The Word on NYMF
…from the Press
“This admirably polished newcomer has grown to impressive proportions. How to choose among such an abundance of shows?”
- Charles Isherwood, New York Times
“More than enough wattage to jolt audiences back up in their seats. The next three weeks are a show lover’s buffet, crammed with Broadway stars, high-profile writers and buzz heavy new works.”
- Adam Feldman, Time Out New York
“The Festival sets out to make musical theatre hip again. NYMF has something beyond the typical grandstanding: credibility.”
- David Kornhaber, Village Voice
“Having a show in the New York Musical Theatre Festival is equivalent to getting an independent film into Sundance.”
- Rob Kendt, Newsday
“Broadway insiders attend NYMF in droves, as do theater buffs who want to be ahead of the curve.”
- Philip Boroff, Bloomberg News
…from Industry Professionals
“A wonderful booster rocket to musical theatre lovers everywhere.”
- Kevin McCollum, producer, Avenue Q and Rent
"I am not only honoured but thrilled to support and be involved with the New York Musical Theatre Festival, because it's more than a good idea: it is essential to the future prospects of the next generation."
- Baz Luhrmann, Honorary 2010 Festival Chairman
“The New York Musical Theatre Festival arrived on the scene with a burst of energy big enough to command the attention of the busiest cultural center in the world. Their passionate commitment to developing new musicals, new writers, and new ways of doing shows is very good news for Broadway and for the musical theater form itself.”
- Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment of the Arts
…from NYMF Participants
"If it weren't for NYMF, it would be so much harder for any of us to see a future for our musicals."
- Anthony Rapp, creator and star of Without You, NYMF '10
"NYMF is for anyone who wants to create new, interesting musical theatre and for anyone who wants to sing along."
- Michael Lluberes, director/bookwriter/lyricist, The Boy in the Bathroom, NYMF ‘07
“I can honestly say that it was a life-changing event. It has allowed me to attract new creative and commercial partners to my show – it’s like a whole new door has opened for me as a professional musical theater writer. The NYMF team was amazing and the entire experience was intense, exciting, and rewarding.”
- Suzy Conn, writer, Plane Crazy, NYMF ‘05
"NYMF is an extraordinary and essential opportunity for new musicals and their creators. It's hard enough to write a new musical, even harder - often forbiddingly so - to produce even a reading on your own, much less a production. But with the resources, guidance, and exceptional PR skills of the NYMF team, new musicals get seen and heard in a way they just don't anywhere else. New musicals get their chance."
- Brian Yorkey, Pulitzer Prize- and Tony Award-winning author of Next to Normal, NYMF '05
“In a climate where film adaptations and corporate-produced fare often dominate the marquees of New York City, and where many bitch about the lack of new voices, the New York Musical Theatre Festival has committed themselves to fearlessly cultivating the next generation of writers, directors, choreographers, performers and designers, and created a forum where producers can take bigger risks. In our minds, bigger risks often lead to better art. And better art is well…better. NYMF isn’t just cultivating artists and producers. They are cultivating audiences, smart and diverse audiences that are hungry to be entertained and challenged.”
- Jeff Bowen and Hunter Bell, creators and stars of [title of show], NYMF ‘04
