday, June 27, Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive. A special one-night-only concert featuring Broadway stars Liz Callaway ("Merrily We Roll Along," "Baby") and Capathia Jenkins ("Caroline, or Change") and celebrating the centennial of Johnny Mercer's birth. The evening also features performances by Tony Award-nominated composer/lyricist Craig Carnelia, Tony Award-winning composer/performer Lin-Manuel Miranda and Grammy Award-winning Nashville singer/songwriter Lari White, as well as talented young songwriters participating in the Mercer Songwriters Project. The program will be directed by Dominic Missimi. Tickets are $30 for Festival subscribers and $35 for the general public.