Ben West News

UnsungMusicalsCo. heads to Washington, D.C. where Show Time! creator Ben West will give a two-part lecture series for The Library of Congress entitled Diversity and the Birth of Broadway.

David Mitchell is to make his West End debut next year in Ben Elton's stage adaptation of the critically acclaimed BBC TV sitcom, Upstart Crow. This all-new comedy - written especially for the stage - will see Mitchell once more don the bald wig and bardish coddling pouch in his iconic characterisation of Will Shakespeare. Tickets go on sale at 12noon TODAY from UpstartCrowTheComedy.com

UnsungMusicalsCo. (Ben West, Artistic Director) presents the new documentary musical 45 Minutes from Coontown, created, written and performed by Ben West, the founder of UMC and a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, with musical continuity and arrangements by Fran Minarik, and direction and musical staging by Parker Esse. 45 Minutes from Coontown is a celebration of black musical theatre, tracing its history from the late-1800s through 1999, and featuring more than 30 songs almost exclusively by black writers. Developed over more than four years, with more than 20 archives in more than 10 states, 45 Minutes from Coontown documents the story of an art form that grew amidst a nation's racial prejudice, and the many African-American authors who not only furthered the form itself but were also instrumental in the development of the American popular song.

UnsungMusicalsCo. (Ben West, Artistic Director) presents the new documentary musical 45 Minutes from Coontown, created, written and performed by Ben West, the founder of UMC and a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, with musical continuity and arrangements by Fran Minarik, and direction and musical staging by Parker Esse.

UnsungMusicalsCo. presents the new documentary musical 45 Minutes from Coontown, created, written and performed by Ben West, the founder of UMC and a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, with musical continuity and arrangements by Fran Minarik, and direction and musical staging by Parker Esse. 

UnsungMusicalsCo. (Ben West, Artistic Director) presents the new documentary musical 45 Minutes from Coontown, created, written and performed by Ben West, the founder of UMC and a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award, with musical continuity and arrangements by Fran Minarik, direction and musical staging by Parker Esse, and music direction by Dionne McClain-Freeney. 

UnsungMusicalsCo. (Ben West, Artistic Director) has announced, today, its Fall 2019 Calendar of Events scheduled at various mid-Atlantic locations. First up is the new documentary musical 45 Minutes from Coontown, which traces the history of black musical theatre and is the second installment in The Show Time! Trilogy; the season continues with Sex, Satire, and Song, an exhibit curated for Yale University; Diversity and the Birth of Broadway, a two-part lecture series for the Library of Congress; and concludes with the new musical revue *The Passing Show of 2019. UMC's 2019 season launched in March with the UMC Writers Lab*.

Day two of West End Live has come to a close! Check out the performance from Ben Stock's West End Sing-A-Long!

After a run of successful headlining shows, as well as dates supporting Houndmouth earlier this year, indie icon Ben Kweller has announced a solo tour through the West Coast beginning with a festival appearance on April 13 in Dallas, TX, making his way through Phoenix, AZ, San Francisco, CA, Portland, OR, Denver, CO and more. Garage darlings The Technicolors will open in Arizona while LA's MainMan and NoiseCo comrades, Modern Love Child, will be opening all following dates. Tickets are on sale now. A complete list of tour dates are available below.

The UK's ultimate Michael Jackson tribute show Michael Starring Ben is to get its West End premiere with an exclusive one-off performance at the legendary London Palladium.

Multi-platinum entertainer Sara Evans is offering a vulnerable, acoustic performance for her haunting hit, “All The Love You Left Me.” Following her headlining run on CMT's Next Women of Country Tour earlier this year, the “artist in full musical flight” (Associated Press) visited CMT's 330 Studios in Nashville to film a live performance music video with her band, including siblings Matt Evans and Lesley Evans Lyons and son, Avery. The clip will debut Monday, October 22 as part of digital music series “CMT Next Women of Country Live 2018 at CMT.com. In addition, an acoustic version of the song is available now HERE.

Show Time! The First 100 Years of the American Musical is created, written, and performed by Ben West, a 2017 recipient of Lincoln Center's Martin E. Segal Award. Developed over the past four years from more than twenty archives in more than ten states, Show Time! features over two dozen songs in an electrifying live-action documentary, weaving music and performance through a narrative of world, cultural, and theatre history, telling the remarkable story of this uniquely American art form, charting its evolution from the mid-1800s through 1999. Show Time! will cover seven eras of the American musical: Cosmic Collisions (1866-1899), Birth of an Art Form (1900-1924), Rise of the Golden Age (1925-1930), Golden Age, Part One (1931-1950), Golden Age, Part Two (1951-1970), Fall of the Golden Age (1971-1980) and Growing Pains, or Identity Crisis (1981-1999).

UnsungMusicals Co. announced today its plans for the 2018 season.

The York Theatre Company has announced the line-up for its 49th anniversary season at The York Theatre at Saint Peter's.

Writer-performer Ben West offers a sneak peek and discussion of his upcoming documentary musical, SHOW TIME! THE FIRST 100 YEARS OF THE AMERICAN MUSICAL, which premieres Sept. 13 at the Theatre at Saint Peter's. SHOW TIME! tells the story of a uniquely American art form, charting its evolution from the mid-1800s thru 1999, and featuring more than two dozen songs that shaped the canon.

The New York Musical Festival, which nurtures the creation, production, and public presentation of stylistically, thematically, and culturally diverse new musicals to ensure the future vitality of musical theatre, celebrated its opening night last night, July 9. 

UnsungMusicalsCo. and The York Theatre Company announced today a partnership for the next three years for UMC's Show Time! Trilogy. UnsungMusicalsCo. (UMC) focuses on researching and developing prescient projects that explore the vibrancy of the American musical theatre canon, and how past works influence the artists and repertoire of today and tomorrow.

'The Hero - A West End Tribute' is being released in November 2018 to mark the 100th Anniversary of the end of World War One and will raise funds for Help For Heroes.

West End's free outdoor performance event West End Live wraps up today! Ben Stock took to the stage and you can watch his performance below!

The New York Musical Festival (NYMF) announced today further selections for 2018 NYMF. The final invited production as well as a series of developmental readings and concerts will join the initially announced Next Link Projects. Now in its fifteenth year, the 2018 Festival will take place July 9th through August 5th at locations on West 42nd St. in New York City. Dan Markley serves as NYMF Executive Director and Rachel Sussman serves as Producing Artistic Director.