NMI’s RESOURCE CENTER for musical theatre writers

insider tips

glosssary of terms

FREE format video

public domain ideas

FREE curriculum video

theatre archives

Welcome to the musical theatre writers’ Resource Center.

This is a FREE page hosted by New Musicals Inc.
As of September 1, 2024, we are NO LONGER maintaining a list of Producers and Theatres, or a Contests Listing. We have found we are no longer able to keep those lists properly up-to-date.
BUT we encourage you to check out the offerings from our friends at MusicalWriters.Com who have a wealth of resources for musical theatre writers!
What you can still find on this page is:
  • an idea library of thousands of royalty-free public domain stories and plots
  • a glossary of musical theatre terms (with audio/video examples)
  • access to short videos filled with tips and advice from NMI staff
  • access to critical feedback options and format guidelines from NMI

Enjoy!


FORMAT LIKE A PRO


Watch this FREE video to learn how to implement the FORMAT GUIDELINES specifically designed by New Musicals Inc. Make sure your script and score look professional and are ready to go into development.

Want more tools to help you get your formatting right?

*** VISIT OUR FORMATTING PRODUCTS PAGE ***



LIBRARY OF IDEAS (Royalty Free)

FREE ACCESS to a library of 1000+ downloadable royalty-free stories, plays, plots and other inspiring indeas we’ve found in the public domain for you. There’s a brief excerpt of every item in the library, so you can take a quick glance to see whether or not you want to read the whole text. In addition, the NMI staff has made annotations and recommendations for many of the titles in the library about their potential to become musicals. Save hundreds of hours of research and reading!


Here are some random samples from our listings of story ideas in the public domain:

      • Story of Wali Dad the Simple-Hearted (by Andrew Lang)
      • The Glass Dog (by L. Frank Baum)
      • Lost on Dress Parade (by O. Henry)
      • The Kiss (by Guy de Maupassant)
      • Madame Hermet (by Guy de Maupassant)

      *** LINK TO COMPLETE LIBRARY OF IDEAS ***


IMPROVE YOUR CRAFT


New Musicals Inc. offers a whole series of professional online LABS for bookwriters, lyricists, and composers who are serious about improving their craft. This video is a FREE sample of one of the lecture videos from the all new Lyric Lab 1 - Fundamentals.

FREE PROGRESSION HANDOUT


NEED SOME FEEDBACK?


Have you written a musical? Are you working on one? NMI has smart, professional, detailed dramaturges who will help you make sure you are on the strongest path to fulfilling the promise of your work. From video and audio feedback packages to one-on-one dramaturgical sessions, we have what you need to take the next step forward. We even have an annual contest that results in a workshop and concert reading in Los Angeles.

"We really did appreciate all your help - you’ve got just the right tone to critique. It’s a matter of 'A Spoonful of Sugar Helps The Medicine Go Down'!”
                    ~~George Stiles
          (Mary Poppins, Honk, Soho Cinders)

*** Check out NMI's Feedback options ***


MUSICAL THEATRE ARCHIVES


Here's a sample of items from our vault of historical photos, and musical theatre trivia about events that happened THIS month in the past:

      • November 19, 1973     Savion Glover, the youngest person to win Best Choreographer Tony Award for his work on Bring in Da Noise, Bring in Da Funk, was born today. Glover also appeared in The Tap Dance Kid, Jelly’s Last Jam, and the film Tap.
      • November 5, 1987     Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s adaptation of familiar folk tales, Into the Woods, opened today on Broadway.
      • November 18, 1909     Four-time Oscar winner and lyricist for L’il Abner, St. Louis Woman, and Top Banana, Johnny Mercer, was born today. Mercer teamed with some of Hollywood’s top composers, including Harold Arlen, Henry Mancini, Harry Warren, Jimmy McHugh, Jerome Kern, and Marvin Hamlisch, among others.

      *** Click to access the full archives. ***


INSIDER TIPS AND ADVICE


Here is one of our videos with insider tips and advice:


GLOSSARY OF TERMS


Here are some samples from our Glossary of definitions of musical theatre terms. We will be adding to this over time - as well as adding actual sample scores and sound recordings. Check back often!

      • Mister Golightly:

        A YouTube character who compares “who sang this role the best” — comparing, for instance, a bunch of performances of the same section of On My Own from Les Miserables.

      • ANMT:

        Academy for New Musical Theatre. The academic branch of New Musicals Inc. They offer classes, workshops, readings and other support for writers studying the craft of musical theatre.

      • Double rhyme:

        Perfect rhyme in which the accent involves two syllables; the first syllable is accented, the second is unaccented. Such as:

        fatal/natal
        screaming/steaming
        daughter/water

         

        (also called “Feminine Rhyme”)

      • Dramatic action:

        The exercise of a character’s will in the face of an opposing force. Examples include:

        Mama Rose standing up to: her father, the agents, Herbie, etc.
        Tevye’s daughters standing up to their father.
        Maria teaching the Von Tropp children to sing against their father’s will.
        Sweeney Todd exacting his revenge upon the Judge.

      • Anapest:

        A three-syllable unit comprised of two unstressed syllables followed by an stressed accent. Such as:

        • Are you LONEsome tonNIGHT?
        • Do you MISS me tonNIGHT?

      *** Click to access the full glossary. ***


The Music Man – 1957. From the New York Public Library collections.


Looking through the window
You can see a distant steeple.
Not a sign of people.
Who wants people?

--Lorenz Hart