New Works By Women Writers Showcased at Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase

On Friday, March 10, upcoming Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase concert will celebrate new works-in-process created or co-created by women writers. Immigration, the development of Luna Park, and new adaptations of the films "Bread and Roses" and "Teeth" are among the subjects of Prospect Theater Company's event.

"It's an exciting time for Good to Go as we embark on our second concert showcasing new musicals by women that are 'good to go' and ready for production," said The Good to Go Festival's Producing Artistic Director Judy Zocchi. "This year, we feature shows that have been developed at the BMI Workshop, the Dramatist Guild Fellows Program, the Sundance Institute, the Public Theater and many more outstanding organizations.

Conceived by Zocchi as a response to media reports noting a lack of female voices in the American theater, the Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase will be co-hosted by Ann Harada ("Avenue Q") and Sara Wordsworth ("In Transit"). The evening will feature works by, and interviews with, Jill Abramowitz, Amy Burgess, Sara Cooper, Rachel Griffin, Anna K. Jacobs, Hyeyoung Kim, Ellen McLaughlin, Julia Meinwald, and Katya Stanislavskaya. The concert will be directed by Christine O'Grady with musical direction by Britt Bonney. The complete list of collaborators and shows can be found below.

Prospect Theater Company, under the leadership of Cara Reichel, Producing Artistic Director and Melissa Huber, Managing Director, in partnership with The Good to Go Festival, continues its 2016/17 IGNITE Series at The TimesCenter with the Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase on Friday, March 10, at 8 p.m.

"Prospect is thrilled to once again partner with The Good to Go Festival, after our March 2016 concert collaboration," said Reichel. "We are honored to bring attention to new works from some of the industry's most exciting female writers."�

The Good to Go Festival is a platform that features plays, musicals and songs written by women that are "good to go" and ready for full production. Launched in 2015 with the Good to Go Summit, a day of panel discussions on the topic of gender parity, the Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase ushers in the festival's next phase, actively putting women's work in front of audiences and industry professionals.

March 10 Songwriter's Showcase Show List:

"Bread and Roses"
Book and lyrics by Jill Abramowitz
Music by Brad Alexander
Inspired by true events, "Bread and Roses" is a musical adaptation of the film (by director Ken Loach and screenwriter Paul Laverty) about a group of Los Angeles janitors who rise up against their corrupt bosses and attempt to unionize.�

"Elevator Heart"
Words by Sara Cooper
Music by Amy Burgess and Julia Meinwald
An all-female ensemble musical theater piece about being a woman right here, right now --�that will punch you in the face while kissing you on the lips.

"We Have Apples"
Book and lyrics by Rachel Griffin
Music by Rachel Griffin and Aron Accurso
Paralyzed by her mental illness, Jane, a quirky young writer, is admitted into a psychiatric facility. When a preventable tragedy occurs in the facility, Jane must help her fellow patients expose the inadequate care in the ward before more patients meet a similar fate.

"The Names We Gave Him"
Text by Ellen McLaughlin
Music by Peter Foley
Inspired by a true story, "The Names We Gave Him" concerns an amnesiac veteran of the First World War, the doctor who treated him, and the many women who, in denial of their grief, claimed him as their lost beloved. �

"Luna Park"
Lyrics by Michael Cooper
Book by Daniel F. Levin
Music by Hyeyoung Kim
"Luna Park" chronicles the partnership of Skip Dundy and Fred Thompson, the true fathers of the modern themed amusement park. A full generation before Walt Disney, they created at Coney Island an attraction called Luna Park, a place designed to allow everyone to forget the pressures of modern industrial society and remember how to play.

"Teeth"
Book by Michael R. Jackson & Anna K. Jacobs
Music by Anna K. Jacobs
Words by Michael R. Jackson
Adapted from the 2007 Sundance Award-winning indie horror film by Mitchell Lichtenstein, "Teeth" tells the story of Dawn O'Keefe, an evangelical Christian teen with a dirty little secret: she has teeth in her vagina. When the men in Dawn's life try to exploit her, she is forced to confront the teeth and decide whether to sacrifice or harness them.�

"Resident Alien"
Book, music and lyrics by Katya Stanislavskaya
"Resident Alien" is an original story of a family of three who are part of the third wave of Soviet and post-Soviet immigration to the U.S. in the 1990s.� The family -- a professor stuck in the past, a musician willing to adapt, and a teenager whose culture shock coincides with her coming-of-age -- represents the full spectrum of the successes and failures of the immigrant experience.�

Prospect Theater Company (founded in 1998) is dedicated to fostering and showcasing today's new voices shaping tomorrow's musicals. Since 2000, the company has fully produced more than 30 premiere musicals in New York City, in addition to new plays and numerous re-inventions of classic works. Reflecting its investment in the future of the field, Prospect leads a variety of developmental initiatives, including an annual Musical Theater Lab for emerging writers, and a Summer Intensive training program for teenagers.

In recognition of its enterprising and risk-taking new musical theater, the company received a 2016 OBIE Award grant. Their work as a community anchor for emerging artists that strengthens the quality, diversity, and dynamism of American theater was also honored with a 2013 National Theatre Company Grant from the American Theatre Wing.

The Good to Go Songwriter's Showcase will be held at 8 p.m. on March 10 at The TimesCenter, 242 W. 41st St. Single tickets are $20-40.