2022 Musical Theater Lab Application

Prospect Seeks Applicants for

2022 Musical Theater Lab

Prospect Theater Company seeks applicants to participate in the 16th installment of its annual musical theater laboratory program. Each year, Prospect's lab brings together writing teams to create short musicals in response to a curated assignment. The 6-week program culminates in a public presentation of the new works generated through the lab process.

For the 2022 lab, we are again planning in-person writer meetings, rehearsals, and culminating performance. Robust safety protocols will be in place for all in-person work. All participating writers (and other lab artists and staff) will need to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination and be expected to participate in these protocols.

Pictured above: Prospect's 2021 Musical Theater Lab, RULE OF THREE, at Symphony Space.

L to R: Anessa Marie, Tatiana Wechsler, MinJi Kim, Amy Jo Jackson. Photo by Richard Termine.

DETAILS & HOW TO APPLY:

This year's lab is titled CAPTION THIS and the writing prompt will be visually based. Each lab writing team will create a short (8-10 minute) musical inspired by an image from a curated selection of photographs posted on social media platforms, to be performed by a cast of 2-4 performers.

Works generated in the lab will be presented in a one-night-only, concert-style public performance on Thursday, November 17, 2022 @ 7:30pm at Symphony Space (2537 Broadway, NYC) in the Peter J. Sharp Theater.

Application deadline: Wednesday, September 21, 2022 @ 11:59pm

Questions? Please email Dev@ProspectTheater.org. To request a 24-hour extension on your submission for any reason, please email Dev prior to the deadline.

HOW IT WORKS:

Selected lab writers will be invited to pitch three show concepts inspired by images in a curated photo gallery. With curatorial input, writing teams will select one of these ideas to develop into an 8-10 minute long musical. The short, new works will be written between Oct. 7 - Nov. 1, and then workshopped and rehearsed between Nov. 2 - 16, and presented as a single evening.

The culminating lab presentation will be directed by Dev Bondarin, Prospect's Associate Artistic Director.

HOW TO APPLY:

CLICK HERE TO ACCESS THE GOOGLE FORM APPLICATION

We strive to keep our open application process simple and efficient with a quick turnaround.
Please submit the name, role (composer, lyricist, bookwriter), and a brief bio / info for each member of the writing team.
Writers should apply with their intended collaborator(s). Individual "team of one" writers who wear multiple hats may also apply. New collaborative teams may also apply. (Prospect doesn't create teams or pair writers.)
Writers are asked to include links to 3 sample songs (either mp3s or videos are acceptable) along with a brief scene sample. Work samples that are representative of the collaborative team applying are best. If the application marks a new collaboration, please be clear in describing the relevance of each sample to the application.
DEADLINE: 11:59pm on Wednesday Sept 21, 2022.

THE LOGISTICS:

We invite writers to be as intimately and frequently engaged with the lab process as possible. Please review the timeline below to confirm the team’s availability for this project. The lab intentionally operates on a compact timeline and incorporates random, playful elements in order to encourage writers to make bold and in-the-moment choices in their creative process. If you or your team members will be unavailable for much of the planned process, it is best to wait for a future cycle to apply.

We expect selected teams will be notified on or around Mon Sept 26, 2022. We will begin with a Meet & Greet with writers and the director on Monday, Oct. 3rd to discuss the general process. If you apply, please try to hold this date -- as well as Tuesday, Oct. 18 evening -- open for in person group lab meetings.

The presentation will be performed by a versatile and diverse cast of actor-singers, drawn from Prospect’s network of alumni performers and other recommendations. For the 2022 Lab, to address continued COVID safety concerns, cast size will be limited to 2-4 performers who are dedicated to working on one primary project. Writers are encouraged to be at rehearsals, which take place over a two week period at a location in Manhattan, to be determined. The rehearsals will be a combination of day and evening time slots based on availability schedules submitted by the writing teams.

TIMELINE

Wed Sept 21 - Application Deadline

Mon Sept 26 - Writing teams notified on our about this date.

Mon Oct 3 - First group meeting of writers in evening (please hold this evening open for the meeting.)
Fri Oct 7 - Show concept pitches due.
Tues Oct 11 - Cast breakdown due.
Tues Oct 18 - Second group meeting of writers in evening (please hold this evening open for the meeting.)
Fri Oct 21 - Libretto first draft due.
Between Oct 21 - Oct 31 - Individual writing team meetings with director to be scheduled.
Tues Nov 1 - Completed rehearsal drafts of script and score due.
Wed Nov 2 - Earliest 1st rehearsal date.
Between Nov 2 - 16 - Rehearsals for each piece scheduled during this period.
Thurs Nov 17 - Afternoon technical rehearsal / sound check at Symphony Space. 7:30pm performance.

THE FINE PRINT

Artists, including writers, receive a modest honorarium for their participation in the lab.
Writers retain all copyright/ownership of their work.
Writers who have previously participated in the lab are welcome to re-apply, but not in the session immediately following their participation. (Ie: Writers may not participate in two back to back labs, they must take one year off before re-applying.)

Previous lab projects include Museum Pieces (2008), Map Quest (2009), Snapshots (2010), Souvenir Stories (2011), Rites of Passage (2012), Portraits (2013), Street Seen (2014), By The Numbers (2015), Stage Fright (2015), Archetype (2016), World Views (2017), Monument (2018), Message In A Bottle (2019), Move Meant (2020), Rule of Three (2021).