New York Theatre Barn to Present Works By Students of Tony Award-Winning Composer William Finn

New York Theatre Barn will present concerts of work written by members of Tony Award-winning writer William Finn's (Falsettos, Spelling Bee) first two virtual Master Classes in Lyric Writing. The non-profit theatre company that serves as a home for original culture shifting musicals during incubation will offer two free live stream presentations: Thursday, May 20th @ 7PM and Thursday, May 27th @ 7PM. The hour-long presentations, produced in association with Lauren Taslitz, will be available on New York Theatre Barn's YouTube channel.

Inspired by his love of teaching, and a desire to motivate emerging writers to continue to hone their craft during the pandemic, William Finn met with writers every Sunday afternoon for two consecutive 10-week sessions, creating communities in which the writers could share and receive feedback on their work. The result is the wonderful collection of songs that will be featured in the concerts. Maestra, an organization that provides support, visibility, and community for the women who make the music in the musical theatre industry, gave Bill the opportunity to identify and invite female-identifying lyricists and composers into the room.

Thursday, May 20th @ 7PM:

On May 20th, the featured writers include: Laura Barati, Allison Light, Jacob Fjeldheim, Diana Lawrence, Jaime Jarrett, Maria Caputo, Morgan Smart, Eric Matthew Richardson, Julián Mesri, Anne Garcia-Romero, Alex Syiek, Robert Lee Poole III and Danny Ursetti. The performers include Anna Paloma, Terran Scott, Kelly Plescia and more.

Thursday, May 27th @ 7PM:

On May 27th, the featured writers include Morgan Smart, Pearl Rhein, Neena Beber, Laura Barati, Jamie Cowperthwait, Jessica Fleitman, Charlie Romano, Sean McCabe, Paulie Pecorella, Kenny Harmon, Rachel Ohnsman, Alex Syiek, Haley L. Bennett, Sheela Ramesh, Benji Goldsmith, Danny Ursetti, Jacob Fjeldhiem, David Kornfeld, and Sarah Nelson. The performers include Kara Arena, Ally Bonino, Jeanna de Waal, Eric Petersen, Sydne Lyons and more.

Under the direction of Joe Barros (Artistic Director) and Jen Sandler (Associate Artistic Director), New York Theatre Barn has been incubating original musicals in front of live audiences since 2007. Over the past year, the company has presented 88 new musicals, lifted up the work of over 164 writers, made space for over 500 artists, and launched Theatre Barn Records (a new imprint of Broadway Records dedicated to new musicals in development). NYTB values musical theatre as one of the world's supreme healing tools, and creates space for artists to dream about how extraordinary the world can be. For more information, visit New York Theatre Barn's website: www.nytheatrebarn.org.