George Stiles and Anthony Drewe are to expand their support for new musical theatre writing with an annual award that provides mentorship and an enhanced professional profile for writers and support for the development of their work, which will have an industry showcase.
The duo wrote the scores for Honk! and Betty Blue Eyes and the new music and lyrics for Mary Poppins. Their own careers took off after winning the Vivian Ellis Prize for Just So.
Stiles and Drewe said, “writing a good musical is really hard. We were lucky enough to receive advice and support from some of the best in the industry, including Cameron [Mackintosh], during the early years of our careers.
"Together with MMD, we’ve long been championing new writers in the UK and we hope this new Mentorship Award will really make a difference to the quality of musical theatre writing in the UK.”
A panel of multi-disciplinary industry judges will select the work whose writers will participate on the year long programme which will include, amongst other things, a monthly writers’ lab and a writing retreat.
Theatrical licensing agency Music Theatre International, whose European office is to open in London, are funding the award for the first three years.
Applicants must be UK residents and current Professional Writer Associate or Writer Associate members of Mercury Musical Developments who have not yet had a professional production of their work. Submitted work will be entered into both the Mentorship Award and the existing Best New Song Prize.
The deadline for submissions is 9 March. For further information on the entry criteria and application process, visit either Stiles and Drewe or MMD.
The winners will be announced on 15 April.