Make New Musicals
STUDIO RETREAT SUBMISSIONS – PERFORMERS & ASSISTANTS
Students! We are now seeking singer-actors and creative team assistants in a variety of roles (music direction, directing, script supervision, music copying, dramaturgy) for our first ever Studio Retreat of a new musical. For MARVIN MAKES MUSIC, a new family musical by Caitlin Collins and Matthew Lowy, directed by Scott Weinstein, creative producer Holly Weis, dramaturg Neena Arndt, we will hold a closed door developmental process the first two weekends in November 2026, over just 4 days of rehearsal.
Click here for the Info Sheet with details on how to audition and apply for assistant jobs, and then submit your audition self-tape or assistant application below. Performers: We encourage you to submit a self-tape ASAP but we will also be present at Wirtz Late Fall Generals on September 26-27.
Submit your Audition Self-Tape and/or Assistant Application HERE
The American Music Theatre Project (AMTP) at Northwestern University was created in 2005 to support the development of new musicals, providing artists and their work-in-progress with the resources and dramaturgical support to meet key creative goals along an individualized development journey. By inviting artists and their work to Northwestern’s campus, AMTP enables Northwestern students to engage with new work in rewarding and illuminating ways through performance opportunities, assistantships, and observation. AMTP strives to foster a welcoming environment for artists of all backgrounds to create vibrant new songs and stories that bring original and valuable perspectives to the musical theatre. AMTP’s current artistic director is Dr. Masi Asare.
Follow us on Instagram at @amtpnorthwestern !
About the 2025-26 Season
YADDA YADDA YADDA: THE LYRICS OF CHERYL COONS
This newly imagined musical revue spotlights the creations of one of Chicago’s foremost musical dramatists—the celebrated lyricist Cheryl Coons! Yadda Yadda Yadda follows Cheryl as she faces off against an IRS investigator to prove she’s a professional musical theatre writer—aided by characters that leap to life from musicals written throughout her career.This revue celebrates new musical theatre and asks the timeless artist’s question: Is passion enough to sustain a lifelong career? here.
2025 CHICAGO MUSICAL THEATRE WRITERS WORKSHOP
AMTP has created a new, weekly writers’ lab for Chicago-based musical theatre composers, lyricists, and bookwriters! The Chicago Musical Theatre Writers Workshop launched in Fall 2025 for a 10-week session, providing selected participants with a forum and feedback to develop their existing work and build essential skills in the craft of writing/composing for the musical stage. Read about AMTP artistic director Masi Asare’s vision for this workshop in a recent article from NEWCITY here.
ARTIST RESEARCH RESIDENCY: JULIAN HORNIK
AMTP is excited to host the Jonathan Larson Award winning composer/lyricist Julian Hornik for our first-ever Artist Research Residency in Winter 2026. Leveraging Northwestern’s resources as a leading research university, we will connect Julian with faculty experts and research library staff as he conducts research and builds the world for his newest musical-in-progress. He’ll also lead a master class in musical theatre writing for Northwestern student writers during his residency.
