The Biz: A Conference for Actors - In Two Weeks!

Our 2010 Actor Conference begins on Friday, August 6 - that's two weekends from now!

There will be tons of interesting panels on things actors need to know to be successful: how to network, how to audition, how to avoid common mistakes, and how to generally thrive as an actor.

In addition to the seminars, this event brings you into the proximity of Broadway producers, directors, casting directors, agents, and many more! And thus, it is a rare networking opportunity.

Interested? The schedule, and specific panel information is below! You can register at http://www.anmt.org/conference_actors.asp.

Conference Schedule

Friday, August 06, 2010

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM
Opening Wine & Cheese Schmooze

8:00 PM - 10:00 PM

THE STATE OF THINGS (Panel)

Mixed panel of Director, Agent, Casting Director, Producer, and Actor discuss the state of the industry today from various perspectives.

Confirmed Panelists:
Gerry Koch (Senior Agent, The Gage Group)
Steven Glaudini (Producing Artistic Director, Musical Theatre West)
Richard Israel (Director)
Forbes Candlish (Producer)

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Saturday, August 07, 2010

9:00 AM - 10:00 AM
Coffee and Donut Schmooze

10:00 AM - 11:30 AM

WORKSHOP: AUDITION TOOLS (Panel)

Auditioning is an art unto itself. Concrete, simple tools and methods you can use to get your mind in a good place so that you walk into every room set up for success.

Confirmed Panelists:
Dan Callaway (Actor, Vocal Teacher)
Heather Provost (Broadway Producer)
Angel Creeks (Dancer/Singer/Choreographer)

11:30 AM - 1:15 PM

THE ACTOR AS ENTREPRENEUR or FIRING YOUR DAY JOB (Panel)

Stop being a poor, desperate actor, get your money in shape, and thrive. It’s not as hard as you think. A panel of entertainment pros tell you how to do it.

Confirmed Panelists:
Brian Bellomo (Lead Coach for Abundance Bound)
Michael Salerno (Western Regional Manager - Actors Work Program at the Actors' Fund)
James Leo Ryan (Broadway Actor)
Evelyn Halus (Performer and Vocal Coach)
Thomas Griep (Musical Director)

1:15 PM - 1:45 PM
Lite Lunch Schmooze

1:45 PM - 3:15 PM

SHOOTING YOURSELF IN THE FOOT (Panel)

The things actors unwittingly do that lose them work.

Confirmed Panelists:
Rob Sternin (Executive Producer, TV)
Pru Fraser (Executive Producer, TV)
Nick DeGruccio (Artistic Director, Havoc Theatre Company)
Bob Fraser (Writer, Producer, Show Runner, Author)
Thomas Griep (Musical Director)

3:15 PM - 3:30 PM
Coffee Break Schmooze

3:30 PM - 5:30 PM

PERSPECTIVE: BEHIND THE TABLE (Panel)

What it’s really like on the other side of the table. Mixed panel offers perspective on what the actor is walking into when they enter the room.

Confirmed Panelists:
Amy Lieberman (Casting Director, Amy Lieberman CSA)
Heather Provost (Broadway Producer)
Calvin Remsberg (Director/Producer)
Lee Martino (Choreographer)

Invited Panelists:
Michael Donovan (Casting Director)

5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
BREAK for off-site dinner

7:30 PM - 10:30 PM

LA THEATRE SCENE (Panel)

Representatives from the various LA Theatre companies talk about the state of things and what’s going on, what they need/want from the actors they see.

Confirmed Panelists:
Barbara Beckley (Artistic Director, The Colony Theatre)
Ivan Rivas (Actors' Equity Association)
Lewis Wilkenfeld (Artistic Director Cabrillo Musical Theatre)
Chad Borden (Producing Director Havok Theatre Company)
Douglas Clayton

Invited Panelists:
Michael Ritchie (Artistic Director, Center Theatre Group)

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Sunday, August 08, 2010

11:30 AM - 1:00 PM

ACTOR LIFE: It's About More Than Booking Jobs (Panel)

Experts talk about cultivating a full and rich life that supports your acting career.

Confirmed Panelists:
Barbara Deutsch (Career and Life Coach)
K Callan (Actor and Award Winning Author)
Davis K. Brimberg Ph.D. (Licensed Clinical Psychologist specializing in performance concerns)

1:00 PM - 1:30 PM
Lite Lunch Schmooze

1:30 PM - 3:15 PM

PRACTICALITIES (Panel)

Which headshots work? Which ones get immediately rejected? How important is your reel? What about your resume? Mixed panel discusses the tools of the trade and how actors can do themselves every favor by having these elements up to date and in place.

Confirmed Panelists:
Ray Garcia (Actor/Photographer)
Jacole Kitchen (Agent, KSR)

3:15 PM - 3:30 PM
Coffee Break Schmooze

3:30 PM - 5:00 PM

IT'S WHO YOU KNOW (Panel)

How to make meaningful connections in the industry, use technologies like social media, and not be annoying.

Confirmed Panelists:
Dallas Travers (Author)
Kat Landsberg (Producer, Pariah Entertainment Group)
Jacole Kitchen (Agent, KSR)

5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
Break for off-site dinner, and move to NoHo Arts Center

6:00 PM - 8:00 PM

AUDITION ASSESSMENT (Panel)

An overall assessment of performance, presence in the room, headshot and resume, material, what that person’s product is, etc. (All participants will be able to audit this session: a limited number will have the opportunity to actually audition and be assessed by the panel.) NOTE: This session will take place at the NoHo Arts Center on Magnolia, just west of Lankershim.

Confirmed Panelists:
Gerry Koch (Senior Agent, The Gage Group)
Richard Israel (Director)
Heather Provost (Broadway Producer)
Thomas Griep (Musical Director)
Evelyn Halus (Performer and Vocal Coach)

Invited Panelists:
Nick DeGruccio (Artistic Director, Havoc Theatre Company)

8:00 PM - 9:00 PM
Final Schmooze - at NoHo Arts Center

40 is the New 15's Run at the NoHo Arts Center has BEGUN!

The newest version of 40 is the New 15 had its WORLD PREMIERE at the NoHo Arts Center in North Hollywood this past weekend, and already has received rave reviews from critics!

Stage Scene LA calls it a "polished gem" with an "absolutely splendid cast that can sing with the best of them", concluding that "L.A. theatergoers in search of that rare entity—an original new musical that works—have one in 40 Is The New 15".

A GLAAD Media Award Nominee and participant of the prestigious ASCAP/Disney Musical Theatre Workshop, 40 is the New 15 follows the lives of five 40-year-olds who look back to their innocent days in high school, when they all dreamed of becoming successes at 40. Act I is a fun flashback to the '80s, allowing the audience to see the characters' 15-year-old selves (a wannabe neurosurgeon, a teen gymnast phenom, a computer geek, an all-too-All-American baseball fan, and a starry-eyed musical theatre fan), while Act II deals with their older, and more complicated selves going forward.

Michele Spears directs this brand-new world premiere production, with scenery and lights by Kevin Traxler (former producer for Disney). Cast members include Tod Macofsky, Dana Meller, Craig Woolson, Karole Foreman, John Allsopp, Peter Welkin, Gretchen Weiss and Lindsey Mixon.

For the rest of Stage Scene LA's rave review, and an exclusive behind-the-scenes video about building the set, go to: http://www.anmt.org/4015review.asp .

For tickets, please visit: http://www.40isthenew15.com/ !

Trailer for 40 is the New 15 below:

Musical Theatre Boot Camp 2010 - Last Chance to Register!

Next week marks the beginning of our Musical Theatre Boot Camp series! Check out the video below, and register now at http://www.anmt.org/bootcamp.asp !

This year, we have tons of classes, including:


For actors:

• LEARNING A DANCE COMBINATION QUICKLY

• COLD READING for AUDITIONS

• BRINGING A SONG TO LIFE
  
  
• FINDING and USING YOUR LEGIT and BELT VOICE
  
  
• MUSICAL THEATRE PERFORMERS INTENSIVE

For writers:

• OUTLINING LAB
  
  
• SUMMER BOOK LAB
  
  
• THE ART OF WRITING DIALOGUE
  
  
• LYRIC MASTERWORK ANALYSIS
  
  
• ADAPTATION: the Secrets of Storytelling
  
  
• BUILDING STRONG PLOTS & 3-DIMENSIONAL CHARACTERS

For composers:

• PREPARING YOUR SCORE in FINALE NOTATION
  
  
• MUSICAL STYLES AND GENRES
  
  
• CHORAL WRITING FOR MUSICAL THEATRE

For producers:

• HOW DOES A MUSICAL GET FINANCED?
  
  
• Q & A with ENTERTAINMENT ATTORNEYS

To register, please visit http://www.anmt.org/bootcamp.asp ! If you have any questions, email us at academy@anmt.org.

"For Richer, For Poorer": Four 15-Minute Musicals

It's that time again! Time for our annual "15 Minute Musicals", a highly-anticipated event where the participants of our Core Curriculum get to showcase their work (and the rest of the curious community comes out to see the new talent!).

This season there will be four 15-minute musicals, featuring the same cast of five actors. The writers have been given a theme of “For Richer, For Poorer”, and have cooked up four wildly different approaches to this theme: an outrageous family squabble over a cookie dough recipe; a porn movie with a G-rated director at the helm; Hansel and Gretel all grown up but delusional that the Witch is still out to eat 'em; and three exotic plants singing for their lives.

The four shows presented each evening (June 28 and 29) are:

• “Dough!”, with book by Sarah Hernandez, music by Clifford J. Tasner, and lyrics by Ron Ovadia.
  
  
• “Shoot Ma!”, with book by Joe Moe, music by Ryan Luevano, and lyrics by Richard Hefner
  
  
• “Witch Is It?”, with book by Maureen Borillo, music by Matthew Levine, and lyrics by Richard Castle
  
  
• “Green Thumb”, with book by Joan Enguita, music by Nancy Gitlin, and lyrics by Joan Enguita and Karrie Vach

Starring: Sonia Alcazar, Patrick Foley, Barry O'Neil, Emily Kimmel Plotkin, and Gabrielle Wagner.

The four musicals are directed by John Sparks, with music direction by Jake Anthony.

Tickets are $25; the performances begin at 7:30pm. For tickets, reservations and more info: www.anmt.org !

38 Days of Musicals This Summer!

This summer from July 16 through August 22nd, the Academy for New Musical Theatre is producing six weeks of new musicals, seven days a week: productions, workshops, concerts, lectures, seminars, two conferences on the business of musical theatre (one for actors, one for writers), as well as offering several dozen courses in the craft of writing or acting or producing musical theatre. Check out the video below for more information! If you want to buy tickets, please visit: http://www.anmt.org/summer2010.asp.

Show this Monday at the Colony Theatre!

The second annual Got Musical! is taking place this Monday, April 19th at the Colony Theatre in Burbank! Got Musical! is a sneak preview of brand-new musicals in development for producers across the country (and lucky audience members), giving an insight into our process for creating new musicals from scratch specifically for producers and theatre companies.

Musicals to be showcased include thirteen new shows currently in development for producers:

Windjammers by Robin Share and Clay Zambo -- songs and stories about shipping on the Great Lakes.

A Midsummersausage Night's Dream by Joanne Koch, Bill Johnson and Larry Todd Johnson - a fanciful retelling of Shakespeare in the land of the Cheeseheads.

Got Milk by Hillary Rollins, Bill Johnson and Kellen Blair -- everyone's favorite all-bovine musical revue.

Those Circus Boys by Charmaine Spencer, Beverly Crain and Aaron Coleman -- the early days of the Ringling Brothers.

Aging Out by Tara Redepenning, Hillary Rollins and Darin Goulet -- What happens to foster care kids when they turn 18 and the System stops taking care of them?

Powder Puff Pilots by Marian Partee, Cindy O'Connor and Noelle Donfeld -- 14 brave female pilots in the 1920's, and their historic flying race.

Black & White Christmas by Chana Wise and Carl Johnson - Jimmy Stewart, Judy Garland, Bing Crosby and Natalie Wood to the rescue, on Christmas Eve!

Mistletoe, Mistletoe by Eric Dodson and Alan Ross Fleishman -- Poor Aaron, fearing his girlfriend has dumped him, wishes he had the last year to live over. Careful what you wish for!

e-$cape by Scott Guy and Clifford Tasner - a cyberspace thriller.

The Ring by Eric Dodson and Alan Ross Fleishman - Will the high school reunion of some old rivals unearth TRUTH or...CAT FIGHTS?

A Dog's Tale by Carla Porter, Brian Leader and Brad Beaver -- based on Mark Twain's dark dark short story.

Ghost(s) by Kincaid Jones, Brian Woodbury and Noelle Donfeld -- a mistaken communication forces a community theatre troupe to put on a terrrrrible musical adaptation of Ibsen's play, rather than a musical based on the Patrick Swayze movie they thought they were getting.

Stigma Pi by Chris Smith, Jake Anthony and Mitch Glaser -- a musical soap opera filled with horny college girls and the horny college guys who love to love them.

Got Musical! takes place at 7:30pm on Monday, April 19th at the Colony Theatre in Burbank. Tickets are $10. For more information, and to make a reservation, please visit www.anmt.org and click on Got Musical!

It’s sure to be a fun night!

Another Risk-Free Musical This Summer!

Just like last year, we at ANMT are producing a musical for performance in North Hollywood - but this year we're doing it at almost ten times the scale! There will be a live band, a bigger theatre, more elaborate scenery, costumes and lights; and of course the budget is much bigger. Obviously, the stakes are way higher this time around…

Now, you’re probably asking yourself – who in their right mind would produce a brand-new musical in today’s economy? In Los Angeles? In the summer…!? Well, simple answer: someone who saw a 156% return on their dollar last year using the same business plan (aka us!) Now we’re trying to repeat our success.

As our Executive Director Scott Guy says, it’s all about pre-sales. Last year, we reached out to our members, friends, and fan base and requested everyone to buy tickets in advance for the workshop production of 40 is the New 15. Guy insisted that the Academy would not commit to production until pre-sales equaled the entire budget, from opening night to closing night, every single dollar. It took a massive email and telephone campaign, but we did it: we raised the entire budget by selling tickets in advance...and so, we were able to produce 100% risk-free, and the show went on to become a big summer hit. It’s received a lot of attention, even garnering a 2010 GLAAD Media Award nomination, and being selected by Stephen Schwartz for the ASCAP/Disney Musical Theatre Workshop at the Disney Studios in February.

This larger production of 40 is the New 15 is scheduled to open on July 16th and run through August 22nd at the NoHo Arts Center in North Hollywood. A show described by critics as “a diamond in the rough” and “sweetly entertaining”, it follows the lives of five 40-year-olds looking back to when they were 15 looking forward to being 40.

We’re looking for $15,000 in pre-sales by April 15th (with the option of exchanging tickets for different dates, in case your schedule changes!). If you want to be part of musical history by supporting a brand new musical, visit our website www.anmt.org for reservations and additional information.