New York City's New Voices Collective Makes London Debut in Fall

By Mark Shenton
July 15, 2008

The New Voices Collective, formed in New York City in 2001 to showcase up-and-coming theatre composers — and which soon went on to see more established songwriters sign on — is to present the first in a series of concerts in London.

The debut concert will take place at the Southbank Centre's Purcell Room on Oct. 12 under the title New Voices – Broadway Outside the Box, with a cast of leading performers including Damien Humbley (The Last Five Years at the Menier Chocolate Factory, The Woman in White and Fiddler on the Roof in the West End), Eliza Lumely (Mary Poppins), Claire Moore (Miss Saigon, Dianne Pilkington (Wicked), Lara Pulver (The Last Five Years at the Menier Chocolate Factory, Parade at the Donmar Warehouse), Oliver Tompsett (Wicked) and Matthew White (Ragtime).

The evening will be hosted by Nigel Planer (Chicago, We Will Rock You, Wicked).

The list of songwriters represented in the concert was not announced, but it's expected that the NVC's pool of American writers will be tapped.

Songwriters who have taken part in the New Voices Collective concerts in New York include Jason Robert Brown, Andrew Lippa, Georgia Stitt, John Kander, Tom Kitt, Jeff Blumenkrantz, Mary Heisler, Zina Goldrich, Michael John La Chiusa, Jenny Giering, Steve Marzullo, Paul Loesel, Stephen Schwartz and more.

Among the challenges set by the collective has been to ask established songwriters to step outside of their normal habitat and explore different styles with new collaborators, and asking several composers to try their hand at the same song.

To book tickets, contact the box office on 0871 663 2500, or visit www.southbankcentre.co.uk.