FROM THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR MUSICAL THEATRE MARCH 2012 E‐NEWSLETTER Since appearing in our 2009 Festival, Band Geeks! (by Mark Allen, Gaby Alter, Gordon Greenberg and Tommy Newman) has been taking a unique development track in preparation to be licensed. We check in with one of the writers, Tommy Newman, to catch up with the high‐steppers. Band Geeks! is an exciting new musical tribute to marching bands and misfits everywhere! With toe‐tapping music and a hilarious and touching script, the story follows the misadventures of the Belleview High Marching Beavers. With only a handful of members and dwindling funds, the band is close to extinction. When a troubled athlete is relegated to their ranks, tuba‐playing band captain Elliott and his best friend Laura must find a way to unite the band, embrace their inner geek and save the Marching Beavers! Band Geeks! has undergone some changes in the past 2 years since it was in the Festival. First, you headed up to Goodspeed Musicals for a production. What was it like to get it up on its feet? It is always fantastic to work with the folks at Goodspeed! I'm constantly humbled by their support and willingness to help foster new musicals. Creating a musical takes so much time and effort, so to see it finally realized on‐stage is both exciting and informative! The process of putting a show up inevitably becomes a whirlwind, but this was a great opportunity to really take a breath and live in the process and well...play with the material. We worked non‐stop to tighten up the script and the score, and we had an amazingly patient and talented cast and a tireless team of designers. I think we really took on the spirit of the workshop production and continued making adjustments up until the very end! It was also wonderful to have a producing organization put so much faith in the writers and the material, and to have such an overwhelmingly positive response from the community was just the cherry on top of it all. You recently had a production at a summer theatre school with teenagers and are currently in production for a university version. How do these versions differ from the original version? We had the show produced at Stagedoor Manor this past summer with about twenty talented young performers, a piano, a bass and a drum, and it was so much fun. They had a great time putting the material on its feet and test‐running the expanded version, and altogether it went very smoothly! We are currently producing it in its largest form to date at Troy University in Troy, Alabama with a cast of 25, and a pit of twelve that will be featured on stage with the performers. It will be very exciting to see all of those elements come together in a town where marching band is considered one of the necessities of life. We are even having a local marching band high‐step in for the curtain call every night, a fun little addition that will be a part of the materials we're licensing! What have you learned from the different variations? The primary way these productions differ from the original version is obviously the size, but also in the age of the performers. There's a certain authenticity that comes with this particular material the closer in age they are to actual high‐schoolers, but I also really love the adult sensibility and commentary that our adult cast was able to bring to the show. The great thing is it works either way! The show is about to be licensed through Music Theatre International. What is the state of the show in its licensed form? With this material, we feel that it's important for any producing organization and director to be able to take the core of what we have written and shape it to suit their needs. So we have designed the show with a basic cast of twelve that can be expanded to fit as many people as—say, a high school or college, would want to use. You can have additional instrumentalists, a small drum line, color guard, dancers and there's even a featured role for the mascot at the end, a dancing beaver! The instrumentalists have the option to play on stage, but it's not a requirement. It all just depends on how much time and energy the producers want to invest in that particular production. The important thing is that they make the material work for them—the possibilities go on and on! The show will head off to its regional premiere at The Human Race Theatre Co. this summer (May 31‐June 17). How will that production reflect what is now being licensed? We are so excited to have our regional premiere at The Human Race Theatre. Mark Allen and I had a fantastic experience there developing Tinyard Hill, and we're looking forward to working with them on this show. They are going to be presenting the basic version with the cast of twelve, like the production we had at Goodspeed. It will be the core of the materials we are licensing through MTI. Now that it is about to be licensed and tested to be adaptable across ages, what is your pitch for why NAMT members should give the show a look for their upcoming seasons? Band Geeks! is an ensemble‐driven musical full of catchy tunes and loveable characters that will get your community involved and show them the value of new musical theatre. It's a show about the importance of art and arts education, and it's an opportunity to make partnerships with schools and get young people involved. Band Geeks! is also a heckuva lotta fun! It's a bright, upbeat show with a positive message that is great for families and audiences of any age. For more information on the upcoming production of Band Geeks! at The Human Race Theatre Co., please visit humanracetheatre.org.