NAMT Awarded $60,000 Grant by National Endowment for the Arts

By Allison Klamkin
11 Dec 2009

The National Alliance for Musical Theatre was awarded a $60,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts on Dec. 9 for the second consecutive year. The grant was the highest of the 180 awarded in the Musical Theater and Theater categories.

The grant will support NAMT’s 2010 Fall Conference and the 22nd Annual Festival of New Musicals, to be held in New York City. The Fall Conference, according to press notes, will “bring together NAMT’s membership, which includes some of the leading professional producers of musical theatre, to learn the latest on new work development and production.”

The Festival of New Musicals will bring together NAMT members and industry professionals. Forty-five minute readings of eight new musicals will be presented over a two-day period in an effort to “introduce writers to the people who can develop and produce their work.”

The 21st Annual Festival in 2009 had 700 attendees and featured participation by 200 artists. Past Festival shows include The Drowsy Chaperone, Ordinary Days, The Story of My Life and Vanities.

Kathy Evans, NAMT’s Executive director said in a press statement, “It is such an honor to receive this acknowledgement of our important work from the NEA. We are proud of our track record in helping very talented writers find further productions of their musicals. And this is also a testament to our 145 members – theatres, commercial producers, universities, and developmental organizations – who are at the forefront of the development of new musicals across the country.”

A national service organization, The National Alliance for Musical Theatre was founded in 1985 and is dedicated exclusively to “nurturing the creation, development, and production of new musicals.”