Rhinebeck Writers Retreat Reveals Residencies For 24 Writers Of Nine New Musicals

For its 14th summer, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat is hosting 24 award-winning musical theatre writers of nine new musicals for nine consecutive weeklong residencies between June 23 and August 25. Each writing team will live in a private home in the Hudson Valley for one week to focus solely on writing their musical.

Writers include Oscar-nominated playwright Peter Hedges, 2024 Richard Rodgers and Larson Award winner Veronica Mansour, and Emmy-winning creative team the Q Brothers Collective. Rhinebeck Writers Retreat provides a home, travel, food and a stipend. Each team will work with a member of Rhinebeck Writers Retreat's Sounding Board of artistic advisors for dramaturgical support. Rhinebeck Writers Retreat also provides each team with a "Writers' Choice" grant, a flexible $1,000 fund the writers can use to support the development of their musical, made possible by a generous grant from the New York State Council on the Arts.

The nine musicals were selected from a record 219 applications representing 474 musical theatre writers, which were reviewed by 31 readers in the first round and six readers in the final round: Neil Bartram, Composer, Lyricist; Anika Chapin, Director of Artistic Development, Signature Theatre, DC; Timothy Huang, Composer, Lyricist, Librettist, Rhinebeck alum; Rehana Lew Mirza, Playwright, Kleban Award Winner, Rhinebeck alum; Kent Nicholson, Senior Vice President of Acquisitions and Artistic Services, Broadway Licensing Group; and Blair Russell, TONY-nominated producer.

All the writers' costs are covered by donors, including a $20,000 award from the National Endowment for the Arts, and a $49,500 award from The New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Governor and the New York State Legislature.

Since its creation in 2011, Rhinebeck Writers Retreat has supported over 200 musical theatre writers. In the past three years, eight musicals developed at Rhinebeck had world premieres including A.D. 16, by Bekah Brunstetter and Cinco Paul at Olney Theatre Center (MD); BHANGRA NATION, by Mike Lew, Rehana Lew Mirza, and Sam Willmott at La Jolla Playhouse (CA); MEXODUS, by Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson at Baltimore Center Stage (MD); TL;DR: THELMA LOUISE DYKE REMIX, by Brandon James Gwinn and EllaRose Chary at Diversionary Theatre (CA), and OPERATION MINCEMEAT, by David Cumming, Felix Hagan, Natasha Hodgson and Zoë Roberts at Fortune Theatre (London), which just won the Olivier award for Best New Musical. www.rhinebeckwriters.org

The writers and musicals selected for this summer and the supporters underwriting each week are:

-Jun 23 - Jun 30: Jackson Doran, Gregory Qaiyum, Jeffrey Qaiyum, Postell Pringle (The Q Brothers Collective), RAMI AND JALIYAH, with Lead Support by Steve and Paula Reynolds

-Jun 30 - Jul 7: Truth Bachman, SKYWARD: AN ENDLING ELEGY, with Lead Support by Molly McEneny

-Jul 7 - Jul 14: Sydney Shepherd, Peter Hedges, Regina Strayhorn, Adrian Blake Enscoe, Christopher Sears, WHAT'S EATING GILBERT GRAPE, with Lead Support by The ASCAP Foundation Bart Howard Fund

-Jul 14 - Jul 21: Brandy Collier, Erika Ji, Clare Bierman, YOKO'S HUSBAND'S KILLER'S JAPANESE WIFE, GLORIA, with Lead Support by Liz Armstrong

-Jul 21 - Jul 28: Derek Gregor, Selda Sahin, OFF SEASON, with Lead Support by The ASCAP Foundation Bart Howard Fund

-Jul 28 - Aug 4: Abs Wilson, Veronica Mansour, LIGHTHOUSE, with Lead Support by Liz and Bill Mills

-Aug 4 - Aug 11: Andy Roninson, Sean McVerry, UNTITLED DEAD FRIEND MUSICAL, with Lead Support by National Foundation for Musical Theater

-Aug 11 - Aug 18: AriDy Nox, Jacinth Greywoode, BLACK GIRL IN PARIS, with Lead Support by Paul Feuerman and Bruce Grivetti

-Aug 18 - Aug 25: Ken Savage, Jessia Hoffman, Kyle Ewalt, SOMEONE OVER THE RAINBOW, with Lead Support by The Noël Coward foundation, in honor of Geoffrey Johnson

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