David Spencer appears in...
Valparaiso Students Receive “Fantastick” Instruction
Students in the Creative Musical Theatre Composition class at Indiana’s Valparaiso High School were treated to a one-day session of the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop October 23, lead by Workshop steering committee member Frank Evans and facilitated by program designer Alice Gamble. The students, who actively write musical theatre pieces during the school year using the teachings of Workshop founder Lehman Engel,…
New Works Highlighted at Tony-Honored BMI Musical Theatre Workshop Showcase
The Drama League, Drama Desk and Tony-honored BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop held its biannual showcase of new songs from Workshop writers June 12 at the Jerry Orbach Theatre. The showcase, which highlighted 11 new musicals and 23 Workshop writers, was made possible by a generous grant from the Cameron Mackintosh Foundation. (Front row, L-R): Michael Bush, BMI’s Jean Banks,…
Harrington Awards Honor Theatre Workshop Students
The 8th BMI Foundation Jerry Harrington Awards for Creative Excellence were given at a ceremony held on June 11 at the BMI New York offices. These awards, funded by BMI Assistant Vice President and BMI Foundation board member Evelyn Buckstein in honor of her colleague, the late Jerry Harrington, who was passionately devoted to musical theatre, are given to a member of each BMI Lehman Engel Musical…
BMI Workshop Offers Students Crash Course in Musical Theatre
The Tony-honored BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop hosted a group of 20 students from Valparaiso (Indiana) High School for a one-day "mini-workshop" session. The teens, who actively write musical theatre pieces during the school year under the direction of Alice Gambel using the teachings of Workshop founder Lehman Engel, come to New York every other year to present their works to the Workshop's esteemed faculty. …
Special Tony Awarded to BMI’s Musical Theatre Workshop
The BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop, an innovative program widely regarded as the foremost training ground for new writing voices, was presented with a special Tony Award at the 16th Annual Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre. Tony Award winners and Workshop alumni Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty presented the prestigious award to Advanced Workshop moderators Richard Engquist and Maury…
BMI Workshop Members to Showcase New Musicals at Cardiff Festival
Congratulations to BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop members David Arthur, Jeffrey Lodin, David Spencer, Daniel S. Aquisto, Sammy Buck and William G. Squier, who are among the composers, lyricists and librettists chosen to showcase their new works at the 2006 Cardiff International Festival of Musical Theatre. This unique event takes place Nov. 3-5 in the city of Cardiff in the south of Wales. …
BMI Musical Theatre Workshop Wins Special Drama Desk Award
Past and Present Members Nominated for Outstanding Music and Lyrics The BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop will receive a special Drama Desk Award "for nurturing, developing and promoting new talent for the musical theater." This prestigious award will be presented to the Workshop during the 2006 Drama Desk Awards ceremony, set for May 21 at LaGuardia Concert Hall at New…
Workshop Members Fire Up New Works at ‘Smoker’
The BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop held one of its in-house "Smokers" recently, where members of each of the four Workshop classes presented the best new songs from their works-in-progress. Workshop personnel and writers who participated in the "Smoker" gather before the showcase. Pictured…
Workshop Master Class Welcomes Guest Speaker David Yazbek

Grammy Award-winning BMI composer David Yazbek was a guest speaker at the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop Master Class held recently at BMI's New York office. Moderated by BMI Workshop committee member David Spencer, the Master Class examined two musicals developed in the Workshop: Adam Overett's Call It Courage and Carla Rose Arnone and Jason Coll's Haunted.
Composer Alan Menken Saluted at Concert and Reception
BMI composer Alan Menken, winner of eight Academy Awards, seven Golden Globes and 10 Grammys, was saluted by the Kaufman Center's Broadway Close Up series at a special concert entitled "Part of Your World: The Music of Alan Menken." Pictured…
